Forsythia is edible, oh my!

So is periwinkle (Vinca minor) so long as you limit yourself to no more than 2 blossoms a day.

Even tulip petals (but not daffodils, oh my!) can go in the salad

Chickweed (Stellaria media) is ready to harvest for salad, oil, tincture, and pesto.

Wild carrot (Daucus carota) leaves are loaded with potassium and delicious in salads. (They smell like carrot.)

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Wild Salad with Wild Flowers

You will need a sharp pair of plant scissors and a few baskets. For safety sake, I harvest each plant into a different container. Keep the chickweed stalks parallel as you cut them and place them in your basket that way, making them much easier to cut into uniform pieces.

Largest basket (about 50% of salad): chickweed leaves, flowers, and stalks

Large basket (about 25% of salad): first year garlic mustard leaves

Medium basket (about 5% of salad): mild leaves, your choice, mallow or five-finger ivy (Virginia creeper)

Smaller baskets (total of 20% of salad): aromatic, strong-tasting plants like lemon balm, wild oregano, bergamot, cronewort, mint, catnip, and thyme

Smallest basket: Mixed flowers. Individual blossoms of Queen of the Night, violets, periwinkle, and wild geranium. Entire flower heads of garlic mustard and barbara's cress.

Preparation: Cut chickweed into small (1/2 inch) pieces; tear garlic mustard, mallow, and five-finer ivy into bite-sized pieces; finely mince aromatic plants. Combine in a bowl. Add a splash of tamari, a good pour of herbal vinegar, and plenty of extra virgin olive oil (at least one tablespoonful per serving of salad). Toss, artfully arrange flowers or simply toss them on the salad and serve. I like gomasio (sesame salt) on my salads, so I shall have to teach you how to make it soon!

Green blessings.

Susun

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Strengthen your immune system

Usnea

Echinacea root is the all-American immune system strengthener. It triggers production of white blood cells, interferon, leukocytes, T-cells, and B-lymphocytes, as well as directly inhibiting the growth of most bacteria and viruses. Peter Holmes, author of Energetics of Western Herbs, cites it as being effective against anthrax. Echinacea tincture is my first choice for countering infection. (Capsules and pills of Echinacea, if used for lengthy periods, may be counter-productive.) A dose of the tincture is one drop for every pound of body weight. I take this several times a week as a preventative; several times daily when there is active infection.

Usnea, a common lichen, is especially rich in a powerful antibacterial bitter called usnic acid (also usinic acid). I use the tincture of Usnea barbata (a dose is 1-2 dropperfuls), but other lichens show similar immune-enhancing and tonifying properties. There are no side effects reported from use of even large amounts of usnea tincture.

Poke root tincture (Phytolacca americana) kicks the immune system into gear incredibly fast. I've seen chronic infection of many years' standing resolve after only one dose, and acute infection subside in a matter of hours. Poke's effect seems to be focused on the lymphatic and glandular tissues of the throat and chest, making it the perfect counter to inhaled anthrax, which attacks the lymph nodes around the lungs. Poke is a specific against pneumonia and a protector of the lungs. It contains an antibacterial alkaloid and a special antiviral protein. It magnifies the effects of Echinacea and they work wonderfully well together.