In the depths of New England winter, it can seem like the green of the landscape has all been replaced by white and grey. The perennial herbs sleep below blankets of snow, the limbs of oaks, maples, birches, all bare. We’ve spent the past Autumn harvesting and making medicine to store for the winter and carry us through until the new growth of Spring.

Nevertheless, the sleepy winter forest holds gifts of strong medicine. Behold: cedar, juniper, hemlock, and pine, to name a few. The evergreens of northern New England hold potent remedies in their needles. 

If you have ever tasted a cedar tip or a hemlock needle, then you know the instant sensation of aroma and flavor that comes from crushing a tiny needle between your teeth: aromatic, warm, piney, and a little sour. 

The unique flavor of evergreens tells us much about their medicinal properties. Aromatic: they are rich in essential oils with antimicrobial and immune stimulating properties. Warm: they increase circulation and help break a fever. Sour: they are high in vitamin C and other phytochemicals. This comes as no surprise to anyone who has used thuja (cedar) to help ward off a cold. 

But it’s not just cedar-- many of the evergreen trees can be used as warming winter remedies. They can be made into tea, added to a bath, or used as a sinus steam. I’ve even been known to boil fir branches from my christmas tree to fill my house with their lovely aroma. 

Here I will share with you a recipe for White Pine Syrup. You can substitute pine for a variety of evergreens, just make sure you positively identify any tree before using. There are a few evergreens that are poisonous, such as the yew. Also, I prefer to use windfallen branches. If you harvest directly from a living tree, please be respectful and only take what you need. Never overharvest and always ask permission and thank the tree for it’s gifts. 

 White Pine Needle Syrup
 
Ingredients:

• 1 cup fresh or dried (but still green) pine needles
• 2 cups water
• 1 cup honey or sugar

  Instructions:

1. Rinse pine needles with cold water and coarsely chop
2. In a pot, combine pine needles and water. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.
3. Let simmer for 1 hour.
4. If the water level becomes low, add a little more.
5. After 1 hour, check to see if the water level is approximately half the original volume. Reduce further or add more water accordingly.
6. Remove from heat and let cool.
7. Strain while water is still warm.
8. Combine 1 cup of tea with 1 cup of honey or sugar. Mix thoroughly.
9. Bottle, label, and store in the refrigerator.

 Take 1 tsp of syrup 2-3x/ day at the onset of a cold. You can also make herbal soda with the syrup by adding it to seltzer--about 2 oz per 16 oz of seltzer, or use it in cocktails. Get creative--the sky's the limit.  Evergreens remind us that even in winter, we are supported by the abundance of nature and the healing properties of the plants all around us. So get out those snowshoes or cross country skis and go explore the forests and woodlands in all their winter wonder.

Learn more about medicine making with plants at my "Medicine Making" class series that happens several times throughout the year.  You can find the latest info on our classes and events page here: https://www.railyardapothecary.com/classes--events.html

By Emma Merritt, staff herbalist here at Railyard Apothecary

How to make herbal tinctures ("folk method"):

1. Gather your herb.
2. Fill it loosely into a jar with a screw top (i.e. mason jar).
3. Pour alcohol over your herb until it covers the herb about 1/2'' or so. For dry herbs use 40-50% alcohol (80-100 proof), for fresh herbs use 60-95% alcohol (120-190 proof). Plants with a high water content (i.e. fresh roots) should use the higher alcohol percent (i.e. 95%). Vodka or grain alcohol are good choices because of their neutral flavor.
3.5. Optional step - blend the alcohol and herb together to increase surface area exposure for the herb.
4. Place the jar away from light (i.e. in a cupboard), in a cool, dry location for 4-6 weeks.
5. Shake or stir the tincture every day if possible.
6. If after a day or two the plant material expanded and is no longer submerged in the alcohol you may need to add more alcohol. Especially look for this with dry roots and fruits (may need to cover them with 1-2'' or more alcohol from the beginning).
7. After 4-6 weeks strain out the herbal material and store your tincture for use!

That's it!

It's possible to get much more detailed with your tincture-making, but the above method will work pretty well for most herbs. If you want to be more precise, you can measure the weight of the herbs and the volume of the "menstrum" (alcohol). You can also look up a recipe to find an "herb:menstrum" ratio for the plant you're working with. For example, an recipe might say to tincture a fresh plant at "1:2, 80%," which means for every 1 part of plant material by weight (grams or ounces), use 2 parts of menstrum by volume (milliliters or fluid ounces), using 80% alcohol.

With more potent herbs it's best to be precise and follow a specific recipe in order to take a more precise dose of the final product. For most mild herbs, there is a great deal of room for experimentation and error - herbs like peppermint or chamomile have a wide therapeutic dose range, so it doesn't matter so much what the relative concentration of the tincture is.

The most important thing in terms of safety is to prevent fermentation, mold or harmful bacteria growth by using a high enough alcohol percent. To be on the safe side, the final alcohol percent should be above 30%. When you use fresh herbs that contain water, the final alcohol percent will be lower than the alcohol you add in, as the water in the herb will dilute the alcohol. That's why you need to start with a higher percent of alcohol with fresh herbs. If you want to be very precise, set aside some of the fresh herb, weigh it, let it dry, and then weigh it again to find out how much water was in the herb.

Thanks for reading!  Let us know if you have any questions.  You can reach us at 802-540-0595, railyardapothecarybtv@gmail.com, or on our Facebook page.  Want to learn more in person?  Join Emma for a tincture making class as part of the "medicine making series" on Tuesday, Nov. 5th, 6:30-8pm.

Linden is a common street tree with some remarkable healing properties.  Its flowers are relaxing and uplifting, like a warm glow of sunshine - and they taste quite pleasant! In this article we'll share with you more about this wonderful tree, in hopes that you may go out and find it yourself to pick some flowers or just to sit under and bask in its comforting fragrance.

Lindens
"Tilia" is a genus of about 30 trees in the Malvaceae plant family.  In Europe, trees in this genus often have "linden" in their common name, while in the northeast U.S. the common native species, Tilia americana, is often called basswood (though also called "American linden" at times).  The species most commonly used for its medicinal effects is "littleaf linden" (Tilia cordata), a tree native to Europe.

Trees in the Tilia genus are found throughout the eastern portion of North America, Europe and Asia at moderate altitudes; they are usually not quite as low as sea level but they are also not in the mountains.  The Champlain Valley provides a great ecosystem for these trees.

There are several species of linden which are common street trees in Burlington, including “littleleaf linden” (the most medicinal) along with “silver linden” (Tilia tomentosa).  All of the lindens in our area likely have similar medicinal effects but differing potencies.

Littleleaf Linden (Tilia cordata)
Identification: Distinctly heart shaped, serrated, deep green, asymmetrical leaves.  
Habitat: Another common street tree.  Found throughout Europe and North America.
Medicinal uses: This is the species used most commonly, and is typically what's found in commerce.  It likely contains the most concentrated medicinal properties of all linden species.

Harvest

When harvesting from this tree first make sure that you've identified it correctly by checking more than one credible source.  Secondly, only harvest away from polluted areas - it is a common street tree, but we would not suggest harvesting it from a busy road.  Quiet, low-traffic roads may be ok, but even better would be a yard or another area further removed from cars.

We harvest the flowers along with the bracts (the light-green leafy bit attached to the flower stalks).  Abiding by the honorable harvest, we harvest 10% of the flowers that we see, leaving the rest for our pollinator friends to continue the tree’s life cycle.  

Harvest before they've turned brown, as the older, brown flowers have been said to have more narcotic-like effects.

We stretch our arms up to clasp a flower, a handful of sun ray, reaching up into our full, expansive selves.

Preparations
You can dry the flowers at home by leaving them in on a screen or a brown paper bag in a dark, dry, well-ventilated location.  Once dried, linden is delightful in tea, as a hot infusion, and even as a cold infusion.  

A cold infusion can be made with both dry and fresh linden flowers by pouring cold water over the flowers and letting it steep for 12-24 hours.  

A sun tea can also be made this way, in a lot less time.  On a hot summers day, place a generous handful of flowers in a glass container, pour cold to lukewarm water over the flowers and place in a sunny spot to steep for the afternoon.  

Linden also makes a tasty homemade tincture.

Thanks for reading, and hope you can spend some time with this lovely tree!

References
n.d. “Species: Tilia americana.”  Accessed on 3 Jul, 2018. Fire Effects Information System (FEIS), 2018.  Retrieved from: <https://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/tree/tilame/all.html>

Justis, Angela.  (1 Jun, 2016). “A Family Herb: Gentle Linden Flower and Leaf.”  The Herbal Academy, 2018.  Accessed on 3 Jul, 2018.  Retrieved from: <https://theherbalacademy.com/a-family-herb-linden-flower/>

Written by Jordan Kleiman, University of Vermont student and apprentice at Railyard Apothecary, and Nick Cavanaugh, staff member at Railyard Apothecary and clinical herbalist at the Burlington Herb Clinic.  ​

Garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata) is a very common plant in the mustard family (Brassicaceae).  It is native to Europe but has been naturalized throughout much of North America.  It is considered a nuisance or invasive plant because it spreads rapidly, crowds out the environment preventing the growth of other plants and is very difficult to remove from an area once it has become established.  It has become the dominant plant in the understory of some forested areas, reducing the diversity of all species (not just plants).

We can benefit our local ecosystems by removing this plant where it grows.  Please consider identifying and removing this plant when you find it, and do so early if you notice it starting to take hold in an area.  At the same time you can also enjoy an interesting wild food!

Identification
Garlic mustard is a biennial, meaning it's life cycle is two years.  The first year it appears as a basal rosette of round leaves growing close the ground.  It looks somewhat similar to some other plants at this stage, including ground ivy, violets and wild ginger.  However the leaves have a distinct garlic-y odor when crushed.

In the second year the plant grows up to several feet high as it flowers and produces seed.  The leaves on the stalk are alternate.  It's small white flowers have four petals.  The seed pods are thin and 20-80mm long.  It's small white flowers, rounded leaves and garlic-y odor make it distinctive.

Please either have someone knowledgeable teach you or consult several good written sources before harvesting and consuming this plant yourself.  Once you learn it for certain, it's easy to identify and its garlic-y odor gives it away even more so.

Removal
The good news is that garlic mustard is easy to remove by hand.  The bad news is that it can grow so abundantly and that the seeds can stay viable in the soil for 5+ years.  When seeking to remove it, it's important not to spread the seed further.  Pull the plant up by the root - don't just cut it down as it will re-grow and go to seed later when cut at most points in its life cycle.  Most people will suggest then bagging the plant and sending it to the landfill, because if it's started to flower it can potentially go to seed even after being removed from the ground.  But of course, you can also eat it!

Eating
First, make sure you've correctly identified this plant (see above) and harvested it from a clean location (i.e. no roadsides or areas that have been sprayed with herbicides).  The leaves are the part of the plant most often consumed.  Their garlic-y, aromatic and savory properties lend itself to uses like many other kitchen herbs - adding small quantities to dishes as a spice, adding fresh leaves to salad, or making into pesto.  It does have a bitter flavor as well which is not as prominent or noticeable when prepared as one of several flavoring agents in food.

A word of caution: though this plant was most likely brought to North America as a culinary or medicinal herb, has a long history of consumption and is commonly eaten as a wild edible today, it should be noted that the leaves have been found to have higher-than-normal amounts of cyanide (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17146719).  It may be safest to consume only in small amounts, no more than 2 meals per week.  Levels of cyanide may also be reduced by blanching the leaves before cooking.  It's bitterness may make the quantity eaten at a time self-limiting in a quite natural way!

Garlic mustard pesto

Making pesto is my favorite way to prepare this plant.  The slightly garlic-y flavor blends well with olive oil, nuts or seeds, cheese and other additions.  Don't forget to read the caution in the paragraph above!

Ingredients:
Please experiment and modify to your tastes!  The most important thing is that it contains olive oil, some nut or seed and salt.  Everything else is up to your discretion.

2 cups garlic mustard leaves, packed loosely
1/2 cup walnuts (or sunflower seeds, pine nuts)
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 grated parmesan cheese
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/4 tsp. (or to taste) salt
2 cloves garlic (the addition of actual garlic makes the flavor more well-rounded and palatable, but is optional)

Step 1: Gathering the garlic mustard leaves
Use either first year or second year leaves of the plant.  When gathering the larger, second year plants it's easy to pull off most of the leaves all at once by gripping the stem at the top and then pulling your hand down from the top to the bottom.

Step 2:
Wash your garlic mustard leaves thoroughly and dry, then combine in a food processor (or blender) with the walnuts and garlic.  Pulse until everything has been ground up pretty well.

Step 3:
Add the olive oil slowly to let it blend in, then add in any remaining ingredients and blend until it is a smooth puree.

Step 4:
Once everything is blended together well, serve and enjoy!  Does well with the traditional pasta or served on crackers or bread.

Well that's it!  Hope that you now may not only be able to recognize this plant and understand it's effects on the ecosystem, but also know that you can turn what could be a nuisance into something tasty to enjoy!

Written by Nick Cavanaugh, staff member at Railyard Apothecary and clinical herbalist at the Burlington Herb Clinic.  Learn more about harvesting wild plants by joining Nick for an upcoming foraging presentation at Fjall Raven on Saturday, May 19th at 5pm, or for an urban plant walk at Railyard Apothecary on Tues., May 22nd at 6pm.  Learn more about Nick's work at nickherbalist.com.

It's a new year - time for new steps, changes and beginnings. For many people this means prioritizing health and well-being. We're very happy to help you meet your goals by making a wide diversity of health and wellness classes available to people in any walk of life.  Our wish is that with education you will feel empowered to make the changes you envision in your life.  Whether it's all new to you, or you have plenty of experience already, we have something for you.

Feeling ready to dive right into learning? We have two options for those who would like to commit more fully to their health this year:

• Monthly pass - $70. Attend unlimited classes for 30 days (except classes priced above $50)
• Season pass - $200. Attend unlimited classes through May 15th (except classes priced above $50)

Classes can also be attended on a one-time basis.  The average cost is $20/class.

We offer anywhere from 3-5 classes/week in our classroom space at Railyard Apothecary, 270 Battery St. in Burlington.  We also offer individual herbal education to address specific challenges in the form of consultations - those are available on a walk-in basis at the apothecary ($15 for 15 minutes) or by appointment with our partners at the Burlington Herb Clinic. 

Check out the list of classes below:

Class categories (scroll down to find the classes in each)

• Basic herbalism classes
• Special topics in herbalism
• Other wellness classes
• Special events

Basic herbalism classes

For many people herbs are an appealing way to support health because they are natural, effective, affordable and very safe.  However for most people knowing how and where to begin with herbs is a challenge.  That's where we come in.  With years of experience learning about herbs and teaching others, we make the wide world of medicinal plants more accessible to all with our basic herbalism classes:

January 30 - Kitchen Cabinet Know-How

January 31, February 27, March 27, April 24 - Herb Tasting Group: Honing Our Senses and Intuition

February 6, 13, 20- Medicine Making Series

February 7- Wound Care with Herbs and Intelligent Response

February 8 - Herbs for the Mind and Heart

February 22 - Beyond the Brush: Mouth Care for Greater Health

March 6 - Planning and Planting Your Garden

April 5, 12, 19 - Digestive Health Series

April 25- First Foray - A Wild Food and Medicine Expedition


Special topics in herbalism

Some people may be looking for more specific information about herbs that can help for specific groups of people or tackling specific health challenges.  These classes are suitable both for beginners as well as those with experience who would like to expand their knowledge to more areas:

January 29 - Natural Approaches to Diabetes and Blood Sugar Dysregulation

February 1 - Herbs for Students: Natural Resilience, Calm and Focus

February 5 - Sexual Trauma Recovery Using Plant Medicine and Magic

March 7 - Herbal Wisdom for Pregnancy and Labor for Parents and Birth Workers

March 8 - Herbal Support for Autistics


Other wellness topics

We are very lucky to have a wide variety of practitioners bringing health and well-being to our community with a multitude of modalities.  These classes with our community partners are a great way to expand your wellness repertoire:

January 17 - You Can Do This: A Mind and Body Approach to Quitting Smoking

January 21, February 18 - CBD Guided Meditation

January 23 - DIY Aromatherapy: Essential Oils + CBD

January 25 - Abhyanga: The Art of Ayurvedic Self-Massage

February 11- Parallel Narratives: Self-development through Storytelling

February 14 - Couples Massage

March 1 - Reflexology to Reduce Stress and Promote Relaxation

March 4 - The Art of Reiki 1 - Discover the Healing and Spiritual Power of Reiki

March 17 - Essential Ayurveda for Women | The 3 Vital Tools

March 31 - Reiki Level 2

Special events and activities

And lastly, we have a number of events to bring together our community with story, movies, kava and more.  Check out our various special events and movie nights:

January 20 - Nature Mindfulness Walks

January 27, February 24, March 24 - Stories of Transformation - Monthly Kava Lounge

March 10 - Medicine Swap!

Movie nights!

February 9 – Juliette of the Herbs

March 2 -  Seed: The Untold Story

April 6 - Sanctity of Sanctuary

All classes take place at Railyard Apothecary, 270 Battery St. in Burlington.  To arrive at the space, continue South on Battery St. past the scuba shop and into the actual railyard area.  Veer left to cross into a large parking lot and you'll find a long series of buildings.  We're in the last door, in the turquoise section.

Any questions?  Please don't hesitate to contact us at railyardapothecarybtv@gmail.com or 802-540-0595.

Looking forward to seeing you!

Railyard Apothecary is excited to be hosting a large number of classes throughout this fall, featuring a variety of topics from a plethora of wonderful teachers. This is the time of year for harvest and abundance, and given there are so many things to enjoy we're offering package deals to access them thoroughly.  See our detailed class listing by reading further or clicking here.

Season pass: for $150 you can attend an unlimited number of classes through the end of December 2017. By far the most savings, and the way to deepen your learning the most!

Monthly pass: for $70 you can attend unlimited classes for 30 days from the date of purchase.

Here's what we have to offer (keep reading below for class dates and titles):

Roots: foundational herbal workshops. These 1.5 to 2-hour classes are great for beginners, as well as for those looking for a refresher on certain topics.

Branches: raise your learning to the next level by attending a series of classes within a theme.

Leaves and flowers: special topics go further in-depth. Suitable for both beginners and those with experience.

Fruits: the culmination of our work is connection amongst people, connection with plants and healthy thriving communities all around. Join us in celebration with each other and the plants for social events, holiday-themed workshops and more.

Roots: Herb Basics

• 10/17 Flower Essences
• 10/20 VT Superfoods (includes dinner)
• 10/23 Autumn Harvest: Roots, Berries and Herbs
• 11/16 Demystifying the Lymph
• 11/30 Winter Wellness
• 12/6 Fire Cider Tonic for Winter Immune Support
• Regular events:
  • Materia medica series every other Saturday
    • 10/7 Cacao
  • Herb tasting group once a month
    • 10/16
    • 11/29
  • Plant walks every other Saturday

Branches: In-depth Series:

• Sexual health
  • 10/10 The Reproductive Micro-biome
  • 10/24 Libido and Orgasm
  • 11/7 DIY Herbal Lubrication
  • 12/5 Kink and Sexual Energetics
• 10/11, 10/18, 10/25 Herbal First Aid
• 11/1, 11/8, 11/15 Medicine Making

Leaves and Flowers: Special Topics

• 10/26 Herbal Remedies and Autism
• 11/2 Evaluating Addiction: Ways Herbalists Can Help
• 11/9 Herbal Preps and Therapeutics of Medical Cannabis
• 11/11 Persistent Lyme Disease

Fruits: Special Events and Holiday Activities

• Kava lounges
  • 10/28 Witchfest: Halloween Party
  • 11/11 Kava Lounge with Personal Stories of Transformation
  • 12/16 Winter Solstice Party
• 11/28 Making Handmade Plant Art
• 12/2 Holiday Craft Fair
• Medicine Swap Date TBA

You can see all of our upcoming classes and events here, or on our Facebook page.  Questions?  Contact us at railyardapothecarybtv@gmail.com or 802-540-0595.  Hope to see you soon!

Essay by by Hannah Thorne and Katherine Elmer from Spoonful Herbals.

As the days grow longer and the sun’s rays grow stronger, so too does Vermont’s lush landscape of medicinal plants!  Summer is a busy time for harvesting, as many plants have a short window of time in which they are at their medicinal peak. To take full advantage of these short abundances of medicine, Spoonful Herbals hosts gleaning events called Herb Mobs, where we gather volunteer members from the community to get outside and get harvesting with us at our partner sites- including local organic farms or others with documented safe land-use practices. One of these events took place on the morning of June 27th, where we gathered at Shelburne Farms to harvest red clover.

Red clover is a common backyard plant and Vermont's official State Flower. It’s “painted” leaves and dazzling purplish-pink flowers are often overlooked or mowed over; although this plant has a lot to give. It is one of our “nutritive tonic” herbs, providing bioavailable calcium and magnesium.  It also enhances functioning of the lymphatic system, which helps the body resolve swelling and heal from injuries or surgeries.  It also rivals soy as a “phytoestrogen” which is protective against breast cancer and sources of estrogen from our environment (such as BPA in plastics or growth hormone in some meats).  And so, baskets in hand, we harvested the top portion of the stems of this plant: the flower along with the leaf set growing directly below the blossom. We were lucky enough to have a sunny, dry day at Shelburne; the perfect conditions for preserving our haul, and for observing the calming lake water nearby. About an hour in, our baskets were full and we consolidated the plant material into one bag that was then sold to the Railyard Apothecary to be distributed to the community as medicine. We were proud to hear from staff at Railyard that our local clover was beautifully dried to preserve it’s vibrant green and purple color and, as a result, it rivaled the quality of the best organic clover available to purchase in the marketplace!  

Proceeds from Spoonful Herbals’ Herb Mobs are used in part to improve affordability and access to herbal medicine in our community. Special thanks to City Market for their generous support of our 2017 Herb Mob season and to our farm partners such as Shelburne Farms! Events like this are a great way to deepen the relationship between neighbors in Vermont (students, farmers, other community members), and to introduce them to the plant medicines available in their natural surroundings. Specifically, the aim is to show them ways that the common plants in their “backyards” can support the health and well-being of themselves and their community. Join us next time! Look for our schedule of events on Facebook at “Spoonful Herb Mobs” or learn more about our programs on our website at SpoonfulHerbals.org.

This is an essay written by Railyard Apothecary volunteer Jessica Rich, University of Vermont senior, environmental studies major. 

"I don't trust a garden, or a gardener for that matter, that hasn't any weeds..."
 - Christopher Hobbes
 
In Taoist philosophy, nature is viewed as infinitely wise and it is believed that through the observation of nature we can learn to better understand ourselves. Taoism often draws similarities between natural landscapes and the human body and, through this observation of natural ecosystems, highlights connections to help deepen understanding of the inner body [1].