Prunus serotina, The Cherry

Prunus serotina, The Cherry 

Prunus emarginata, Prunus serotina, bitter cherry, choke cherry, (yes the cherries are quite bitter with an intriguing sweetness, almond, cherry taste Rosaceae (Rose family)

     Wild Prunus choke cherry species are highly variable from place to place, and i'm sure there's a lot of communication via pollen in the cherry community. Botanists and books will often give various names to the same species, or different varieties at different locations. They are for our purposes useful the same, not the same as far as names, same with regard to herbal usage. 

     Yet there are some common characteristics, it's a small tree, with deciduous leaves, the bark has a distinct straight line light colored notching that circles the older branches and trunk looking like it was applied with a stencil. It tends to like water, here in a seep high on a mountain at 5000ft, though not always visible flowing water, although it can be in a riparian plant community. It tends to fall down and resprout where it touched down. It can form thickets.  The leaves are opposite and can have tiny serrated edges or not even on the same tree. 

     Cherry bark has been used because, it has for most of us an intriguing inherently pleasant evocative fragrance, i haven't met anyone who doesn't like it but there probably are some. I believe it goes deep into the  collective biospirit muscle memory of northern eurasian people's for whom cherry blossom fragrance signal the ending of winter, fertility, the increase in daylight and renewed abundance. The scent of bitter cherry bark is intense and resembles cherry almonds honey sweetness. 

    The scent is due partly to cyanogenic glycosides, hydrocyanic acids, coumarin and inherent flavonoids. Yes a cyanide compound that has a sedative quality that calms the cough reflex in aggressive nighttime coughs and cough formulas. It has been used for hundreds of generations and will continue to be used by those of use who do such things. 

      Personally i am here gathering wild cherry after fruiting, after first frost, which has occurred here at 5000 ft in northern mountains. This will vary from place to place. Basically gather in autumn fall, when the cherry fruit is red or purple black depending on species, not during early spring when in flower, some people wait until the leaves fall off. However i wouldn't hesitate to gather wild cherry in the spring while in flower, using fresh bark, leaf and flower in roughly equal portions to utilize as a nervine, for use in anxiety and agitation as a specialized formula for sleep, and calmness. I guess everyone can chose what to worry about, and i chose not to worry about a plant that has been used for thousands of years by people wherever they lived. A fresh whole plant tincture of wild cherry is quite strong as a relaxant in agitated persons, and you don't need to use a lot, only 5-10 drops. It is useful to have a whole plant flower, leaf and bark available for situations of out of control emotions crying, sobbing, and the like. You'll have to decide if you're up for using something like that. Other people will of course disagree and that's fine as far as i'm concerned. Wild cherry is safe and as a specialized limited batch type of thing for extreme coughing fits and high levels of anxiety it's useful to have on hand when these situations arise. Rather than pop a xanax or benzo, ritalin or amphetamine salts for children and that sort of thing, highly addictive substances, i feel wild cherry used in this way is harm reduction. Our bodies as biospirits have ingested rose family plants from beginningless time and have internal means of detoxifying these substances in our biospiritual memory rather than say a benzo. Again if you're on this path then you're going to gravitate towards it.
      Utilize small straight branches pruning at the point where the beach meets the trunk stem. Then peel off the bark, sometimes in a straight branch you can make a cut length wise and peel off the bark in one piece or in long wider strips, which is good if you are drying the bark as this way it will last longer without losing its aromatic quality. It's a good idea if making tincture to make a straight fresh plant tincture FPT 1:2, or DPT 1:5 50% of wild cherry bark and add 10% glycerine so tannins don't compete for the medicinal constituents. It's also best to make a make a straight cherry tincture with 10% glycerine, then add cherry to formula rather than mixing all the herbs and roots together in one jar. This way you can make a formula by adding the various root, bark, leaf tinctures  together in small batches and avoid making a big batch of limited use formula or making a failed formula that you can't salvage. 

     Prunus spp has cardio reductive relaxing qualities for rapid pulse which accompanies acute lung congestion and coughing fits. In a cough formula it can be combined with an aromatic antimicrobial Ligusticum Tishwoof, Abies grandis, pine resin, balsalm root, angelica, grindelia, sweetened with honey, or sweet root, licorice.

Tishwoof osha root

 A good strong wild cherry tincture can be added in small amounts like sweet root, licorice, angelica to sweeten formulas taste. Although you have to be careful because some flavors can get heightened by this mixing, for instance Larrea tridentata is Larrea tridentata and no mixing is going to lessen its inherent taste. 

https://youtu.be/yPNB27dRQys

  Description of the Cherry Tree in the South West

   Prunus serotina, the wild cherry of the western mountains, is a valuable part of my Materia Medica. Prunus serotina refers to ‘prunus’ the greek word ‘prunos’-plum or cherry and ‘serotina’ the latin word ‘serus’- late maturing fruit. Ironically it blooms in early spring in the mountains of the south west. It is found in wet moist north facing canyons. It has striking beautiful flower and adorns the tree conspicuously with white dreamy blossoms.

      Prunus serotina is a member of the Rose or Rosaceae family. In the southwest US it is often straggly and srubby, with deciduous leaves bright green above, when the leaves are crushed it has a distinctive ‘almond’ fragrance with a hint of cherry. When the tree is crowded it can grow tall and slender with a short life span. The leaves have a ponted tip, finely serrated, alternate, simple. The flowers are showy and move fast in the spring, occurring before the leaves have grown to full size. They are white on a extended raceme and are so fragrant you can sometimes smell the fragrance wafting on the wind before sighting the tree. The bark is distinctive, when young there are small arcs of grey circling the diameter of the smooth shiny trunk. When older the bark takes on a mottled grey rough exterior, looking very different than the smooth bark of younger spindly trees.

      It occurs in North America widely in the eastern states. I have walked through the extensive distinctive deciduous forests with maple in the Alleghey mountains in western Pennsylvania. There in Pennsylvania it presents as a large great tree of dimension and size. In the western region of Arizona and New Mexico, it is a mid- to higher elevation shrub to small tree, ocassionaly getting to size but rare to see. Often found in shady canyons with Quercus (oaks) in moist riparian zones.

      The bark of wild cherry was listed in the US Pharmacopeia from 1820- 1970. It was used extensively by Native North American people across the range of its growth. The early pioneers learning and interacting with these people likewise prized wild cherry bark for coughs and as a mild sedative. It has an uninterrupted use by folk herbalists, such as myself into the present day.

      The familiar taste and flavor of wild cherry bark is used in the familiar cough drops and cough syrup. Dr DeWitt’s cough and cold syrup from 1930 contained horehound, tar, wild cherry, glycerine, alcohol 5%, and gum Arabic. It was marketed by W J Parker Company. Smith Brothers developed a similar cherry cough drop in 1928, the original flavor although secret, had a high licorice extract content. In addition to being the active ingredient cherry bark also took on a dubious role in disguising a wide range of ingredients from, laudanum, a liquid opiod to codeine, heroin and cocaine in patent medicines in the early part of the 20th century.

       The bark of Prunus serotina contains a wide range of active medicinal chemicals including: Amygdalin: anti-inflammatory, antitussive, anti spasmodic, expectorant
Gallic acid: analgesic, anti flu, astringent, Bronchodilator
Prunasin:cyanogenic, aldose reductase inhibitor, uterosedative, bronchorelaxant
Scopolletin: anti asthmatic, cns-stimulant,
 Tannin: hepatoprotective, antiviral, anticancer,

 Dr Duke’s Phytochemical and ethnobotanical database
https://phytochem.nal.usda.gov/phytochem/plants/show/1597#act-42946-close 

Cherry in Herbal lore

      “The cherry as a single image was frequently the love-cherry;as such it survives today in American slang as ‘the maidenhead’ . Erotic connotation was there for the makar to use if he wished. But the cherry was heavenly fruit. It was the object of craving in the Mother of God before Christ was born-in the well known ‘Cherry tree Carol’ that is a variation on the early legend of Mary and the date palm on the flight to Egypt…There was that in the nature of the cherry, the white and red of it’s flesh and juice, that could eloquently figure the body and blood of Christ, of the sacrament.”
 -Quote
Song, Dance and Poetry of the Court of Scotland Under King James VI By Helena Mennnie Shire, Cambridge University Press, 2010

      “I suppose there are few but know this tree, for its fruit's sake; and therefore I shall spare writing a description thereof.

Place : For the place of its growth, it is afforded room in every orchard.

Government and virtues : It is a tree of Venus. Cherries, as they are of different tastes, so they are of different qualities. The sweet pass through the stomach and the belly more speedily, but are of little nourishment; the tart or sour are more pleasing to an hot stomach, procure appetite to meat, to help and cut tough phlegm, and gross humours; but when these are dried, they are more binding to the belly than when they are fresh, being cooling in hot diseases, and welcome to the stomach, and provokes urine. The gum of the Cherry-tree, desolved in wine is good for a cold, cough, and hoarseness of the throat; mends the colour in the face, sharpens the eyesight, provokes appetite, and helps to break and expel the stone, and dissolved, the water thereof is much used to break the stone, and to expel gravel and wind.”

-Quote

Nicholas Culpepper The Complete Herbal 1653

 Sir Cleges, Knight of the round table and the Cherry:

      Sir Cleges was a knight of the round table. The story of Sir Cleges, translated by Jessie L Weston, 2000, Sir Cleges through his generosity and gifting to the less fortunate became poor. Gradually after a time living in poverty he was forgotten by those to whom his generosity shined and by and by he was left uninvited to the King Uther Pendragon’s palace and court. Uther Pendragon, the father of King Authur was having a feast at Christmastide. Sir Cleges was again univited and forgotten. Not without gifts he took comfort from his ever faithful, loving wife Dame Clarys. Sir Cleges as a devout Christian had pledged his feal loyality both to King Pendragon and the Queen of Heaven, the Most Blessed Virgin.

He sought out the interseccion of the Virgin Mary. While he was praying under a cherry tree at Christmas tide, he looked up and and lifting his head was struck on the head by a cherry branch thick and heavy with fruit in late December. “
      "Dear God,” quoth he, “what manner of berry may this be that grows at this time of the year? At this season I know not that any tree should bear fruit.”” Sir Cleges presented the cherries to his wife in gratitude for comforting him and then decided to take them to the King Pendragon, father of King Arthur. After first being rejected by the keepers of the court he persevered and was able to present them to the king. The king rewarded Sir Cleges with gifts and a return of his prestige among his peers with a place in the court.

 American Eclectics and wild Cherry Bark:

      Within the American Eclectics, cherry bark was esteemed as a complex remedy with a wide variety of application, in the American Eclectic practice of Medicine, Volume 2, by Ichabod Gibson Jones, 1858. “
      “I have also usually administered at the same time tablespoonful doses, two or three times a day, of a decoction of wild-cherry bark and sanguinaria, which, in cases connected with debility of the stomach, will rarely fail to produce highly beneficial effects, and should be continued for some time after the healthy secretion of the liver has been restored. Its action upon the biliary secretion obviates the necessity for constantly resorting to cathartics, and it should never be neglected except in those cases presenting evidence of gastric irritation, when the blood-root should be omitted and the cherry bark be given alone.”
        Ichabod Jones was writing here of cherry bark given as a treatment for jaundice and a stuck liver. Another Eclectic formula using wild cherry bark, this one from Lorenzo ElbridgeJ ones, The American Eclectic Materia Medica, 1863, was to combine Berberis bark, Aspen bark and wild cherry bark.” Infuse Barberry bark, Wild-cherry bark and American Aspen, four ounces of each, in one gallon of cider for forty-eight hours in a covered vessel, maintaining a gentle heat: one gill may be taken four or five times daily, in jaundice and torpid states of the liver.”
      Prunus serotina bark is not used much now for jaundice or liver issues. Yet these 19th century eclectic’s use of it in this way bears careful consideration for the modern herbalist.
      Ichabod Jones, describes Prunus Spp bark as ‘aromatic tonic, astringent and sedative.’ Both indicated in irritable stomach and nervous system. In addition he describes it for uses in chronic bronchitis, phithisis which is an old term for tuberculosis. Frequently with what we would now call ‘shortness of breath’, as occurs in COPD and exacerbations of asthma, and influenza there is anxiety.      
       Wild cherry bark is useful then as now in addressing anxiety connected to breathing. Wild cherry extract is a valuable ingredient in my materia medica. I wild craft it from the pristine moist mountains here in the southwest bioregion of mountains and Sky islands. I process it immediately in organic cane alcohol to preserve its medicinal aromatic properties. I offer it as a pure fresh plant tincture and in formulas.
      It combines well with Aralia racemosa, spikenard, Osha, Ligusticum porteri, American Licorice, Glycyrrhiza lepidota, Monarda spp, Lomatium, Asclepias spp and other southwest bioregional respiratory herbs. In addition it lends itself to being an ally, not only for coughs and respiratory issues.
     “Therapy—The tonic influence of this agent is more markedly apparent when it is administered in disease of the respiratory apparatus of a subacute or chronic character. It is not given during the active period of acute cases, but is of value during the period of convalescence. It is a common remedy in the treatment of chronic coughs, especially those accompanied with excessive expectoration. It is valuable in whooping-cough. The syrup is used as a menstruum for the administration of other remedies in this disease. It is excellent also in reflex cough—the cough of nervous patients without apparent cause. The syrup may be used persistently in phthisis, for the administration of many other agents which seem to be indicated during the course of the disease. Wild cherry is popular in the treatment of mild cases of palpitation, especially those of a functional character, or from reflex causes. Palpitation from disturbed conditions of the stomach is directly relieved by it. It is said to have a direct tonic influence upon the heart when the muscular structure of that organ is greatly weakened, where there is dilatation or valvular insufficiency, especially if induced by prolonged gastric or pulmonary disease.”
–John Uri Lloyd

       Prunus serotina resonates deep into the body energizing the largest gland in the body, the liver. Especially in terms of torpor and stagnation. It’s interesting to see herbalists today describe cherry bark almost exclusively for cough and respiratory issues. Both the eclectic physicians acknowledge this use yet acknowledge its use internally not connected with cough. Perhaps the best way of describing these broader range of uses is the description of wild cherry bark as a blood purifyer and tonic. Native American tribes also used the bark topically for sores, internally for diarrhea and digestive issues and for ‘old’ coughs, and during the first stages of a woman’s labor. The eclectic physicians of America felt strongly its use in jaundice/liver issues in addition to respiratory problems, along with cough and anxiety related to shortness of breath.
      “As a remedy for dyspepsia it has many advocates. It is a tonic to the stomach improving digestion by stimulating the action of the gastric glands. It soothes irritability of the stomach from whatever cause. Although the properties of a nerve sedative are not ascribed to this agent, general nervous irritation is soothed by its administration, nervous irritability of the stomach and of the respiratory organs is allayed, and a tonic influence is imparted to the central nervous system.” –John Uri Lloyd
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 American Materia Medica, Therapeutics and Pharmacognosy JOHN URI LLOYD, Ph.M, 1915

      “The officinal portion is the bark, and that of the root should be preferred to that of the trunk and branches. It should be renewed annually, as its properties are much impaired by age and drying.” “Properties and Uses.—Wild-cherry bark has a tonic and stimulating influence on the digestive apparatus, and a simultaneous sedative action on the nervous system and circulation. It is, therefore, valuable in all those cases where it is desirable to give tone and strength to the system, without, at the same time, causing too great an action of the heart and blood vessels, as, during convalescence from pleurisy, pneumonia, acute hepatitis, and other inflammatory and febrile diseases. It is also useful in hectic fever, cough, colliquative diarrhea, some forms of dyspepsia, whooping-cough, irritability of the nervous system, etc., and has been found an excellent palliative in phthisis.”
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The American Dispensatory, By John King

       “Prunus Virginiana— Pruni Virginianae—Wild Cherry. U. S. P. Origin.—The bark, collected in autumn, of Prunus serotina Ehr, a large forest tree indigenous in North America. Description and Properties.—It is met with in curved pieces or irregular fragments -fa inch (2 Mm.) or more thick; outer surface greenish-brown or yellowish-brown, smooth and somewhat glossy, marked with transverse scars. If the bark is collected from the old wood and deprived of the corky layer, the outer surface is nut-brown and uneven; inner surface somewhat striate or fissured. Upon maceration in water it develops a distinct bitter-almond odor. Taste astringent, aromatic, and bitter. It contains a volatile oil, hydrocyanic acid, tannin, a bitter glucoside, resin, etc. Dose.—i-i drachm (2.0-4.0 Gm.).”
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 A TEXT-BOOK MATERIA MEDICA, THERAPEUTICS, AND PHARMACOLOGY. GEORGE FRANK BUTLER, Ph.g.. M.D., , 1896

       “The cherry as a single image was frequently the love-cherry;as such it survives today in American slang as ‘the maidenhead’ . Erotic connotation was there for the makar to use if he wished. But the cherry was heavenly fruit. It was the object of craving in the Mother of God before Christ was born-in the well known ‘Cherry tree Carol’ that is a variation on the early legend of Mary and the date palm on the flight to Egypt…There was that in the nature of the cherry, the white and red of it’s flesh and juice, that could eloquently figure the body and blood of Christ, of the sacrament.”
 -Quote
Song, Dance and Poetry of the Court of Scotland Under King James VI By Helena Mennnie Shire, Cambridge University Press, 2010

       “I have also usually administered at the same time tablespoonful doses, two or three times a day, of a decoction of wild-cherry bark and sanguinaria, which, in cases connected with debility of the stomach, will rarely fail to produce highly beneficial effects, and should be continued for some time after the healthy secretion of the liver has been restored. Its action upon the biliary secretion obviates the necessity for constantly resorting to cathartics, and it should never be neglected except in those cases presenting evidence of gastric irritation, when the blood-root should be omitted and the cherry bark be given alone.”
-Quote
American Eclectic practice of Medicine, Volume 2, by Ichabod Gibson Jones, 1858

 Felter, H. W. The Eclectic Materia Medica, Pharmacology and Therapeutics, J.K. Scudder, 1922 -Quote The American Eclectic Materia Medica, by Lorenzo Elbridge Jones, 1863 “Infuse Barberry bark, Wild-cherry bark and American Aspen, four ounces of each, in one gallon of cider for forty-eight hours in a covered ves- sel, maintaining a gentle heat: one gill may be taken four or five times daily, in jaundice and torpid states of the liver.”

 References  
    A TEXT-BOOK MATERIA MEDICA, THERAPEUTICS, AND PHARMACOLOGY. GEORGE FRANK BUTLER, Ph.g.. M.D., , 1896.

    American Eclectic Practice of Medicine, Volume 2, by Ichabod Gibson Jones, 1858.

 American Materia Medica, Therapeutics and Pharmacognosy JOHN URI LLOYD, Ph.M, 1915.

 "BRIT - Native American Ethnobotany Database." BRIT - Native American Ethnobotany Database. Accessed September 29, 2016. http://naeb.brit.org/uses/search/?string=Prunus serotina.

 By William and Robert Whistlecraft, of Stowmarket, in Suffolk, Harness and Collar-Makers. Intended to Comprise the Most Interesting Particulars Relating to King Arthur and His Round Table. Bath: H. E. Carrington, 1842.

"Post-Medieval Arthurian Literature in English (Other than Fiction): A Preliminary Bibliography | Robbins Library Digital Projects." Post-Medieval Arthurian Literature in English (Other than Fiction): A Preliminary Bibliography | Robbins Library Digital Projects. Accessed September 29, 2016.

http://d.lib.rochester.edu/camelot/text/lupack-post-medieval-arthurian-literature.

Culpeper, Nicholas. The English Physician Enlarged: With Three Hundred and Sixty-nine Medicines, Made of English Herbs, That Were Not in Any Impression Until This. Being an Astrologo-physical Discourse of the Vulgar Herbs of This Nation, ... By Nich. Culpepper. .. London: printed for W. Baynes, 1799.

 Jo. Conversation, Field Notes. Tucson, AZ, 2015. John Slattery, Sonoran Desert Apprentice

Mich. Conversations. Silver City, New Mexico, 2015. Field talk Michael Cottingham, Voyage Botanical Herbal Medicine Program

 Felter, H. W. The Eclectic Materia Medica, Pharmacology and Therapeutics, J.K. Shudder, 1922.

Charles W. Kane, Medicinal Plants Western Mountain States, Lincoln Town Press, 2017

 Moore, Michael. Medicinal Plants Mountain West. 2012

 Prunus Virginiana— Pruni Virginianae—Wild Cherry. U. S. P. Song,

Dance and Poetry of the Court of Scotland Under King James VI By Helena Mennnie Shire, Cambridge University Press, 2010. The American Eclectic Materia Medica, by Lorenzo Elbridge Jones, 1863.

Wormwood

Wormwood

Wormwood 

Artemisia absinthium, wormwort,

 wormwood, wormwood comes from the German wermet, meaning to maintain the mind  thought to aid in clearing mental fog, strengthen clarity.

Wormwood flowers

A acetum was given to Yeshua the Messiah. "the soldiers also mocked him, coming to him, and offering him vinegar" Luke 23:36. When the serpent slithered away from Eve in the garden, in its serpent endless medicine road path grew up wormwood. For that reason marriageable maidens and those who seek them out are fond of it. Angelica root and seeds of the herb of the archangel is added to it for stomach bitters. If there is weakness in the stomach burner and nourishing food swallowed becomes hard lumps, like an extra lower rib and arching the solar plexus you can use this one. Take the flowers and mix with a white wine, or vinegar add Angelica root or seed you have gathered, with a bit of sweet root, you can also make a tincture.
Biospiritherbalists are glad to provide this to increase well being.

Agastache

Agastache urticifolia

Agastache

Agastache urticifolia, horse mint, giant hyssop mint,  Lamiaceae family. Greek Agastache: again-much, Stacey's-ear of grain referring to the flower and seeds. Urticifolia meaning nettle-like.  An erect perennial mint. Strongly squarestemmed in cross section at woody base. Flowers are dense spike like terminal inflorescence clusters. Calyx is tinged lavender, corolla petals irregular bent arched sloping tubular, upper lip is notched. Leaves are arrow shaped, alternate, toothed and creased upwards, larger towards base with a longer petiole. The leaves and flowers are skunky scented mint aromatic fragrant. 

Agastache

     Agastache is a biospirit interface plant used by biospirit folk to increase wellbeing.  The taste is hot, spicy, sweet and warming. Not as fiery, peppery hot as more southern agastache . It grows in transition open meadows in full sun with ninebark, Rosa, Oregon grape. It's circumpolar Eurasia with a wide range from arizona mountains north to British Columbia.

       Agastache is useful in bioreregional biospirit materia medica. Like other mints it is diaphoretic and will encourage sweating, urination, movement in a initial stuck fever. As such it mixes with blue vervain tea at the first sign of a cold due to the polysaccharide water based immunostimulant qualities, and like blue vervain it has a mildly relaxing sedative sleepy quality. You can add drops of tincture to blue vervain tea. It will function as a biospirit servant herb to circulate vervain through the tissue and increase movement of blocked conditions during restful sleep. 

     It can be used with women to promote movement in stuck crampy periods and has usefulness in a formula for cramping and pain with silk tassels, viburnum and red bane berry as a formula. It has mild antispasmodic quality. 

     Due to it's relaxant nerve tonifying quality it can be combined in formula for loose anxiety and agitation and unsettledness with episodes and outbursts with no specific cause. It combines well individually with St. John's wort, bugle weed, skullcap, and Pedicularis. Combine agastache with any of the above herbs in a ratio of 4:1, 75% base to 25% agastache. To these above 4:1 formulas 10-15 % anemone pulsatilla can be added to any of the above for sudden oncoming worry and episodic fretting. 

Agastache

Poleo mint, Mentha canadensis

Northern Poleo mint Mentha Canadensis, corn field horse mint, is a riparian wet boggy marsh native mint, with our biospirit covenant teacher poleo...

 

Northern Poleo, Mentha Canadensis 

Northern Poleo is a Lamiaceae (Mint family), i prefer the botanical name M. canadensis vs Mentha arvensis from an herbal rather than a botanical distinction because as one on a continuous endless medicine road at a certain point in a 1700 mile journey it has diverged from southern varieties in its presentation and herbal energetics. Different botanists will list Mentha candensis as a different species, a sub species or just one species Mentha arvensis from Canada to Mexico. Regardless of botanical name, you'll find subtle but obvious differences. 

https://youtu.be/uEMI1dALX2Q

     While like southern Poleo Mentha arvensis it has the flowers white to white pink purple inflorescence of many-flowered, separated, axillary clusters growing up the stem, 4 lobed, and sharp-toothed leaves tips pointed. It's growth is much more vertical without the bushy sprawling growth seen in southern Poleo. I have found big bushy sprawling soft leafed southern poleo where one small bunch of plants would take up a big botanical space, bags and bags. Northern Poleo is more strictly up and down with little branching off the stem. In addition while the stems of southern Poleo are bushy, softer sprawling and have strong aromatic scent glands present, Northern Poleo canadensis stems are thicker and lack strong scent. The actual scent of Northern Poleo canadensis is a little more reminiscent of a hedioma or mock pennyroyal than southern Poleo. Northern Poleo energetics are sweet, spicy hot, both warming and cooling. 

     

     It does work well as a carminative upper GI remedio, for indigestion dispelling gas and abdominal discomfort with cooling soothing effects while at the same time having warming spicy sweet taste. As a strong tea or use of gathered tincture will promote sweating and while diaphoretic has both cooling and warming qualities both from evaporations of sweat and the menthol cooling sensation. It women it can help stimulate delayed menses period. It has been used in folk remedio formulas and has a stimulating effect on a woman's cycle and can be added and used for premenstrual cramping formulas at the preperiod bloating stage. Topically it can be added to liniments and rub formulas due to some pain relieving qualities. Used topically it works better than southern Poleo in biting bug and tick formulas, similar to hedioma or mock pennyroyal. Poleo does well FPT 1:2, as a spirit de poleo, alone and in our biospirit formulas to nourish northern biospirit. 

     Different stages in Northern Poleo growth will see big changes in the aromatics, like most aromatic plants gather in late flowering stage and you'll notice on an endless medicine road as we are all on differences in aromatics in different plant stands. Since you'll be seeing scullcaps, bugle weeds, poleos together you'll want to taste them, bugle and skullcap for bitterness and Poleo stands for strong aromatics as indicating strong medicine. Gather in full flower above ground portions, you will need to separate lower thick stems vs upper leaves, flowers and tender flexible thin stems. Up to a certain point of course,  dried or tinctured Poleos will improve with age. 

     Along the lines of a lower GI stomachic, the intriguing energetics of northern Poleo as a warming carminative mixes well with many bitter formulas especially a straight bitter like a gentian. You'll need to play around with these formulas but adding seeds of sweet root, Angelica, oshà Tishwoof, northern poleo tincture, can make a more effective unique bioregional signatures bitter. 

    

     Poleo as a Biospirit Bridge herb. Poleo due to its strong aromatics and deepening of the heart, mind biospirit is an herb we use to bridge a space, transition from one space to another. If you don't have poleo, yarrow flowers will work as well. Often times we bring unneeded stuff from space to space. This baggage carried from space to space can interfere with the work we need to do in that space. You don't need to carry anxiety into a test environment. You have studied and adequately prepared so now it's about doing. Whether making love at the full moon, breast feeding, studying for a difficult exam, giving a public talk, poleo is a valuable herb for biospirit bridge. When you're breast feeding you and baby need to be breast feeding. Poleo helps the milk drop down. When you are taking your final exams you don't need to be cooking dinner. When you and your partner are together making love there is no need to bring finances or past lovers into a cool meadow with the sounds of flowing water. In each activity you need to be in that activity completely. 

     One common use of northern Poleo i found useful effective while gathering and exploring southernly poleo along the virgin river, arizona strip, fishlake and tributaries in the 1980's for students of endless road biospirit is to use poleo as a set apart study aid. Use Poleo or yarrow to transition from one formal space to another. You can use poleo tincture to increase learning retention, recall, facilitate approach to a next space effortlessly with minimum baggage dragged between space. Poleo and yarrow are both strong biospirit bridge herb, a traveling walking herb. 

      

Northern Poleo with bugle weed friend

     Use it in this way: before studying, making love, learning a new language, take a few drops of poleo. Smell and taste the Poleo. Have dried leaves nearby, or a rolled smudge stick. You can rub Poleo or yarrow all over your body, under your arm pits, in private areas, on your hair and chest. This will set up the study session. This will develop recall of new material. Frequently during the study session smell and taste Poleo. It doesn't matter the subject. It could be learning a musical instrument, learning a solo, breastfeeding, preparing for a speech, presentation or talk, studying a text, preparation for erotic biospirit work with a loving committed partner, preparing for an exam. Partners can also use Poleo in the same way for intimacy, bridging a space. Then when taking the exam, take the poleo tincture immediately before the exam, rub Poleo or yarrow in your arm pits and private areas, musical performance, breast feeding session, romantic intimacy or whatever you've studied. The poleo will allow whatever you've diligently studied to come to mind on your exam. If you are with a biospirit endless medicine road partner the poleo or yarrow for both of you will allow you both to settle into the space. Recall information and get 100% into the space you need to be nourish biospirit and carry it forward.

     In the support and grateful service of biospirit by His love and grace, sincerely biospirit covenant teacher Paul Manski, Wildherbways. 

      

Bugle weed, Lycopus

Lycopus, Bugle weed is an important herb to know on our Heavenly Father who breathes in our nostrils  biospirit worship as healing continuous no-separation endless medicine road.

Lycopus uniflorus, Northern bugle weed in flower

     lycopus asper, rough bugle weed, lycopus uniflorus, northern bugle weed

Lamiaceae (Mint Family)

Rough Bugleweed (Lycopus asper) is distinguished by its (usually) hairy stem and calyx square upright stems. The various bugle weed Lycopus like all herbs are moving, walking here and there. In finding a Lycopus that is active, use your organoleptic taste and harvest the bitter ones, they be most active for biospirit and what we are doing rather than specific botanical names. Although it is helpful to loupe them and know the subtle differences. This wet swampy northwest medicine garden has two different Lycopus species i have been working with. 

Lycopus asper, rough bugle weed, 2 stamens, purple tinge flowers

      Undivided with no separation medicine road garden Bugle weeds are a perennial, short low to the ground wet mint, growing from a thin white nodular trailing root. The white knobby root has a crispy texture and varies in bitterness, having been eatable by many. In this sense bugle weed is a food/medicine plant, maybe more medicine/food in certain stands. As such it is a relatively safe, non-judgemental plant that works for people. Not a heavy medicine plant it does have a complex chemistry. You gather the whole plant in flower with occasional roots as they present. FPT 1:2 it's a delightful abundant and frequently encountered plant with a wide distribution from east to west, north to south Arizona to Cascadia. 

    Lycopus in the northwest hugs lake edges, marshes, watery boggy swaps and small feeder creeks that tend to dry out mid summer. Bugle weed has erect square stems, leaves serrate to deeply saw toothed. Usually there are several species growing together. Often bugle grows with other water loving mints such as Scutellaria galericulata hooded skullcap, Mentha arvensis, Mentha canadensis in little groups. Telling the bugle weeds apart is easier in the field than on paper because in one place the same species will tend to have different growth patterns and character. Generalizations don't apply to species across broad areas outside of a face to face encounter. You will find 2 foot high hairy spindly varieties and short varieties. 

     

 Lycopus bugle weed is an important herb to know on the continuous endless medicine road. what i am seeing? i am seeing a lot of flowering Bugle weed. Like every single person reading this, i am feeling wet mud between my toes. Lot of mosquito bites, sunburned, everyone, anyone reading this, without a doubt you are walking through the mud on undivided endless biospirit medicine road. 

https://youtu.be/uEMI1dALX2Q

    Here at this medicine garden there are two different bugle weeds. After sloshing about the mud for a couple of weeks we see everyone going from one wet muddy boggy swamp to another. Begin to acknowledge the patterns of growth in the species. Lycopus asper, rough bugle weed can often be distinguished by its frequent densely hairy stems, and purple spots on the flowers. Lycopus uniflorus tends to be shorter and more in clusters from a thin bulbous trailing root node, although this is a local trait that varies. All the bugle weed i have encountered in the west have white flowers around the leaf axil, four lobed flowers with two stamens unlike most mints. While most southern bugle weed flowers in arizona and new mexico are white in some northern populations i have worked with in Nevada, BC, montana, washington and idaho on continuous medicine road you'll see pink and purple splotches in the white. Flowers occur in all varieties in dense clusters around the opposite leaf axils, tiny 1/8 inch or less, tubular four lobed white with two purple tipped stamens unlike most mints. 

      Many mints are highly aromatic, bugle weeds are not strongly aromatic in the mint sense. Northern bugle weeds do have a distinct scent in the crushed leaves. You recognize it in time. It is not a typical mint mentha scent. It's a iodine and sulphur scent. This scent says about its relationship to thyroid gland as sulfur and iodine are connected there. Look for a bitter bugle weed that is best for tincture. A good bugle weed will have bitter taste not immediately noticed because it can be so wet, the bitter comes on stronger as you chew leaves. Look for that taste and smell in your bugle weeds. 

      Bugle weed is an excellent folk biospirit  plant due its mildness and complex chemistry. Bugle weed nourishes glands in the body including the kidney. It works on many body systems and lends itself to wide presentation. It promotes blood circulation and prevents blood pooling. It can encourage movement of fluid accumulation in lower limbs. It will support the kidney. In a superficial rapid thready pulse it subtly decreases pulse while increasing more definitions in the beat, so fluid moves. It is a quieting relaxant to the nervous system. 

    Although mint plants are usually aromatic this one is not. So many good changes as biospirit folk plant more and more people are gathering closely intimately together using bugle weed...Undivided. Most mints also are not hemostatic, bugle weed is. As such it can be used by women in heavy periods or in older women who are losing their monthly but then it returns spotty. It is also a useful herb for women to try in menopause for night sweats and hot flashes. It combines well with motherwort. It can be helpful for sweating, bounding pulse, at night for women with these hot flashes and promote relaxation and sleep. 

     Although not widely known in biospirit positive circles bugle weed is becoming more and more useful as a mild nervine. For insomnia and sleeplessness it works best for people who tend to jump and look around when there's a loud sound, and continue to look around after the sound is gone. It works for people who become afraid at the sound of thunder and lightning. In short people who are thin, naturally don't gain weight, tend to be jumpy and worry about what people think about them. In generalized uneasiness and hesitancy with an anxious dark worried mind it can work to relax and calm. In these cases it can be a valuable nervine ally. It's not a druggy sedative chemical it's more of an alterative to support the hormonal stress glands. Especially the thyroid and pituitary complex, that tend to get switched on and locked on, so the natural loops that turn things off and on are stuck on. 

      If the pulse is too fast and there is a tendency for breathlessness where the heart beats quickly and thumps, then decreases and a person is anxious it can encourage the heart beats to be more distinct and separate, like a bum-bump, rather than b-b-b-bum,  rather than all clumped in quick little beats that don't move stuff around very well. Because this herb grows in wet moist cool slow flowing water it tends to balance flow of blood with the kidney so the water can mix and piss out of the blood and get to a proper thickness.  

    This folk formula growing together in moist wet swampy low places, the three herbs catnip, poleo and bugle weed or minta de lobo grow together and create a polycrest place formula. It addresses accumulation of hardness in the belly which is called empacho. In children this can be colic, crying fits, and restlessness. This formula can sweeten the milk in a breastfeeding mother, especially if she has been sad or crying, fighting with her husband's family, or arguing with her husband about money, and not sleeping well, or sleeping too much. In adults this can be either hard or soft, with constipation or loose stool. Often in adults this formula will help heartburns below the  small space between ribs in the upper abdomen. 

      So apparently appreciate this Bugle weed medicine and enable it to appropriate biospirit wellbeing, now going free do no harm bless and praise His holy name. 

Lycopus Bugle weed with nutlets and flowers

Scutellaria galericulata, Marsh Skullcap

Scutellaria galericulata, mint hooded marsh skullcap. Square stem mint family Lamiaceae. 

Hooded flower appearing opposite 

Saturn Pluto Jupiter conjunction rising in sidereal Capricorn, full moon in sidereal Sagittarius August 1 2020

Found from the arid southwest to Canada and Alaska. Found here in moist swampy areas, adjacent to northwest mountain lakes, about 18 inches tall to a foot high, square stem leaves, opposite, lanceolate, crinkled, strongly veined on underside, directly from stem, stems tend to be reddish brown at Midsommer flowering. Light blue hooded flower at leaf axil, in opposite pairs, with smaller leaf axils. Flower the upper lip entire, shorter than lower and hood-like, the lower lip 3-lobed observed with a loupe 10x otherwise appear fused. Fruit is a nutlet in pairs turning brown.

     Botanists arrange plants according to their protocols and herbalists to theirs. While a particular plant genus and species maybe present botanically across a wide geographic range, it doesn't mean it's the same plant herbally. It's important to spend a lot of time with your skullcap populations. It is empowering to know wherever you are you will find Scutellaria galericulata and a familiar bitter, cooling taste with demulcent texture.

https://youtu.be/uEMI1dALX2Q

      Scutellaria galericulata is an excellent nervine used both as a nurturing supportive herb alterative for the nervous system and for acute sudden onset anxiety as they arise. Known for its ability to relax tension without strong sedation. Antispasmodic action makes it useful in menstrual cramps, restless leg at sleep and combined with anodyne herbs. Due to its bitter cooling energetics it's useful in dispelling liver heat that manifest with anger, rage, short temper, restless insomnia. It helps to move this stuck liver energy and is alterative in unproductive mind states that appear volitional choice when they are more rooted in a body condition of blocked liver. It can be combined with estafiate in this condition.

     The whole plant in flower with occasional roots that pull up, FPT 1:2. Potency of this and similar herbs can be increased by gathering skullcap with biospirit specific protocol practices taught by face to face teaching and gathering during full moon.      

      Another way to access this plants bioenegetics is smoking it in a pipe, or rolling papers. Smoking this variety of skullcap will definitely work immediately to calm. It can useful combined with other herbs, like lobelia for tobacco nicotine withdrawal formulas. Although since nicotine withdrawal is so smoking dependent it may be more useful to use a formula that doesn't include the physical act smoking. Provide separate nicotine containing tobacco tincture, for intense cravings, with straight lobelia tincture, and pedicularis tinctures. In my experience Scutellaria galericulata is too strong to smoke alone, just to much spaced out quality, although in an acute anxiety attack or combatting withdrawal from, alcohol, tobacco, opiates, late stage Meth syndrome after the 48-72 meth crash stage, it could be useful. Since harm reduction is a legitimate strategy in tobacco dependence it can be combined with other herbs including tobacco in a kinnikinnick blend to wean someone from acute nicotine addiction. Or to create a relaxing non tobacco smoking mixture combined with Pedicularis bractiosa or Pedicularis racemosa, uva-ursi, prince of pine pipsissewa, dwarf dogwood bunch berry leaf, red ossier dogwood bark, manzanita leaves in a kinnikinnick. 

       One way i am on this endless medicine road well being through herbs is by biospirit specific protocol practices face to face. You will find this herb is useful in substance withdrawal, anxiety reduction, as a part of formulas for many presentations. Skullcap combined with Pedicularis, Lobelia spp, and other herbs elaborate further, deeper, more completely face to face. This is a face to face journey you can make a huge difference for those desiring to go free here now from substance dependence other forms of biospirit erasure with these plant teachers provided by and through spirit. When you focus on your personal relationship with plants you can't go wrong. Endless medicine road Scutellaria galericulata. 

Underside leaf deeply veined

    Even though others divert biospiritual energy into regime clinic cults, that don't permit biospirit flow it maybe these forms are the only permitted forms available in a reduced situation. Know that bowing, bending, taking a knee and apologizing on the way to your video game medicine show debt payment gig is eventually going to block and suppress your own biospirit.

     Endless medicine road for wellbeing continues for those on that road, the decades and decades, 100+ year long regime program to deface-erase-replace our people's biospirit for 4 generations in their hot-cold-hot agenda from their 30 year brothers war 1915-1945 till today, via meme pathogens, erase-deface-replace, brother-sister shun-styles, yet i still gather healing plants for our people with love, service, do no harm, sharing open go free here now these herbs...

      Going back to the Greek, Egyptian, Aryan Indian subcontinent and Chinese cultures opiates, marijuana, and mind altering substances have been noted historically. The epidemic is not new what is new is the addiction death-style marketing rap. The new rap is, your addiction is regime conviction. Your condition, our regime permission. We gave you meth-salts, benzos, oxy's, now try our prescription methadone, or how about a reformulated meth adderal to put pep in your step, it's all covered by regime dumb down health wealth care. We will redistribute your wealth to deserving others while you rot in your drug infested no go zone replace-erase cities. The regime can't stop cheap meth, black tar heroin, xani bars, but it can support the cure, our regime approved death-style, Buprenorphine/Naloxone (Suboxone). 

     In the Bible the greek word pharmakea which is the root of our word pharmacy, has been translated meaning sorcery, mind control by practices using pharmakea, witchcraft, sex and worship of strange gods. In the Bible these practices are understood as poisonous to the biospirit which Father God has breathed in us his people. Other teachers in their respective  traditions understood substances that cloud and confuse the mind as being not only personally debilitating but also a part of subduing and enslaving people. The essence of this is Titus 2:12 "Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;"Any time a culture allows addictive debilitating drugs to be widely circulated there are nefarious elements in that culture promoting erasure and wealth redistribution. This wealth redistribution is an attack on an important foundation, sovereignty, dominion and private property. In many areas state, county and local taxes mean that sovereign private property is converted via exorbitant money lender usury and yearly taxation schemes that mean your property is not held by you and your birthright children. Your private property is owned by the state, proof being, avoid paying their yearly tax and see who is the real owner of your property. Property state inheritance death tax, means your own children can not inherit your property unless they first pay a death tax to the state. A death tax on property that is owned free and clear.
    These intricate tax wealth redistribution schemes are hatched in a group identity politic with you as the only identity group not allowed to represent yourself within a group identity political system. In the mean time while we are redistributing your families accumulated wealth piece by piece in escalating yearly installments, we are going to infiltrate your community with insidious addictive drugs. If we don't hook your children officially and legally in the schools with a toxic mix of methamphetamine salts, and bizarre chemical pharmakea, we will get them on street drugs which are conveniently available by dope dealing classmates. Just as the regime police step down and take a knee during mob riots, looting and criminal bravo sierra chaos. Isn't it convenient that your regime police do a step down hands off approach to illegal street drugs decimating our nation. In case you forgot, it's no longer your nation. Because in a governance that has evolved to group identity politic, you are the only group not permitted group representation in that identity politic system. Isn't it predictable that once again you are now an absolute minority in a country where just 40 years ago you were the majority group? The regime did another convenient step down on illegal immigration. Just as the regime steps down when criminal gangs loot, burn, topple monuments and historic sights. They do a stand down on illegal immigration. They do a stand down on a flood of addictive poisonous drugs. They don't stand down at home foreclosure. They don't do a stand down for tax liens on private property.  They don't do a stand down on enforcement of an absolute ban on your speech when you demand representation in a group identity politic government. Simply use the word white with regard to any meaningful activity. White political caucus. White business. White community. White schools. White education. White studies in a antiwhite regime school. See how fast the regime responds. No stand down of the antiwhite regime forces when any element of white is mentioned. Yet you can say, Black political caucus, Latino representative, Black studies at a publicly funded college, Black lives matter, Native american owned business, any identity group can advocate publicly for their concerns, you alone cannot. Regime controlled social media will immediately ban any in real life IRL activity that links to white wellbeing.  
        Here when I say widely circulated, highly addictive poisonous drugs, I mean descriptive rather than prescriptive. It is not a question of if these drugs are here. They are here and they are destroying your community. The community you can't call your community due to hate speech laws. You can say asian community. You can say black community. You can say latino community. But you can not say white community. If you say white community you will be fired from your job. You will have vigilante mobs at your door. Your name and address will be publicly posted. The police will thoughtfully step down while you are assaulted because you said white. Well there are white people and yes it is to our advantage to acknowledge ourselves as a group and establish white well being community awareness.
      If there is a society nation where copious amounts of widely available addictive chemicals are in use then it's pointless to call it prescription vs illegal. It doesn't matter whether your addicted to prescription percocet, illegal heroin, methadone or suboxone, the bottom line is putting a substance into a legal illegal box doesn't change the reality of people developing and participating in substance supply as their basic livelihood. Whether illegal drug dealer, or licensed nurse practitioner, registered nurse, behavioral health counselor, a major part or eaches life is tied to addictive substance trade. A regime that tolerates these scenarios destroys biospirit. Their pathway of addiction is policy of erasure. The good little do bees, in helping medi police state regime take a knee, paint their hair blu, apologize on their way in their prius to regime debtor McMansions, thinking this will get them through the next 4year plan are wrong. Stalling for time is not a coherent strategy. Look, this shit show is about to be blown wide open. You will lose your stuff. The banks and debt recirculation team will get your stuff and your payments will be taken over by another useful idiot, while you get a free trip ticket to the homeless camps. You may build a better air conditioned nightmare boogaloo box for your northern biospirit but eventually you'll lose your take a knee, i apologize wife who will see you for who you are, a northern biospirit. Your mixed children will hate you as much as you hate yourself via ever more complex meme pathogenic dis-ease. Your boogaloo air conditioned nightmare box can not house your northern euro biospirit. It's as fake as your fake virtue signal apologetics. It's not possible to atone for a grievance not committed. At your heart you know the wealth redistribution tax structure is tyranny because you have no representation. You as a non-group group member can not legitimately enter a group identity political system. Love based on erasure fear is tyranny and try as you will, you can not overrule your biospirit created over 100's of generations. 

     There are many specific examples of addiction as a tool of various regimes to debilitate a biospirit group and transfer wealth. There are too many examples to list, the British with opium trade in China, alcohol in colonial expansion in native american communities, the United States in Indo China, Vietnam, Afghanistan. 

      So there is nothing new in the use of addictive and mind altering substances for a regime political end. What is new is the quantity of these substances. What is new is the volume of these substances. From opiates, synthetic opiates, benzodiazepines, amphetamine, methamphetamine, alcohol, psychiatric drugs, antipsychotics, genetically enhanced marijuana, and modified synthetic substances, there is an arsenal of weapons against biospirit. A person in youth who goes to these substances like amphetamine salts whether prescribed by regime behavioral health counselors or distributed illegally by antibiospirit runs the risk of immediate catapult into life long zombie erase-replace status. Potential is immediately erased in an unavoidable algorithm. That regime pro pharma dope is clean, pure, predictable versus regime sanctioned non-sanctioned dope does not address harm to biospirit. The unprecedented assault on biospirit requires not only a psychological defense against generational meme pathogens but knowledge and sharing of biospirit rules and regulations for well being. Plant, person and place is one aspect of going free here and now. 

      Patrick Henry: "Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or ?", there is no or.