Weeds to one person are another person's medicine!

I love spring for the wonderful green plants shooting out of the earth around my home, in the woods and fields. These plants remind me of the ever changing and newness of life, the bounty of good food right outside our doors, and the nutritional value and healing properties of what many people consider weeds. I personally await the spring's wild leeks, dandelion greens, first nettle shoots, plantain leaves, rhubarb shoots, and so many more spring edibles.

These spring edibles awaken our taste buds, livers, digestive tracts, and each and every body cell. The incredible amount of nutrients in the plants adds to our nutritional stores and cleans our winter blood, liver, and digestive tracts.

What a relief to move away from my beloved winter root veggies (beets!) and begin incorporating our natural spring foods.

Ah, burdock, that annoying plant that sticks those prickly balls on clothing after a romp in the woods and fields. This plant, that creates burr seeds, is a healing blessing, despite those barbed 'lil balls!

As a kid, I fell into a large clump of burdock plants while romping in the fields. Those burrs make an amazing mess in long hair! Surprisingly, as an adult, I do not avoid them.

Burdock can be utilized in a number of herbal remedies to aid in digestion. The root is bitter, stimulating the liver, and therefor aids in digestion, enhances absorption of nutrients, and supports your whole digestive tract and colon with the elimination of wastes.

Burdock root, along with dandelion and nettle, are amazing, healing herbs to use in liver conditions. The liver plays a huge role in removing toxins from your blood, producing bile to digest dietary fats, metabolizing hormones to maintain hormone balance in your body, stores excess carbohydrates, in addition to many, many other functions.

Nourish your liver and heal many "dis - ease" symptoms. Nourishing the liver is useful in: skin conditions, liver conditions (obviously), hormone imbalances, allergies, infertility, headaches, migraines, digestive problems, chronic gas, constipation....

Need help with herbs for healing? Give me a call. As an herbalist, I love to help with herbal healing! pyoumell@gmail.com

Why do I tell you this? I love burdock. It makes a yummy tea, it is fun in soups and stews, and I just added a pile of it (grated) to my next batch of fermented veggies. I am curious to see what burdock will add to the final fermented product's flavor!

The brown grated veggies on the top are burdock.

This is a pile of burdock roots, graciously given to me by Dan Kent of Kent Family Growers. He knows I love burdock! I have used over half of my burdock gift already. My liver is feeling ready for spring and pollen season!

On fermented veggies: I asked Steve, of The Cheese Maker, if cheese cultures could be used in enhancing the fermentation of veggies. This kind man did a 'lil research and got right back to me.

Our conversation via emails:

Me: Can any of the cultures you sell be used as a sauerkraut starter? Thanks, Paula

Steve: I'll also do a little research and let you know what I find out.

Me: Thanks!

Steve: Hi Paula: Some research I found on Wikipedia and other scientific sites show that some of the same species of bacteria that make cheese are similar to those that make sauerkraut, though the sub species are different. I'm not a biologist, so I do not know how this will affect the flavor of the kraut. Only way is to make a small batch and see how it turns out. As long as the pH is similar in the end product, it is at least safe to eat. The below link is a culture which has similar bacteria, though not sub species. If you make a test batch, let me know what you find out.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sauerkraut

http://thecheesemaker.com/products/Mesophilic-chr%252dhansen-CHN%252d11.html

Me: I am posting to get other people's experiences, hopefully!

Steve: Awesome. I would really like to hear from others who use this culture. I have enough hobbies otherwise I'd also make some kraut.

Anyone ever used cheese cultures in veggie fermentation?

Anyone ever use burdock root in fermented veggies?

Anyone know of a good source for veggie fermenting cultures?

Love to hear from you on any of these topics! Paula

Natural Health Education Blog

Weeds to one person are another person's medicine!