Isn't she beautiful? |
Red clover has a rich history as a powerful healer. We don't know why, but we know that it was revered by the Celts and planted wherever they settled. It has a history of use in menopause and fertility, but also in bronchial complaints and as a general anti-inflammatory. Today it is used in agriculture for soil remediation.
Red clover is likely to be found all over your neighborhood. Native healers note that harvesting a safe distance from the road ensures the helpfulness of your herbal medicine, so consider this as you harvest. For tincturing, the flowering tops (meaning the bud and the leaves on either side) are used. For tea, which is what I am making today, just the bud is employed. A full size bud with no brown will make the best tonic, as the bud is at the peak of its nutrients at this stage. However, I've never shied away from a healthy bud on either side of perfect. These buds are such a gift, I make sure to send gratitude to the plants that shared them and never harvest every single bud.
To make a nourishing health infusion of red clover, which will help to balance hormones, offers minerals, and guards against cancer and inflammation, plop happy buds into a quart jar. An ounce of dried is used during the winter, I pack the jar with as many as I can find.
Pour just-boiling water over the top of your buds and allow to steep for four hours. This assures maximum amount of herbal magic enters you with every sip. As you sip the pure energy of spring as women and men have for centuries, envision yourself coming into the wholeness you are seeking and take time to pause.
I make a lot of different wines and Red Clover W/honey is at the top of our list. Kathy in northern Pa.
ReplyDeleteThis is also my favorite. I usually pick a big bowlful of buds while I put a kettle of water to boil. When the water has come to a boil, I turn off the heat and add the whole bowl of buds to the kettle, put a lid on it and let it sit a few hours. That way I can fill many jars with the tea. I store them in the fridge and drink them as iced tea. Very refreshing on hot summer days.
ReplyDeleteThe flowers are really a nice color
ReplyDeleteYour photo of the plant being infused looks so pretty. I don't have any growing near me.
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