The Calendula symbolizes joy and protection. Wishing you both! 

Calendula officinalis

Gender: Masculine
Element: Fire
Planet: ​Sun

In January, my intention was to post an herbal collage every week, but my life changed dramatically and “life got in  the  way”, as the  saying goes. 
Zippy, my  precious 17 year old puggle, passed over the rainbow bridge in mid April. Loving  and  supporting  him through  the transition was difficult. His no  longer being by my side was  even more difficult. Many of you sent me warm condolences and they were greatly appreciated.
Preparing to sell the house in Maryland, a greatly  needed escape with a dear friend to Cape Cod, and finding, purchasing and setting up  a home, limited my time in the garden, art room and on line. 
Several things played  into my deciding to sell my house and move back  to central  PA - most of all my two lovely daughters and my  new son (in-law)! Moving closer to them has brought me  great joy.!  
Since the calendula represents joy, it seems a perfect segue back to my  illustrations, collages, gardening  and herbal experience and research!  It also symbolizes protection. I wish each  of you good health and a feeling of safety and calm in these challenging times!

Calendula blossoms gathered and prepared to dry. 

Red and Golden Beets and Mangos in  Honey, sprinkled with Calendula
​

2 medium red beets, peeled and diced
2 medium golden beets, peeled and diced
Cover beets with water, bring to a boil, and simmer until tender. Drain. 
​
Add
2 Tablespoons honey
​1 mango, peeled and diced
Heat until all  ingredients are warm.
Sprinkle with calendula and serve. 
​

​The first step is growing the sage. It is best gathered in the early morning after any dew evaporates. Trim into 5 or 6 inch lengths, being sure to leave half of the plant so it will remain healthy. Remove any discolored or wilted leaves, 

Divide herbs into bundles. Measure pieces of natural colored twine or string 5 or 6 times the length of your bundles. Place the stem end of the sage over the center of the twine and tie a knot, wrapping  several times.  Cross the string in x patterns as you work up the bundle toward the top of the leaves. Tie securely. Trim the stem ends. Hang the bundles in a dark, dry area and allow to  dry thoroughly, about 4 to 6 weeks. When mine are dry, I'll post on additional benefits and how to use them. 

Chive blossom vinegar is a favorite and so easy to make! 
You’ll need:

• Chive blossoms
• A good quality  white wine vinegar

1. Collect chive blossoms, place in a colander. Wash gently, drain and dry the blossoms on a linen or paper towel.
2. Put blossoms in a glass or ceramic bowl or jar. I have a large glass measuring cup with a spout that is ideal.
3. Heat vinegar until warm but don’t allow it  to boil.  Pour over the blossoms.
4. Let the blossoms marinate in a dark place for 24 to 48 hours. 
5. Sterilize the wine bottle.
6. Strain the vinegar from the blossoms and pour the vinegar into the sterilized wine bottle.
7. Store in a dark cabinet. 

The flavor is delicate and the color is a gorgeous pink! You’ll enjoy it all year long!

Over the next few weeks, as we approach Valentine's Day, I'll be revisiting some of the herbs associated with love and romance.. When it comes to matters of the heart, there are no limits to the human imagination in pursuing, wooing and attempting to ensure their love will be returned. Some of the uses are romantic and beautiful, elegant and sublime. Some are tender and heart warming.
​
Herbs can add a sensuous dimension to all aspects of life. Their beauty, aroma, flavors and touch delight. Some are showy and enticing with an distinctive and noticeable fragrance. Others you might walk by, or even step on, and not even notice! Often the greatest gifts are found in herbs you might not immediately notice. Hopefully these little snippets will entice you to learn more about the endless history and legacy of these treasures. 

Our  herb series continues with the Rose, the Queen of Flowers and the undisputed floral symbol of love. The Society of American Florists predicts that nearly 250 million roses will be sold for Valentine’s Day. 

The rose is a perfect example of beauty, romance and sensuous living. She is a vision of delight, her petals are velvet, her fragrance is divine and her delicate flavor is sublime.  i wish you all the gifts the rose offers - love, friendship, beauty, romance and sensuous pleasures. 

Gender: Masculine
Element:  Fire
Planet: Sun

“Smelling  rosemary  prevents aging,” I explained to my class of 25 students, as I handed each of  them an eight to 10 inch sprigs from my garden. All were over 50 in the Renaissance Institute lifelong learning program.  “It will  also  keep  you alert  and help  you  remember the information you learn  in class.” It was my first session in a series, over a period of 6  weeks, of my Enhancing Your Life with  Herbs, and rosemary was the ideal herb to  introduce  the course. 
Rosemary’s well  documented and legendary gift of preventing aging is one  of the virtues I wish  I had found out years ago - maybe when I was eighteen. Since I’ve learned of this magical power, I breathe in deeply  when the plant is nearby.  
Many virtues have been  associated with rosemary throughout the centuries. He  is one of 500 herbs featured  in Eber’s Papyrus found in the  Valley of Tombs near Luxor. The 20 meter long scroll,  about the  size  of  a bowling alley, was written in 1500  B.C., though believed to have been copied from an earlier document. It documents its use as an herbal  remedy. Sprigs have been found in Egyptian tombs dated from 3,000 B.C. 
Its medicinal uses have been  documented  in Greece and Rome since 500  B.C.   The “herb of  crowns”  is also reputed  to  improve memory and mental powers. 
Priests burned it as incense and it has been used as a disinfectant and strewing herb. The pungent fragrances covers up unpleasant odors and purifies the air. It has been  credited with  protecting  people from  the plague and having a clean fragrance that is purifying in a sick person’s  room. Once valued for medicinal uses, it  is now mostly  used in cosmetics and cooking. 
Friendship and love have long  been associated with rosemary. It has been used in love spells and is credited with encouraging faithfulness, so it is often used in friendship and wedding  bouquets.  Both Thomas More  and Shakespeare have commemorated rosemary’s association with friendship and remembrance in well known quotes.  
Rosemary  is often found at with funerals. My rosemary sympathy cards and comfort journals for people who have lost loved ones encourage people to find easement in sacred memories.

Rosemary is often used  in wreaths, bouquets and arrangements at Christmas time.
This legend describes how the rosemary flowers got their gorgeous color. 

The Legend of Rosemary
When  Joseph, Mary, and  the baby Jesus fled through the Egyptian desert from  King Herod’s soldiers, they found shelter in a rosemary grove. Mary draped her blue cloak over one of the white flowered bushes before she retired for the night. The next morning when Joseph removed her cloak, the white flowers on the bush had turned to the same  shade  of blue as Mary’s cloak. 

Wheat and roses are both beautiful additions to the Feast of Saint Barbara for decorations and for your meal. Freshly baked bread with rose petal jelly is sublime!

When we think of pine, our first thoughts are probably  as a Christmas tree, or using the evergreens for wreaths and swags.  Pine wreaths were originally hung on doors for protection more than decoration, replacing the dead black chicken which was once hung on entrances to discourage witches from entering. They were honor bound to count every feather before they could go inside. Thankfully, pine needles replaced the feathers, undoubtedly more fragrant than rotting poultry! Witches have very active minds and often get distracted and lose count, so instead of starting over, they will probably go next door. (You may want to advise your neighbors to get a pine wreath.)

Pine cones can be used to make roses, wreaths, garlands, and in table arrangements. The internet is overflowing with ideas for using pine cones as crafts. 
They can be covered with peanut butter, rolled in bird seed and hung out as bird feeders.
Use tongs to dip thoroughly dried pine cones in melted paraffin or beeswax, let wax drip off and dry on wax paper or foil. 

Turpentine, another gift from pine, is a distilled oil made from pine resin. Some of my most cherished moments in the art room have been surrounded by the fragrances of turpentine and linseed oil.

Amber -Pine's Gift of Golden Sunshine Energy
Pine gives us another gift! Amber! It is said to have the energy of liquid sunshine, to make the wearer more beautiful, to attract wealth and success, and dissolve opposition.

Amber has been identified in over 300 shades. Most of us are familiar with the golden yellow and orange ambers, but it can also be an orange-red, brown, green, black or even violet, though very rare. 

Amber is made from the fossilized resin of the pine tree, and to be classified as true amber it must be over 100,000 years old! That is miraculous, don't you think?  Copal, or Columbian Amber, less than 1,000 years old, has not yet fossilized but is also beautiful and truly remarkable. There is something sacred about pieces that have been part of the earth for so long! 

Amber is revered in the Far Eastern Asian cultures. Asian Indians regard amber as the 'soul of the tiger', endowing the wearer with courage. Egyptians placed a piece of amber in the casket of a loved one to ensure the body would forever remain whole. Early physicians prescribed amber for headaches, heart problems, arthritis and a variety of other ailments. In ancient times, amber was carried by travelers for protection.

Wishing you all a holiday season of fragrant, protective pine and the warmth and sunshine of amber!

Papers prepared, canvases covered, rosemary gathered, Rosemary portraits painted! 

Writing for NaNoWriMo is going well but I miss playing with colors! Love autumn’s golden palette!