Weekly Herbal: Calendula & oil of

        Nothing appeals to my senses and connection to "the Divine woman" quite like herbs, and more specifically an herbal garden. A play ground of little healers waiting to be transformed into delicious edibles and useful salves, potions endless possibilities!

I love the grounding, connected, powerful and wise way I feel when working with herbs, be that studying, smelling, Growing, harvesting or making something with or out of.  Ahh, and the magic when you get to do all of that!

In my little herb garden now, supplied by longtime friend of the family, Collette of Urban harvests organic and heirloom plants and seeds, I have growing 2 varieties of basil, oregano, cilantro, parsley and calendula.

The calendula (calendula officinalis, or pot Marigold) has the most beautiful mid sized orange flowers. In the picture above the calendula is the tall plant at the back, there are only buds in this photo. I should have taken the pic before I pinched off the flowers! I love them because not only are they an edible flower that look great in salads, they are also used to nourish and heal the skin of rashes, minor scrapes, upsets and inflammation. Great for kids and also babies bottoms too!

I am making a simple calendula oil by pinching off the flowers after blooming, and they bloom fairly often, then letting them dry a bit on the counter over night and putting them into a jar of olive oil.  I just keep adding to jar when more flowers are ready. I used a light cold pressed Olive oil because it's easy on the nose and I have plenty of it.  Other oils will work, like almond, or grape seed, or sesame, but that's a strong smelling one.

The oil is turning a lovely orange colour!

Properties of  Calendula include:
- anti inflammatory
- anti-fungal
-edible and cheerful appearance
-promotes sound sleep and soothes the nerves.
-heals and nourishes the skin
-great for babies and kids too!