The Holistic Homestead, Health Starts at Home, Colorado nonprofit, education, outreach, advocacy

How to harvest and enjoy rose hips

Posted on September 28, 2023 by The Holistic Homestead

While fall is definitely falling early here in the Colorado Rockies this year – I couldn’t wait for the first hard frost! It finally got cold enough overnight for the bright red rose hips bursting with color on the wild rose bushes to be ready to harvest!

Category: Apothecary, DIY, Headlines, Here's to your Health! Tags: autumn activities, colorado rockies, gilpin county, Headlines, health, natural Vitamin C, rose hip recipes, rose hips, wellness, wildcrafting

Wild Rose Flower Essence

Posted on September 23, 2023 by The Holistic Homestead

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While I have been wildcrafting the wild plants for food and medicine since childhood, I have never worked with the extremely subtle art of flower essences. Flower petals are so delicate the beauty and fragrance is easily lost in a tea, and doesn’t transfer easily to the harsh treatment of alcohol. How to harness and preserve the beauty and healing power of rosa acicularis?

Category: Apothecary Tags: colorado rockies, diy herbalism, flower essence, Headlines, Holistic Health, homeopathy, rosa acicularis, rose essence, wildcrafting

Meet St. Joan’s Wort

Posted on July 1, 2018 by The Holistic Homestead

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I am always ecstatic when I get to meet a new plant – an energetic signature that I’ve never felt growing in-between my hands before, new opportunities to crouch down and disappear in fields of golden hypericum blossoms and listen…

Category: Apothecary, Headlines Tags: ethical harvesting, ethical wildcrafting, herbalist, homemade herbal remedies, how to harvest hypericum, how to identify hypericum perforatum, how to wildcraft, st. Joan's wort, St. John's wort, what is hypericum used for, what is St. John's Wort used for?, wildcrafting, wise woman

Watch this 4 minute video: what an amazing year for the Homestead!

Posted on December 13, 2016 by The Holistic Homestead

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Category: Fundraiser, Headlines Tags: 2016 year in review, alpine botanicals, dynamic roots, gilpin county colorado, grassroots health movement, health literacy for kids, holistic healing, mountain forum for peace, mountain high pharms, mountain people's co op, natural health, nederland community library, singing bowls, the holistic homestead, wild bear mountain ecology center, wildcrafting, winter retreat

Pineapple Weed for kids and kids-at-heart

Posted on September 8, 2016 by The Holistic Homestead

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Matricaria discoidea, commonly known as Pineapple Weed, is an astoundingly fragrant herb. It grows everywhere, preferring driveways and sidewalk cracks, almost as if it preferred to be stepped on. This humble little herb is usually ignored, and not well understood…

Category: Apothecary Tags: chamomile, christopher hobbs, german chamomile, herbal beer, herbal medicine, medicinal properties, natural sweetener, natural vanilla, pineapple weed, stephen foster, uses for pineapple weed, very nice brewing, western medicinal plants and herbs, wildcrafting

Summer Solstice Wildcrafting Party!

Posted on June 7, 2016 by The Holistic Homestead

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Dear Friends, It’s time for our third annual summer solstice wildcrafting party! This event happens right at the peak of arnica season at our Homestead in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado – the entire hillside behind our cabin will be…

Category: Headlines Tags: arnica, colorado non profits, events, Herbalism, Holistic Health, nettle, rocky mountains, summer solstice, wildcrafting

Conversations with a mullein plant

Posted on July 5, 2015 by The Holistic Homestead

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Overlooked, undervalued and even criminalized – is that any way to treat such a soft, unassuming and generous plant? Mullein grows everywhere along the Peak to Peak: along highways, railroads and in everybody’s back yard. Mullein is officially classified as…

Category: Apothecary, Headlines Tags: colorado rockies, ethical harvesting, helpful weeds, herbal cough remedies, how to use mullein, lung conditions, medicinal herbs in colorado, mullein, mullein herb, rocky mountains, wildcrafting

delectable Dandelion, an ode to taraxacum officinale

Posted on July 28, 2014 by The Holistic Homestead

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Summer memories of my youth are filled with dandelions – I was given a 10 cents allowance for digging up dandelions and throwing them in the compost, but when no one was looking I was weaving faerie crowns with golden…

Category: Apothecary Tags: alternative health, dandelion, Herbalism, Holistic Health, homesteading, liver, Nutrition, susan weed, wildcrafting

The Holistic Homestead goes full time

Posted on July 20, 2014 by The Holistic Homestead

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Dear friends and family, So much has been happening around the Homestead! I have been very busy with the herbs, harvesting, drying, tincturing, making oils and liniments and salves and syrups…oh my! And, with all this busy-ness, the Homestead has…

Category: Headlines Tags: Herbalism, herbs, homesteading, nettle, radical homemaking, raspberry leaf, red clover, rocky mountains, wildcrafting

Wildcrafting the Wise Woman Way

Posted on May 17, 2014 by The Holistic Homestead

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Three words: Reverence. Ethical. Beauty. Reverence When you are embarking on your spring wildcrafting weed walk, do a short meditation to set a positive and compassionate intention. Visualize yourself walking in the forest, noticing the birds, the squirrels, the tiny,…

Category: Headlines Tags: ecology, ethical, Herbalism, leave no trace, libana, medicinal, native american, ritual, susan weed, sustainable, tradition, wildcrafting, wise woman