Eating my lawn: Strawberry Leaf

After a week of rain it is a difficult task to ward off the man of the house and his lawn mower. Fortunately, the mower did not start today and he had to resort to scything some grass for the goat and ram. We set up the netted electric fence to move the ewes into the orchard to start fertilizing some of the trees. They enjoy the fresh green of pasture and after a week of rain they are grateful for the change of scenery from their damp shed. Mower! We don't need not stinky mower!

The sun is still a little shy today and we are supposed to have rain for a few more days here. A lot of seeds have sprouted in the garden but they all could use a little sun and heat to really take off. In the meanwhile I am still collecting dandelion greens and flowers and strawberry leaf.

We have an abundance of wild strawberry in our yard. I have been collecting bunches of the leaves to dry. Strawberry leaf is very high in vitamin C. Juliet de Bairacli Levy, in her book Common Herbs for Natural Health, recommends strawberry leaf tea used internally for fever, improving vitality, anemia, improving your appetite, regulating menstruation and as a stomach aide. Externally the tea can be used as soothing lotion for eczema which my little guy is prone to have during the winter and spring.

My goal this year is to provide all our herbal tea needs. We drink a fair amount of it in our home;especially, in the winter. I have spearmint, lemon balm, bee balm( aka bergomot), chamomile and catnip. Some wild foods will fill out this collections of teas. Dandelion and strawberry leaf are just the start. This week I hope to collect wild raspberry leaf too!