Herbs That Heal

Planting an herb garden is going to do a lot for you besides add tasty ingredients to your food. Herbs can help heal many of the problems that ail you.

For centuries, farmers, gardeners, herbalists and scientists have grown and developed herbs to help people feel better. They are a source of vitamins and are still used to a great extent in Europe and Asia.

Even now, pharmaceutical companies study herbs and the benefits they can bring to humans. Herbs are base ingredients in everything from aspirin and cancer-fighting drugs to cosmetics.

Here is a list of common plants and herbs that can help cure what ails you.

• Aloe: Apply to sunburned skin.
• Calendula: Steep petals in boiling water, then soak a compress in the liquid and use on minor cuts and burns.
• Fever few: To cure a headache, place a fever few leaf between two slices of bread, then eat.
• Garlic: To cure a mild cold or sore throat, drink a mixture of crushed garlic cloves with hot water. Raw garlic can also help fight bronchial infections.
• Lemon balm or Onion: Place crushed lemon balm leaves or slices of onion on an insect bite to reduce the itchiness.
• Mint tea: To soothe a stomachache, drink a cup of mint tea.
• Parsley: To fight bad breath, chew on a few sprigs of parsley. Alternatively, you can mix a handful of chopped parsley with two tablespoons of water and use the mixture as a hair tonic. It will simulate your hair follicles and make your scalp feel great.
• Peppermint: To soothe a cough, drink tea made of peppermint leaves and hot water.
• Vinca major: To stop a cut from bleeding, apply a few leaves to the wound.

To get herbs to grow healthy, plant them in a white 1-gallon or 5-gallon plastic bucket in organic soil (1 part perlite, 1 part vermiculite, 1 part potting soil and a handful of compost).

Place the potted herbs in an eastern exposure where they will receive morning light and afternoon shade. Fertilize your herbs with a light dose of fish emulsion, liquid seaweed or Extreme Juice every three weeks or so.

Our water has a lot of salt in it, so when you irrigate, make sure the water flushes out of the bottom of the bucket.