it's been an oppressively hot pre-summer. Just boiling water makes me too hot, let alone drinking a hot tea some days. Well, switch it up and drink it on ice. With a little sweetener, the iced herbal tea tastes refreshing and delicious. Here are some recipe ideas to make an herbal ice tea. Make a big pitcher and put it in the fridge to enjoy all day long. Zesty Hibiscus Ice Tea: Boil 2 quarts of water. Add 1 ounce of loose zesty hibiscus tea (about 1 cup) and 1/2 - 1 cup

Holidays can be a stressful time. The stress can be due to missing loved ones or scheduling your days a little too full. The stress is especially apparent right now with the division over the elections and the continuing shut downs and mandates for the COVID-19 pandemic. Add to that financial burdens for some, setting the bar too high for how you want the holidays to go, missing family and we can be in a melt down state. Let's prevent that. Take some preventative measures

One of my mother's favorite flowers to grow (besides her beloved roses) was the chrysanthemum. She sent me some to grow in my own gardens when I moved to Minnesota and I have always appreciated their blooming in the fall when most plants are done flowering. They often are still in bloom when the first snows arrive here in Northwestern Minnesota. There are a lot of varieties of "mums" and most of them do have the same medicinal qualities we look for as herbalists. Chrysant

Gotu Kola has been used for over 2000 years and touted as the elixir of life and longevity.

One of my favorite times of summer coincides with the blooming of one of my favorite flowers, Monarda didyma, or more commonly called Bergamot or Bee Balm. This is such an unusual, striking flower and I am awed by it every summer, in fact as I am looking at this flower on my desk right now I feel emotional and wondering what is it about this flower that speaks to me. The flower is on a stem about 3-4 feet tall and the first blossoms are usually double headers (two blooms on t