This week's herbal challenge in The Herbal Hive community is about immunity. When I think of immunity, my go to is fire cider, or fire tonic, or a 'cannonball shot' as I've seen in called in one of my books, probably because it packs a punch. I'm a fire tonic pusher - whilst hardly anyone takes me up on the offer, I like to think they at least know about it, and might eventually try making it. It's one of the easiest medicines to make, and can be used as a preventative or to ease symptoms of colds and flu and their symptoms, such as coughs, upper respiratory infections, sore throats and so on.
So, I'm gunna tell you about it again for like the 100th time on HIVE, and I want you to go and make it and tell me what ya reckon.
For this post, I want to do it a little differently though, walking you through my garden and showing you what I put in my fire cider. The only thing I can't show you is the turmeric and ginger, as it still hasn't sprouted in the polytunnel yet. Ginger is particularly awesome as it's a pain reliever and good for digestive weakness, and you want good gut health for immunity. It's a lifting, boosting, antioxidant cocktail of amazingness.
Wait - rewind - big discovery alert - is fire tonic called thus because all the plants in it are warming? The original recipe, and the one you find most often on the internet, contains chilli, so if you've had a swing of a chilli anything you'll know exactly why it's called fire tonic. But here's the rub - I don't often put chilli in it. Why? I don't know. I like to drink a dose in water in the morning, like a cordial. It kick starts my day, warming my insides, and is fantastic for my digestion. Chilli doesn't seem part of a morning equation for me.
Horseradish expels the phlegm in lungs, helps with fever and chills - it's full of vitamin C. Did you know you can eat the leaves? They used to use it for scurvy! I like to throw in rosehips or blackcurrants in season for their vitamin C contain, and lemons of course. I find chop the leaves into salad.
Then there's nasturium, which doesn't grow particularly well in my garden, but she's trying. Bloody chickens, I say, trampling the seedlings and eating the seeds. I got some more seedlings from a woman who lives locally, as it's taking over her garden. I tried telling her that it's high in vitamin C and rather than treat it as a weed, she should be putting it in her salads, and the flowers in a table vinegar. Maybe she will, maybe she won't.
Garlic, of course, is kickass for immunity. We eat the green strap leaves as they are growing and I make a fermented garlic honey which is oh so tasty. Garlic helps move mucus. The fact that it's sometimes called Russian penicillin is quite telling. It's energetics are warming, spicey and drying, which suit a fire cider perfectly.
Dear oregano is also a legend, as is thyme - that's one I remember from childhood, the old steam inhalation to help with my asthma and loosen phlegm. It's also good for every day support. Rosemary too - it aids respiratory when recovering from colds and flu but it's also a heart medicine.
All that planty goodness goes in the jar for the fire cider, and is covered in apple cider vinegar and left for about two months. I make it about once a month so I always have some on the go. Some recipes will call for honey, but I don't need the sweetness (although honey has it's own medicinal benefits, of course).
I drink it like you would a cordial, but I also douse my salads in it.
Which brings me to how we create immunity through everyday eating of herbs. From gut health (lots of roots contain pre biotics, such as dandelion, yakon or elecampane) to possessing antiviral, antibiotic, antiinflammatory, anticancer and a whole lot of other antis, finding ways to get herbs into your diet is a must for natural immunity.
Take tonight's salad, for instance. It contains:
- nasturium leaves, finely sliced
- a small horseradish leaf, finely sliced
- fennel fronds
- nastursium flowers
- tomatoes, lettuce, pickled peppers
- a generous splash of fire cider
- home preserved lemons
- fermented honey garlic
Eating plants as part of your every day diet works to prevent illness and nourish in all kinds of ways.
And don't even get me started on my excitement about 'shrooms. My husband got me an online course for shroom growing for my birthday, but I got started already with a terrarium for growing reishi mushrooms. Reishi affect white blood cells and immune function, and has been lauded as beneficial for cancer. I find it amazing for stress, and supporting your body's stress response is really important for immunity.
I have only conversationally dipped into ways I support my immune system through eating plants, particularly herbs and reishi, without labouring the science, because that's something you can easily do by researching online. Everything I eat is perfectly safe for me, but it might not be for you, so I will leave you to do your own research. But people have been eating plants for their immune systems forever -I encourage you to embrace herbs as a big, big part of your daily diet!
With Love,
The Herbal Hive Community
Are you on HIVE yet? Earn for writing! Referral link for FREE account here
I wish they teach this in schools and even make them eat, to become habituated. Everyone today is ready for a quick medicine, but not practice what is proven from ancient times.
I could not agree more. That's why I started the Herbal Hive and try to share this information so that others might be inspired too
Cannonshot?!! I love that name. Yeah go for 101. And share away. There are many here that value the information. Even if it is repeated. I get frustrated sharing with people that may ask but actually don't care. Even if their life depended on it!! Fire cider is amazing. Just wish we could get the horseradish to grow.
Sorry to miss your birthday @riverflows but it seems it is the time of year for birthdays! My ENTIRE family included. We celebrated with the birth of some little Sunbirds so I'm sharing a photo with you. I promise they aren't destructive like those bliming chickens! In fact you know they love herbs as much as we do
Oh goodness that's the sweetest! Perfect. Thanks for the birthday wishes.
Yes, I have made people pucker up and back away many times forcing them to drink fire cider. I probably should choose the Chinese Water Torture approach - drip, drip, drip, drip.
I had trouble getting it to grow until it was in a kinda shaded spot near the tap (and away from the chooks). I've transplanted some into a pot in the polytunnel and it's going gangbusters. Revelation is eating the leaves - I'm hooked!
That's a good idea! Although we don't have a polytunnel. Tried it right in the beginning of our (ignorant) homesteading days. But between the porcupines and the baboon, it became a rather expensive playground for the wild life! I'm curious. Do the leaves taste like the root?
Mmmm that looks like not only good for your bodies immunity but highly flavoursome! Its good to know that a lot of my favourite ingredients are so good for me. Lovely pics and a great informational post sis! Have an amazing day!
Hope u have an amazimg day too!! ❤❤
you too! and yes it's tasty!
Great present from your husband. Mushrooms are amazing, aren't they? When I started learning about them I was just amazed how many benefits they have and why don't we use them daily. I still haven't tried growing them at home...but I might look into kits like the one you are showing. I always thought I will need some specific space to be able to grow fungi, especially Reishi. Do you have any images of the growing proccess? I would love to hear your experience with the growing kit 🙂
Cocok untuk menambah imun tubuh. Alam telah memberikan segalanya. Semoga kita sehat selalu
All that comes from nature that it is very good for the body. Of all that there is, I only know a few like garlic and ginger. I never saw the other. Thank you for share :)
No problem. You would know garlic, turmeric, ginger, pepper, chilli - all which can go in a jar of raw vinegar with the mother for a medicine.
Mmmmmm shrooms and veggies. #forthewin ❤❤
Totes!
These are great tips! I love horseradish with beetrot , they go so well together. I never put garlic in honey, how can you use that honey? You put it in salads only?
OH YES, horseradish and beetroot - earthy, sweet and spicey! Love it.
Yes, drizzle the honey on everything - salads, tofu, meat, etc - or take it by the spoonful in hayfever season. Once it's been left for a good few months the garlic itself is sweet, so I chop it up on salads or on top of stir fries. It has a caramelised kinda taste to it.
You let it ferment first in a jar - put the garlic in a jar, top with honey, and let the air escape daily or it might explode! It'll go super runny due to the garlic juice, and kinda bubbly. After about a week of this (and it's so pungent you will think it's terrible) put the jar in the fridge and leave for a month or so. After that - omg perfection!
Oh wow explosion lol. That would be dangerous for me in case I forget about it a day or two.
Ha I put it just near sink on windowsill so I saw it every time I washed up.
That's a great idea!
Whoa. I never knew horseradish have so many purposes. This is the first time I've read about it. And this changes a lot. OMG. Thank you so much for this informative post, I am grateful~!😊
I'm glad you learnt something! I love it thin sliced in salads.
I am so impatient to start my mushroom farm, any talk of mushrooms gets me so excited, they are simply amazing and such powerful healers. I love all these wonderful homemade remedies you have shared xxx
You've been curated by @theherbalhive on behalf of The Herbal Hive.We support any content related to herbalism, from stories about your relationship with medicinal plants, to wildcrafting, foraging, ethnobotany, plant spirituality & herbs as nourishment, as well as the use of natural products to create medicines such as salves and tinctures. Use the tag #theherbalhive or post from our community!
Community II Delegate II Curation TrailII Discord
This is so inspiring to read 🙂 You really inspire me to learn more about plants and herbalism. And that reishi terrarium looks so interesting.
xx