Ethnobotanist and herbalist Rocio Alarcon grew up in the Andean highlands of Ecuador in a family that respected and used plants, depending on them for their daily survival.
As a young adult she received an academic training and then went to the Amazon to conduct her real studies.
In this talk from the excellent YouTube channel Herb TV, she discusses the social dimensions of ayawaska use and other shamanic practices … Read more
Everyone knows (i.e. has been indoctrinated to believe) that when you’re not feeling well you go to the pharmacy for over-the-counter meds.
Or – if you have the time, the money, the patience and a decent doctor – you go to your doctor for a prescription.
While it’s great that these resources are available when needed, there’s a wee bit of a problem with this:
1. In 2010 alone, there … Read more
Lots of people have the dream of farming as a living.
If you feel this in your heart, what’s stopping you?
If your image of farming is owning 20 acres in the country, maybe it’s that image that’s getting in your way.
You can grow, you can make money, and you can get started with a lot less than you think.
Farming is a business and if you go about … Read more
If you knew the story of all the leaves of the forest, you would know all there is to be known about the gods of Dahomey.
– Dahomean proverb
– Ken McCarthy
PlantWisdom.org
Monsanto has succeeded in subverting virtually every mainstream news outlet and academic plant science program in the US. Those it has not bought off, it has terrorized into silence.
Of the handful of legitimate scientists who have published research questioning the safety of GMOs, more than one has had their careers ruined by pressures imposed by the company and its agents.
Add to this a choir of high-profile “useful idiots” … Read more
This is a beginning list. We will add to it as we learn of new reliable sources.
Green Terrestrial
(802) 375-8087
– Ken McCarthy
PlantWisdom.org
One of our goals for PlantWisdom.org was to do a interview (or three) with farmer/author Gene Logsdon.
Unfortunately before we got to it, Gene passed away after 85 rich years.
Fortunately for all of us, he left us with a lot of writing including over twenty-five books and a fertile weekly blog of nine years (including a post just one week before he passed away.)
What did Gene write about?… Read more
Herbalism is not science “lite.”
It’s also not an alternative therapy.
It’s a sophisticated healing system unto itself that has played and continues to play an essential role in the care and survival of the human race.
This is a talk that David Hoffman gave to the American Herbalists Guild Symposium in Portland, Oregon on November 5th, 2005.
In it he addresses the subversion of herbalism by Big Business and … Read more
In our last post, we talked about the importance of being well informed when you source herbs and herbal products.
In case you think we were overstating the need for this, we just discovered the results of an investigation published by the Office of the Attorney General of the State of New York.
They took at at look at the actual contents of “herbal supplements” sold in Wal-Mart, Target … Read more
Many sources advocate herbs for healing and cooking, and they’re right – but only half right. There’s another very important part of the equation.
Where you get your herbs and how you store them are of maximum importance.
Where should you buy your herbs?
Because the effectiveness of herbs degrades significantly after one year, supermarkets – including most health food stores – are not a … Read more
