In the not so distant past, it was considered to be a luxury if you could spend a fortune and get away from it all for week or two. Today, luxury is about having time. This is time to spend doing things such as gardening. Maybe you have a large yard where you can house chickens and goats and heirloom roses that you found in the countryside near Milan. But even on a small plot, patio, rooftop, fire escape, and even inside, luxury can be found in all types of gardening.
“It’s one of the most simple and spiritual acts anyone can do,” says Brooklyn florist Sarah Ryhanen of her 10-plus years spent gardening. In a recent Vogue article, Ryhanen and her friends compiled a list of natural remedies anyone can grow any time of the year. Got a black thumb? No problem.
Aromatherapy with patchouli
Known as the smell of hippies, patchouli has attracted the treehugging types for decades because of its earthly, paradisal fragrance. It’s a rare plant not easy to find in gardening store, but you can order seeds online, and grow them into your own plants. The leaves should be dried for use, then burnt, or fermented to get that full patchouli smell.
Botanicals for your bath
Instead of buying expensive, chemical laden-products pumped out with low-cost epsom salts, just make your own sensual bath using herbs you can grow such as sage, dill, rose, geranium and vetiver. If you don’t just want a pile of plants floating in the tub (they can clog the drain, so be careful to strain!), you can infuse the plans into salts as a body scrub for calming and exfoliation. Rosemary and lavender are good for this. Or take some organic olive oil and infuse it with your favorite plant. Bottle and place to the side of the tub.
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Healing skin mist
If you’ve ever gone to get a natural facial, remember how good the smells can be? From bergamot,to citrus flowers? But you don’t have to fork out millions to get the same effect: take a few sprigs of your favorite flowers (you’ve grown them, so we don’t need to tell you to use organic!) and steep them in hot water for a few minutes. Let cool for an hour with the flowers inside, then siphon into a glass spray bottle after it has cooled. Chamomile is a great flower to start with, and do be mindful that not all flowers work as edibles or on skin. Some flowers can be poisonous and dangerous for your skin. Chamomile is also known to heal your body from the inside.
Make your own detox face oil
Red clove is great for getting your lymph nodes flowing and can help clear toxins from your body. getting lymph nodes to flow correctly, which will help drain the body of accumulated toxins and cellular waste, she says. Create an infused oil by gathering the fresh flower tops, drying them in the open air, and packing them in an empty glass jar. Pour olive oil over them, and let the mixture sit for two weeks before straining. Make sure the flower tops are completely dry, because the age-old adage “Oil and water don’t mix well” is true, says Graves. Once the concoction is ready, lightly massage the face with two drops. The detoxifying properties of red clover infused face oil will “balance hormone levels and reduce inflammation throughout the body,” she says, reminding us that when it comes to healing, Mother Nature always knows best.
You might already be seeing professionals about healing therapies. Ask them about natural flowers and how they can influence your healing cycles. Kingsberg Clinic is one to follow.
These plants are not only good for your body and health, but also very beautiful. I often use sage ana lavrender in the bouquets I arrange, and people always notice that.