Rose Bud or Petal Tea

An easy and delicious tea can be made out of rosebuds. Petals work too, but rosebuds are sturdier and less likely to get crushed during transport. I have read that you can use any kind of rosebuds and petals, organic ideally, but Dog Roses are often used for edible and medicinal purposes. They grow wild in many regions, and they have a certain wild rose taste that is different than the roses more commonly cultivated in people's gardens. I collect mine from wild dog woods that bramble around my neighborhood.

It's incredibly easy to make rosebud tea. Pour very hot water on them and let it sit for a few minutes, strain the fragrant water into a cup, and add a little bit of your preferred sweetener. Then drink your divine concoction and enjoy a gentle mood lift along with the sweet flavor. A muscular macho friend of my husband's was visiting when I made the pictured cup of tea, and he thinks I'm weird anyways, so it was with amusement that I prepared this in front of him. I offered him a cup; at first he scowled at the idea of drinking flower petals, but he admitted after drinking it up that it was surprisingly delicious, not at all what he had expected. I assume using more commonly cultivated roses for this would result in a rosier kind of flavor, dog roses really do have a special scent and flavour of their own. Many herbalists and old world Europeans make rosehip tea, which is very high in antioxidants and vitamin C. Rosehips sit there for our picking throughout the late fall and winter, just when we need the vitamin C the most.

Beyond just nutritional benefits, there are known medicinal benefits inherent in roses. They are nervines that can calm depression and stress, either by ingestion, or even by smell alone. Apparently they are good for asthma, by inhaling the essential oil vapors . At the time of this writing a Wiki has this interesting bit of lore that is new to me:
"Rosa Canina was dried and then smoked with tobacco to produce mild hallucinogenic effects and abnormal dreams." For further info by a couple of really good herbalist bloggers on roses and their uses, visit Gaia's Gifts and A Medicine Woman's Roots. Roses have been used for culinary, cosmetic and medicinal purposes in India and surrounding regions for centuries. Many scrumptious Indian and Mediterranean sweets are prepared with rosewater, and rosewater beauty products are abundant in many ethnic stores. I once bought Jasmine and rosebud tea in Chinatown primarily because of the beautifully designed tin that contained it, but the taste of that tea was astonishingly delicious.

Next time you pass some wild rose bushes, take a few petals or buds, or hips, (never all of the buds or flowers from one plant) and bring them home to try for yourself. Your body, your mind, and your taste buds will thank you. And it is safe for children as well, unless smoked of course.

Wildcrafting

Identifiable by their triangular/roundish leaves and wee white flowers in the center, Miner's Lettuce grows prolifically in the forested part of our property. It is an unassuming little succulent that is as common as dandelions in some parts of the West Coast, yet rarely noticed unless one knows to look for it. It has a crunchy texture as delightful and refreshing as spinach, and it is a rich source of vitamins and minerals. I'm a fan of Miner's Lettuce leaves tossed with small young Dandelion leaves, fresh Parsley and Chive cuttings from my garden, and a little leaf lettuce to mellow out the flavour for my kids. I usually drizzle this salad with a balsamic vinaigrette, and if I have some on hand I crumble some warmed goat cheese on top.

Emma enjoys Wildcrafting with me. It's a special thing for us to do together. My own Mommy (RIP) used to take me wildcrafting as a young girl; we'd walk through rural Manitoban fields and forests as she taught me about medicinals and edibles. I remember studying burdock plants and their multi-year growth cycles, learning about crushing certain flowers for mosquito repellents, and nibbling on edibles as we walked in a peaceful way so that deer and other animals wouldn't be frightened of us. Now I am able to share this magic with my own little Emma. I'm only familiar with a few edibles and medicinals by sight, but I look forward to learning more with both of my girls through the years. We are lucky to live where we live; we are surrounded by lush healthy forests with cleared trails, a wildcrafter's dream.

Last spring I discovered the ease of cooking with Stinging Nettles. Once cooked the sting is gone and since I was pregnant last spring, this exceptionally nutritious and healing plant was welcome in my kitchen as a frequent pot herb. I have used it in vegetarian chillis, soups, pasta sauces, stir fries, stews and used the cooking water as an addition to my herbal teas.

Why dine on weeds some people may wonder? Well, they are more nutritious than any green you will find in your mainstream grocery store (at least the three I have listed here), they are free, and it is a pleasure to be out in the natural world collecting them. It's an ancient practise that connects us with the wise peoples of generations behind us. My Croatian mother in law calls Stinging Nettles

"Cope-rrrrra-va" and told me that throughout old world Europe they are sauteed with garlic and oil and relished as a cooked green, as are Dandelions. It's incredible to me that gourmet restaurants sell dandelion greens in their salads while charging a bundle for such fanciness. Meanwhile poor people are unaware of the plethora of nutritious, free foods that are there for the taking anywhere that weeds have been allowed to grow!

For anyone inspired to try this at home, there is a season for most wild plants and their edibility. Spring is best for nettles and miner's lettuce, dandelions are best for salads when the leaves are young and smooth, though the big leaves can be good for cooking with if they are not too hairy.

For more information on wildcrafting in your regions, type wildcrafting and the area name into Google. You are sure to find that you are not locally alone in your interest, and you will also learn about which plants are safe for consumption where you are planning to forage.