As an unusual member of the mint family the native herb yerba buena (Satureja douglasii) has always intrigued me with its strong powerful scent, shiny green leaves and its status as a trailing ground plant, that weaves fragrance through the forest floor. It loves to grow in open sunny dry places at lower elevations and can often be found growing near garry oak and arbutus.Just like me yerba buena loves an ocean view!! It can be easy to miss as it is so low growing and has only short ascending branches up to about 3 inches. To find yerba buena can be a true blessing! The solitary flowers are white to purplish tinged and bloom in June and July.
It has long been used as medicine among many native people up and down the west coast, and has been used for colds, fever, digestive complaints, relaxation and even as an aphrodisiac! Yerba Buena means good herb in Spanish and until 1847 was the name of San Francisco. Other medicinal properties include being diaphoretic, antiseptic, febrifuge, sedative, and anthelmintic.
I like many others have always enjoyed a delightful cup of tea from this lovely little plant yet an experience I had several years ago changed the way I thought about Yerba Buena forever.(and other things as well..)
As I was walking one day on a mountain near my home, I sat to rest in a sunny spot and discovered a patch of yerba buena.I always feel it is such a gift when I find this plant for although it is native to this area I still find it a rare occurrence to come across it. Then a most amazing thing happened. Clear as daylight the following popped into my head ”Please take me with you and make me into medicine for lung ailments. I have been up here soaking in the warmth of summer after surviving the strong winds and pelting rains of the winter and spring. I can bring the warmth and dryness of summer to people when the wind and rain get trapped inside of them."
Well you can imagine my surprise but not being one to argue with a plant, I gathered some and headed home. I felt moved to add some horehound and elecampane as well. I mixed it all with some alcohol and vegetable glycerine and called it Lung Elixer.
By October of that year the wind and rains did come and people started asking for help and the lung elixir went to work. Then the calls started coming in.” what was that you gave me?” My bronchitis was better in 4 days!” and ‘My children have had whooping cough before and nothing has worked like this!!” Comments like these continued on for the rest of the winter. I had used elecampane and horehound before but never together with yerba buena.
Now for the scientific among you I can almost hear you thinking “ this person is nuts!!” I realize none of this experience has any scientific merit and is merely anecdotal, yet I cannot deny my own inner voice nor do I want to.
I feel deep gratitude I listened and I strongly feel this is a valuable way as any of working with plants. I must add however to do all the research in other ways too if you are not familiar with the plant, perhaps keep a record of your own listenings..you never know where things might lead when we walk slowly and silently in nature.
Please feel free to make comments or ask questions on this on article or any other of my writings. Please note this is copywrited material and please do not reproduce in any form without written permission
REFERENCES:
Moore,Micheal 1993 Medicinal Plants of the Pacific West Red Crane Publishing
Pojar and Mackinnon,1994 Plants of Coastal British Columbia,B.C. Ministry of Forests and Lone Pine Publishing
Bean,Lowell John and Katherine Siva Saubel 1972 Temalpakh(From the Earth);Cahuilla Indian Knowledge and Usage of Plants.Banning,CA. Malki Musuem Press(189)
Bocek,Barbara R. 1984 Ethnobotany of Costanoan Indians,California,Based on Collections by John P.Harrington. Ecomomic Botany 88(2):240-255(17)
Gifford,E.W.1967 Ethnograpic Notes on the Southwestern Pomo.Anthropological Records 25:10-15(15)
It has long been used as medicine among many native people up and down the west coast, and has been used for colds, fever, digestive complaints, relaxation and even as an aphrodisiac! Yerba Buena means good herb in Spanish and until 1847 was the name of San Francisco. Other medicinal properties include being diaphoretic, antiseptic, febrifuge, sedative, and anthelmintic.
I like many others have always enjoyed a delightful cup of tea from this lovely little plant yet an experience I had several years ago changed the way I thought about Yerba Buena forever.(and other things as well..)
As I was walking one day on a mountain near my home, I sat to rest in a sunny spot and discovered a patch of yerba buena.I always feel it is such a gift when I find this plant for although it is native to this area I still find it a rare occurrence to come across it. Then a most amazing thing happened. Clear as daylight the following popped into my head ”Please take me with you and make me into medicine for lung ailments. I have been up here soaking in the warmth of summer after surviving the strong winds and pelting rains of the winter and spring. I can bring the warmth and dryness of summer to people when the wind and rain get trapped inside of them."
Well you can imagine my surprise but not being one to argue with a plant, I gathered some and headed home. I felt moved to add some horehound and elecampane as well. I mixed it all with some alcohol and vegetable glycerine and called it Lung Elixer.
By October of that year the wind and rains did come and people started asking for help and the lung elixir went to work. Then the calls started coming in.” what was that you gave me?” My bronchitis was better in 4 days!” and ‘My children have had whooping cough before and nothing has worked like this!!” Comments like these continued on for the rest of the winter. I had used elecampane and horehound before but never together with yerba buena.
Now for the scientific among you I can almost hear you thinking “ this person is nuts!!” I realize none of this experience has any scientific merit and is merely anecdotal, yet I cannot deny my own inner voice nor do I want to.
I feel deep gratitude I listened and I strongly feel this is a valuable way as any of working with plants. I must add however to do all the research in other ways too if you are not familiar with the plant, perhaps keep a record of your own listenings..you never know where things might lead when we walk slowly and silently in nature.
Please feel free to make comments or ask questions on this on article or any other of my writings. Please note this is copywrited material and please do not reproduce in any form without written permission
REFERENCES:
Moore,Micheal 1993 Medicinal Plants of the Pacific West Red Crane Publishing
Pojar and Mackinnon,1994 Plants of Coastal British Columbia,B.C. Ministry of Forests and Lone Pine Publishing
Bean,Lowell John and Katherine Siva Saubel 1972 Temalpakh(From the Earth);Cahuilla Indian Knowledge and Usage of Plants.Banning,CA. Malki Musuem Press(189)
Bocek,Barbara R. 1984 Ethnobotany of Costanoan Indians,California,Based on Collections by John P.Harrington. Ecomomic Botany 88(2):240-255(17)
Gifford,E.W.1967 Ethnograpic Notes on the Southwestern Pomo.Anthropological Records 25:10-15(15)
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