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A solid friend when you need it, hawthorn is an invaluable heart tonic. Savory Hawthorn Cranberry Syrup gives you forage credibility and amazing flavor.
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How To Infuse Hawthorn Berries
With heavy rains, high winds and widespread flooding forecast for the week, I’m looking for the shelter and comfort of home. Now decorated for the holidays, my home boasts the sparkle and heart of the season. I’ve set about creating and preparing handmade gifts for many people, putting together holiday menus, and blanketing my home with festive ideas. But underneath all the “Martha Stewart-y” competition of the season, I’m sure I’m not the first person to admit that the holidays sometimes carry a baggage of anxiety, stress, and moments of indescribable sadness. I can feel the pull of these moments, past, present and future, weighing heavily on my heart.
Hawthorn Berries Crataegus Pinnatifida Organic Dried Fruit
To find the courage to hold my head high and my arms open, I’m reaching for a powerful plant ally this holiday season. Hawthorn It’s funny that long before I studied herbal medicine, I was always drawn to those garnet berries that grow on spiny limbs. I wrapped them in sheets and stuck them in the arrangements. I admired their beauty. But these days I bring Hawthorn close to me. As food and medicine, hawthorn has a place in my heart. Literally.
) is like a strong but kind and gentle friend. The kind you can always turn to. The kind that will just smile gently and gently hold your hand when you’re angry or crying – or both. Like this friend, hawthorn won’t necessarily take away the pain, frustration, or anger you may be experiencing, but instead will provide you with protection and a safe haven as you process these larger emotions. will do You see, hawthorn is a cardiovascular tonic – strengthens the heart muscle, regulates our blood pressure and encourages the free and fluid movement of our blood which brings nourishment and vitality to every organ. Is. Who doesn’t need a friend like Hawthorn?
For all my soft words, the hawthorn berry is a powerhouse of heart-friendly ingredients, including anthocyanin pigments, quercetin, epicatechin, vitamin C and amino acids. As hawthorn berry offers analgesic, astringent, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antihyperlipidemic, antispasmodic, cardiotonic, sedative and vasodilator action. Translation? Hawthorn can relieve pain and inflammation, scavenge free radicals, lower bad cholesterol, help prevent plaque formation, reduce smooth muscle tissue tension, it The wonderful flora stimulates blood flow, regulates blood pressure and calms your troubled being. Who doesn’t need hawthorn in their life, right? It offers all this while being extremely safe, non-toxic and relatively contraindication-free.
I am a trained herbalist with a degree in complementary and alternative medicine, however, I am not a doctor. Posts in this blog are for informational purposes only and should not be construed as medical advice. Before using any herb, check for proper dosage, drug interactions, and contraindications. The information contained herein is not intended to treat, diagnose, treat or prescribe. Please consult your primary care physician about your specific health concerns.
What Is Hawthorn?
A few weeks ago, we collected hawthorn berries from several trees that dot our lower pasture. A cold, windy and prickly plan, made all the more dangerous by the over-inquisitive Jersey bull that calls these fields home. Suffice it to say, I cultivated with one eye over my shoulder at all times. I am infusing three half-gallon jars of 100 proof vodka with the fruit of this harvest. Some will be bottled as a hawthorn berry tincture / bitters (I have a small amount of bitters available from my Etsy store here ) – which I will sprinkle medicinally and liberally into holiday drinks. I think a bit of gin or vodka with blood orange juice, club soda and hawthorn berry bitters would be great for me. The rest of the hawthorn berry tincture will await next spring’s hawthorn flowers and new leaves for a powerful hawthorn heart tonic. I also created a lovely little savory sorbet to serve with smoked duck that I will be serving as my “go-to” dish this holiday season. A long-simmering infusion of hawthorn berries, cranberries, juniper berries, rosemary and peppercorns, liberally dosed with white balsamic vinegar, will give the duck’s rich and smoky flavor a bit of much-needed culinary perfection.
If hawthorn berries are past their prime in your neck of the woods, several online sources like Mountain Rose Herbs offer an abundance of dried options. Always be sure to identify your plant before wild harvesting any plant, berry, root or mushroom.
I hope you find your ally, plant or human, to provide you with a safe haven in these storms of the heart and mind, to protect your essence and keep your heart strong. With a friend like Hawthorn, you can be sure that you are being sheltered, supported and protected.
Dion is a writer and author on holistic and sustainable living topics. She holds a degree in Complementary and Alternative Medicine from the American College of Healthcare Sciences, and her first book, The Backyard Herbal Apothecary, was published by Page Street Publishing in Spring 2019. Additionally, Devon’s work can be found at LearningHerbs.com, GrowForageCookFerment. .com, AttainableSustainable.net, and in The Backwoods Home magazine. Dion’s second book, The Herbalist’s Healing Kitchen, will be published in fall 2019.
Hunter Gathering: Wild & Fresh Food: Wild Berries
I am a herbalist, farmer, cook and forager. I get my hands dirty and am not afraid to do things “the hard way”. Sharing my nitty gritty life with you! Read More August is coming to an end – register for your fall semester herbal courses during our Back to School Sale! Register now
Making your own hawthorn herbal infusion is a great way to pack a powerful nutritional punch from this member of the rose family. Using hawthorn (
Spp.) leaf, flower, and berry in a simple yet refreshing herbal infusion, you can help prepare your body for the challenges of the winter season.
An overnight hawthorn herb infusion is a perfect addition to a late fall brunch with family and friends. Consider adding a hawthorn hedge to your backyard pharmacy. Not only does it provide beautiful red berries for eating in the fall, but each spring it blooms with beautiful white flowers for May Day celebrations (Harford, 2020).
How To Make An Herbal Tincture And Herbal Infusion
To learn more about the rich history and mythology of the hawthorn, see the Herbal Academy blog post, Hawthorn Offerings , or try this recipe for Hawthorn Berry Cordial.
Easley, T., & Horne, S. (2016). The Modern Herbal Dispensary: A Drug Maker’s Guide. Berkeley, CA: North Atlantic Books.
Harford, R. (2020). Hawthorn – a foraging guide for its food, medicinal and other uses [online article]. Retrieved from https://www.eatweeds.co.uk/hawthorn-crataegus-monogyna
Meghan Pivarnik Meghan Pivarnik is a clinical herbalist and flower essence practitioner at the Colorado School of Clinical Herbalism’s Evergreen Center. She runs a clinical practice called Red Fawkes Apothecary. As a therapist, she brings her attention to detail, appreciation of every feeling, gentleness and deep listening. Meghan is grateful for stepping in to hold space for people to explore their most important selves. You can contact her at [email protected]
Plant Spotlight: Hawthorn
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The information presented on the Herbal Academy websites is for educational purposes only. Herbal Academy neither makes medical claims nor purports to diagnose or treat medical conditions. Links to external sites are for informational purposes only. Herbal Academy neither endorses nor is in any way responsible for their content. Readers should do their own research on the safety and use of any herbs or supplements. I haven’t shared it here yet, but we recently had a major family emergency. My sister-in-law gave birth to her first child, and then immediately went into cardiac arrest. I won’t go into all the details, but it was extremely scary.
She was diagnosed with peripartum cardiomyopathy – heart failure caused by pregnancy. He is alive thanks to a HeartMate II pump that was implanted in his heart, an LVAD that helps the left side of his heart pump blood.
Although heart disease runs in my husband’s family, it was quite a shock for everyone.
Hawthorn: Fierce & Gentle Protectress Of The Heart — Gathering Ground
This fear has made me deeply concerned about my husband’s heart health. Her father had a heart condition, her aunt and uncle died of heart attacks, and now unfortunately her sister has a heart condition to deal with.
It breaks my heart that he’s had to put up with so much (incredibly bravely, I might add), and I’m so worried that it could be my husband.
Throughout this ordeal, I have been researching natural ways to heal the heart and prevent heart attacks. Two important herbs have been shown to be excellent for heart health: cayenne pepper and hawthorn