Permaculture Herbal

By Theresa McCuaig

Certified herbalist and permaculture designer Theresa McCuaig steps readers through making safe backyard medicine. Many of the plants featured are cost-saving perennials and self-seeding annuals. Appeals to gardeners who want to sell herbs or homemade herbal products. Includes calculations for dosing children and a section for treating dogs with herbs. Safety focused glossary up front.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Theresa McCuaig
• Release date: Aug 31, 2013
• ISBN: 9781301311736

Theresa McCuaig

Theresa McCuaig is a certified trainer of adults, who specializes in instructional design for health topics. She is a qualified herbalist and a permaculture designer. Theresa is a former laboratory supervisor from the University Health Network in Toronto. She taught medical assisting, medical terminology, and related computer software at private vocational colleges for 14 years. Theresa taught first aid and CPR for the Canadian Red Cross Society for eight years. She obtained Basic Training in Horticultural Therapy at the Royal Botanical Gardens.

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Permaculture Herbal

By Theresa McCuaig

Smashwords Edition

Copyright 2013 Theresa McCuaig

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This e-book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This e-book may not be resold or given to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you are reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Disclaimer

This e-book contains general information about medical conditions and treatments. The information herein does not constitute advice, and should not be treated as such. Do not rely on the information in this e-book as an alternative to medical advice from your doctor or other qualified healthcare practitioner. Consult your doctor or other qualified healthcare practitioner if you have questions about any medical matter, especially if your dependents are concerned. If you believe you suffer from any medical condition, seek immediate medical attention. Never delay seeking medical advice, disregard medical advice, or discontinue medical treatment because of information contained in this e-book. This e-book does not replace a thorough, detailed consultation with a qualified herbalist that includes an individualized plan of care.

Table of Contents

Introduction to Backyard Medicine

Glossary

Digestive System

Integumentary System

Structural System

Nervous System

Circulatory System

Respiratory System

Female Reproductive System

Children

Male Reproductive System

Dogs

Agrimony

Apple

Angelica

Benzoin

Blue Violet

Borage

Burdock

Cabbage

California Poppy

Celery

Chamomile

Chasteberry

Chickweed

Chicory

Couch Grass

Damask Rose

Damiana

Elecampane

Evening Primrose

Fumitory

Gentian

Heartsease Violet

Horse Chestnut

Horsetail

Hyssop

Juniper

Lady's Mantle

Lily-of-the-Valley

Marshmallow

Meadowsweet

Mistletoe

Neroli Oil

Oat

Pellitory-of-the-Wall

Poke Root

Pygeum

Red Clover

Red Raspberry

Sarsaparilla

Saw Palmetto

Stinging Nettle

Sweet Sumach

Tea Tree

Vervain

White Willow

Wintergreen

Wild Yam

Yarrow

Yohimbe

Aromatherapy

About the Author

Introduction to Backyard Medicine

Permies are generalists. We love experimenting with new plants, including medicinal herbs. We like to have everything ready-to-hand in our backyards to minimize expense and travel, including herbal medicine. Some of us choose to live in intentional communities with people of different ages and backgrounds with which we are unfamiliar. Our love of plants, reluctance to use commercial products, and eagerness to help others can be a recipe for disaster if we lack basic training in backyard medicine. This e-book is a quick reference guide to using herbs safely, written expressly for the permaculturalist at home.

Many of the herbs discussed are easily grown perennials or self-seeding annuals, which cuts cost considerably. Some can be harvested in the wild. You may be able to make some money from these vigorous growers as a cash crop, or as ingredients in products you manufacture for sale, such as soaps, oils, and teas. While you may not want to cultivate the more toxic herbs yourself, you may still be able to sell them to experienced herbalists or researchers if they are already on your land.

No need to memorize tedious medical terminology. Refer to the Glossary to find out the meaning of unfamiliar terms. If you require more information, visit http://www.medterms.com.

This e-book first covers complaints and disorders by body system, gender, and age. There is even a section for the family dog. Forty-nine individual herbs are then explored in greater detail.

Bear in mind that many herbs have a cumulative effect and work more slowly than pharmaceuticals. However, the whole herb tends to have less side-effects than the pharmaceutical derived from it. Take very seriously any warnings listed herein. Natural products can be toxic, too.

This e-book is not meant to take the place of a thorough examination by a qualified doctor or nurse practitioner in a clinical setting. If you have a broken leg, for example, you need an Emergency Room Physician first, and an herbalist later. If you are taking prescription or over-the-counter drugs, ask a pharmacist if they can be taken with the herb of your choice. Please use herbs judiciously. Enjoy this introduction to backyard medicine!

Glossary

Acrid: A hot, biting taste, as experienced when eating buttercup, cow parsnip, garlic, iris, horseradish, mustard, or radish. Small amounts of acrid plants are used to ease congestion by dilating blood vessels. Acrid plants are used for difficulty with arthritis, breastfeeding, bruises, delayed menstruation, fevers, high blood pressure, lice infestations, mild paralysis, phlegmy coughs, swelling, and warty tumors. Blisters occur if too much of the acrid plant is applied, or if the poultice is kept on the skin for too long. Never apply heat on top of an acrid plant, because a burn will result. Vomiting occurs if the patient eats too many acrid plants.

Alkaloid: A bitter, natural compound produced by a plant, animal, bacteria, or fungi, that is alkaline (basic) and contains nitrogen. It is derived from the amino acid ornithine. Alkaloids produced by a host are often toxic to other life forms. Alkaloids are water-soluble and dissipate when added to alcohol. For safety, start with an aqueous solution of the herb, rather than use an alcoholic tincture. Properly used alkaloids are beneficial. Examples of alkaloids are the stimulants caffeine and nicotine, the pain relievers morphine and cocaine, the antimalarial quinine, the antibacterial berberine, the anticancer drug vincristine, the asthma drug ephedrine, and the heart medicine quinidine. Alkaloids can also be deadly, as in strychnine (gopher poison), water hemlock, deadly nightshade, aconitine (neurotoxin), and arrow poisons. It is difficult to achieve the correct dosage for many alkaloids, as the effective dose is often close to the toxic dose. Incorrect dosing produces horrific side-effects, including tremendous thirst, salivation, hallucination, tremors, vomiting, convulsions, and respiratory arrest. Mixing an alkaloid with an acid produces a salt, indicated by the ending ane or ine, as in the poison cicutine.

Alterative: An herb that restores health by improving blood function.

Anthraquinone Glycosides: Very strong laxatives and purgatives that may cause cramping, diarrhea, and intestinal bleeding. Aloe vera and senna contain anthraquinone glycosides and should be used with caution. Rhubarb and ginger or rhamnus are safer alternatives to relieve constipation, as they probably will not cause explosive diarrhea. (Eat the stems of rhubarb or its roots only. Do not eat the very toxic leaves of rhubarb.)

Antibiotic: Any herb or drug that destroys bacteria, or inhibits their growth or reproduction. The patient using antibiotics requires live-culture yogurt to prevent indigestion when the normal flora of the gut are destroyed along with the pathogenic bacteria. An antibiotic is not an antiviral or antifungal.

Antioxidant: A food or supplement that protects us from free radicals, which are molecules in our cells that lose electrons, causing them to become electrically unstable. Free radicals are responsible for cancer, heart disease, and many other degenerative diseases. Our bodies produce free radical molecules when we digest food, smoke tobacco, or are exposed to radiation. Cells containing these unstable free radical molecules seek oxygen to stabilize their electrical charge. When oxygen combines with unstable molecules, it is very reactive and damages the cells. Young cells can fight off damage easily. Older cells are slow to repair without the help of antioxidants. Antioxidants help the cells to neutralize free radicals before they cause damage. Other names for antioxidants are vitamins A, C, and E, selenium, lycopene, lutein, and beta-carotene. Nuts, fruit, grains, and meat all contain antioxidants.

Antitussive: A drug or herb that relieves coughing. An antitussive may be necessary to allow the exhausted patient to sleep. However, productive coughing is necessary when the patient is awake, to clear the airways.

Aromatherapy: Herbal scents used in massage oils or inhalants to promote health. Aromatherapy is useful in vaporizers for colds and bronchitis. It is useful in bath bombs made of Epsom salts to promote relaxation and ease muscle aches from gardening. Aromatherapy is also useful for palliative care of the elderly and children. The National Cancer Institute (NCI) reports that a massage with a blend of bitter orange, black pepper, rosemary, marjoram, and patchouli improved constipation in cancer patients. NCI also reported inhaling sweet orange improved nausea. NCI reports reduction of anxiety and blood pressure with chamomile massage.

Astringent: Any acidic substance that causes tissues to constrict and feel tight or puckered. A facial toner is an example of an astringent. Astringent plants are used to dry up wet conditions like blisters, diarrhea, pimples, varicose veins, and a sore perineum after childbirth. Plants containing gallic, malic, or tannic acids are astringent. Acidic plants that are astringent may also be antibacterial or antiseptic because they draw water from micro-organisms and make the environment inhospitable.

Bitters: Bitter herbs eaten before a meal stimulate the flow of digestive juices (saliva, stomach acid, and bile), and help prevent indigestion. They are called stomachic, hepatic, or cholagogue herbs. Aperient bitter herbs gently promote bowel movements. Laxatives are somewhat stronger, but still produce tolerable bowel movements. Purgatives and cathartics cause cramping and diarrhea, so should be avoided. Bitter herbs given to invalids to stimulate their appetites include artichoke and dandelion.

Cardiac Glycosides: Chemicals that slow and strengthen the heartbeat, and help remove excess fluids through urine (diuretic). Cardiac glycosides are dangerous for amateurs and should only be used under the close supervision of an experienced herbalist. Foxglove is the plant from which the heart medicine digitalis is produced. Adonis, dogbane, foxglove, gratiola, hellebore, lily-of-the-valley, milkweed, and nymphaea water lily all contain enough cardiac glycosides to be highly poisonous. Mind children and pets closely in their presence. Fishermen throw plants containing cardiac glycosides into ponds, so the stunned fish can be scooped out easily with nets.

Cellulose: Indigestible chains of sugar molecules (polysaccharides) found in woody plants.

Citric and