Growing Medicinal Herbs for Plant-Based Healing

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Growing a medicinal herb garden is a wonderful way to form a deeper relationship with plants that have a long-standing place in the home apothecary.
Growing a medicinal herb garden is a wonderful way to form a deeper relationship with plants that have a long-standing place in the home apothecary.
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Greek mullein is a biennial with soft, wholly leaves. Yellow, flower-covered spikes shoot up the second year.
Greek mullein is a biennial with soft, wholly leaves. Yellow, flower-covered spikes shoot up the second year.
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Combine marshmallow root, juniper berries and goldenrod with strong alcohol to create a UTI-treating tincture.
Combine marshmallow root, juniper berries and goldenrod with strong alcohol to create a UTI-treating tincture.
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Both the roots and leaves of common comfrey (Symphytum officinale), can be used in a poultice to speed the recovery of topical wounds.
Both the roots and leaves of common comfrey (Symphytum officinale), can be used in a poultice to speed the recovery of topical wounds.
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Elecampane root is believed to fight infection and suppress cough. It’s traditionally used in tincture form whenever infection settles deep into the lungs and results in a hacking, unproductive cough.
Elecampane root is believed to fight infection and suppress cough. It’s traditionally used in tincture form whenever infection settles deep into the lungs and results in a hacking, unproductive cough.

On a freezing winter night many years ago, my wife and I saved our young daughter’s life with an onion poultice. Our struggling daughter woke in the middle of the night so congested she could barely breathe. With some quick thinking and the help of a few common ingredients we had on hand in our wooden yurt and garden, our daughter’s breathing returned to normal within an hour. To be able to immediately help a dangerously ill child by using simple, nearby ingredients is a valuable skill. Having experienced firsthand the self-empowerment that comes from knowing the healing potential of plants, I’ve dedicated my life to finding, disseminating and growing medicinal herb seeds. Here are some of the healing plants — all of which you can grow at home — I’ve found most effective for treating common infections and ailments.

Herbal Remedies for Ear Infections

Our early success with growing medicinal herbs inspired me and my wife to more carefully prepare our home apothecary. Ear infections were a frequent challenge in our home, so we learned to treat symptoms early to avoid deeper infections that could lead to burst eardrums. Our best herbal remedy for ear infections relies on the antibiotic activity of raw garlic and the mucilage found in mullein flowers. Every year, we make fresh mullein-garlic ear oil to administer when symptoms of an ear infection first appear.

Remedy. To make the oil, fill half a glass jar with fresh mullein flowers and then top the jar with cloves of fresh, crushed garlic, skins intact. Cover the herbs with organic olive oil and mix thoroughly. Tie clean muslin or several layers of cheesecloth over the opening of the jar to prevent bugs and debris from falling in, and leave the jar out in the sun to macerate. After a week, strain the contents through a clean cheesecloth and allow the infused oil to settle overnight. The next morning, decant the oil to remove water and any impurities that may have settled to the bottom. To decant, pour the oil through a cheesecloth filter into a clean, dry receptacle. Store the finished oil in labeled glass bottles kept out of direct light. To use, warm the oil slightly by immersing the bottle in warm water, and then administer by squeezing a single drop into each ear. Massage a few more drops into the skin and neck behind the ear. Use this mullein-garlic ear oil until symptoms of an ear infection disappear.

Growing Greek mullein.Verbascum olympicum is a biennial plant that makes a wide rosette of felt-like leaves in its first year. The rosette gives rise to a candelabrum of bright-yellow, flowered racemes the following spring. The seeds are light-dependent germinators that sprout quickly when pressed into the surface of soil. The plant prefers full sun, is drought-tolerant, and is a common “weed” that thrives in Zones 5 to 9.

  • Published on Mar 3, 2016
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