Please Don't Sniff The Nettle

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Let's start with a little reading music.

Okay, here we go.

I've been feeling a bit bummed out since @eco-alex shared his hay-fever fighting herbal brew of nettle, plantain, and dandelions. See, I am dandelion rich but nettle poor. And I love stinging nettle tea. Seriously, it is delicious and so good for you. But the few patches I found of it have been mowed down already.

One of them was near our community garden plot. We've been planting out seedlings for the past few weeks, apparently much later than the rest of you. I've been reading your posts jealously. : )

We got to keep the same plot from last year which allowed us to plant some garlic last fall and keep our Greek oregano in the ground. It is the first time I've grown oregano and I wasn't sure how it would stand up to a Canadian winter, but it was the first thing to show green shoots when the snow was gone and is now trying to take over more territory.

Realizing that we are going to have a bumper crop of oregano this year, I started to ponder what we could do with it. Dry it for Christmas gifts? Make our own oil of oregano?

So, of course, I googled it, which is how I learned about oregano tea. Did you know you can steep oregano and drink it? And, sure enough, not only is it delicious but it is also excellent for a whole range of health concerns, including hay fever and pretty much anything to do with your lungs. Woo hoo!

You can't always get what you want...but you might just find...

I will caution you, however, that if you're drinking large amounts of oregano tea it is likely a good idea to eat probiotic rich foods at a different time of the day. Oregano can be a powerful anti-bacterial and that goes for your beneficial bacteria as well. Better safe than sorry, so replenish your good critters by lacto-fermenting some veggies or brewing up some kombucha.

Here's my go to site for all things fermenty: https://www.culturesforhealth.com/learn/recipe/

I have also been trying to grow some lettuces on our west facing balcony to create an edible forest for our guinea pig. I had a mesclun mix seed tape left over from last year that I tried but only a few of the seeds germinated. One was identifiably lettuce. One looked like mizuna.

But one seedling looked suspiciously like... Could it be? I leaned closer. I think that's...I leaned in even closer and the tip of my nose accidentally touched the plant.

A burning sensation blossomed on the tip of my nose! It is! It is! It's stinging nettle! And my nose hurts!

Now how did that get in my mesclun mix or commercially purchased soil? Hmm.

I guess the moral of the story, if it has one, is that sometimes you can also get what you want.

Did I manifest the nettle?

Or does the universe just love me?

Either way, I feel blessed and no longer bummed out because now I have my very own nettle seedling.

May the universe also bring you something that you either want or need today.

Happy Thursday!