Most people will recognise this medicinal plant – Lady’s Mantle (Alchemilla xanthoclora). It’s commonly grown in gardens across Ireland. The are over 15 species including out native Hairy Lady’s Mantle (Alchemilla filicaulis) and the more common garden species Alchemilla mollis and they can all interbreed making identification of specific species hard.
Herbal vinegars are a wonderful way to create tonics and remedies from your medicinal herbs and wild plants. We make ours with apple cider vinegar which has its own healing properties, making it a great menstruum for herbal extractions… and anyone can do this at home for themselves.
In many ways it’s been a wonderful time of year to be isolated at Ivywood! We moved here 1 and a half years ago so are still very much only getting to know this magical woodland and the beings that share it with us.
There are many different medicinal plants growing in the woodland at Ivywood. We have been delighted to find Lesser Celandine (Ranunculus ficaria), Bugle (Ajuga reptans), Honeysuckle (Lonicera periclymenum) to name but a few, all of which are all used by herbalists. This week we planted in some additional woodland medicinal plants..
This plant is one of the most useful medicines anyone can grow in their garden. In herbal medicine we literally use Melissa officinalis (Lemon Balm) from top to bottom! We grow and harvest Melissa to make tinctures, glycerites, hydrosols and to dry for tea mixes.
