Passionflower is ecologically intriguing, drop-dead gorgeous, and an incredibly useful herbal medicine and wild edible. So I introduce this passionflower materia medica with some ecological, botanical, and cultivation snippets specific to this amazingly charismatic native vine, and hope that you wont skip this juiciness for the medicinal information.
How many times have you found yourself in this embarrassingly uncomfortable situation? You invite a treasured friend over on a hot summer afternoon and reach for the herbal iced tea you have lovingly prepared from fresh aromatic herbs in your garden, but then you realize with sinking humiliation that you only have plain Jane ice cubes on hand. You wish you could just go home, but unfortunately, you are already home. So you serve the plain ice cubes anyway and brace yourself for the gossip that will surely ensue from your frigid faux pas. “ What kind of herbalist serves ordinary ice cubes with their herbal refreshments?” Totally avoid that scenario, and stock up on these fancy pants herbal ice cubes instead.
Refreshing hibiscus mint herbal iced tea recipe with key-lime ice cubes. Hibiscus, also called roselle, is made from the calyces (sepals, part of the flower) of Hibiscus sabdariffa in the Mallow family (Malvaceae). High in anti-oxidant bioflavanoids, Hibiscus has been the study of many recent studies for its anti-inflammatory, cardio-protective, neuroprotective, and hepatoprotective qualities. It is a good tonic tea for folks with heart disease or high cholesterol, and as a general preventative against free radical stress on the body.
The daylily is not only a versatile wild edible, but a beautiful and easy-to-grow perennial garden flower. It is native to Asia and has escaped cultivation over most of eastern North America. Daylily is a familiar sight alongside streams, roadsides, and fences. Chances are you are already living close to a patch of this showy member of the Xanthorrhoeaceae family.
