The Secret of the Salve for Gardener's

When we started our business, we came up with many wonderful creations. One of our earliest and most popular is our salve for gardeners. Steeped with the treasured little calendula plant in every step, it is the perfect balm for chapped and cracked, hardworking hands.

But this salve for gardeners has a little secret. It is based an the wisdom of herbs and healing shared by Airmid, a goddess of the Tuatha Dé Danann. Her family were healers and surgeons to the gods. Airmid's gift was regeneration. She knew the secret of all of the herbs, one for each day of the year and the different parts of the body. Her recipes and blends have been passed and shared through the ages, her lessons on herbs whispered from the people and plants to all that could hear. We listened, and we heard.

We infuse Calendula, a champion with healing properties and infused it in to oil that is the base of this soothing salve. To that we add comfrey, rosemary, sage, basil, hemp seed and other oils, aloe, and a luscious blend of other herbs and oils. These combine to aid with the healing of nicks, scratches and cuts, all while softening and soothing your hardworking hands. Airmid had a fondness for gardeners, since they tend to her favorite plants - the herbs. 
 
We love to garden and get our bare hands good and dirty. That's why we've created this gardeners salve with the Airmid in mind – Airmids Salve for Gardeners.

You'll also find that it is a wonderful rescue for cuticles and knuckles that are becoming dry and cracked from the cold weather. It's always with me to give a quick treatment after a frosty encounter. 

The secret is out - but the softness and soothing continue!

In the Season of Everything Pumpkin ... It's all about the Spice

Although Halloween has past, the Season of Everything Pumpkin continues. After all, a staple of the Thanksgiving meal is the luscious rich finish with Pumpkin Pie. 

  Everywhere you turn you find Pumpkin Spice everything: Pumpkin Chai, Pumpkin Spice Latte, Pumpkin spice muffins and breads and cookies, puddings, marshmallows, ice cream, yogurt, gum.... you name it and there's a pumpkin spice version of it. It makes you wonder though - is this frenzy really about the pumpkin? Or is it about the spice?

I love pumpkin, don't get me wrong. I have pumpkins all over my yard. Some turn into jack o'lanterns for Halloween. Others get roasted and then frozen. A few get chopped and added to stews or sauteed like other vegetables. Several of them get sliced and dried and ground to be used in some of our products as well as tossed into sauces and such.  Pumpkin is full of vitamins and nutrients, but on it's own it is not a strong flavored fruit. It needs a little something. These autumn gourds handle savory flavoring very well, like rosemary, garlic, and sage. But the biggest draw is for that sweet spicy zing.

 I really believe that most people aren't enamored of pumpkin so much as the spice blend typically associated with it. Most blends are a balance of cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, and ginger. Maybe a dash of allspice or cardamom. Below is a basic recipe for Pumpkin Spice.

PUMPKIN SPICE BLEND
1/3 cup ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons ground allspice
1 1/2 teaspoons ground clove
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1 tablespoon ground nutmeg (or a mix of nutmeg and mace)

Mix everything together and store in an airtight container. Use the blend whenever pumpkin pie spice is called for. Or even apple pie spice.  Mix a teaspoon or two with some sugar or maple syrup and sprinkle over pancakes and waffles. Yum!

This blend is so warming on a chill autumn or winter night. These spices are part of so many things we associate with the warmth and coziness associated with the season. They help with digestion, ease pain, and improve circulation. All of those are important for the more insular, colder time of the year. Even the fragrance is a spirit lifter.

What do you think? Is the Season of Everything Pumpkin about the pumpkin? Or is it about the spice?

Celebrating Summer at the Rutgers Gardens Open House & Wine Tasting Festival

If you've never been to the hidden gem that is 

Rutgers Gardens, this weekend is the time to do it! We'll be there with goods that will make you feel good on the inside and on the outside. Come by and visit.

The Magic of Firefly Summer Nights

It's been a long time since I was a little girl catching fireflies in the summer. Yet seeing them sparkling on a warm summer night still holds all of that magic and wonder for me..

I always know when summer has truly arrived when the first twinkles appear at twilight. They're dancing like little fairies

Despite my love of summer and fireflies, there are a number of things I never knew about them until recently.

• It remains a bit of a mystery as to why the western US states don't have the wonder of lightening bugs. There are some species that don't actually glow, and they can be found in sections of the west. There are also some parts of Utah that have glowing lightening bugs. It's nice to know there are still mysteries around.

• Fireflies have been having habitat problems, just as many wild creatures have. They live, breed, lay their eggs, and are born in the same area. Pave over that area and no more fireflies around. They don't relocate. That's sad.

• To help our nightlights to keep on glowing, let your grass grow a little longer. Have trees and dense shrubs around your property. They also like leaf piles and rotty wood around. Add water features to your yard - even a bird bath will do. Keep your outdoor lighting to a minimum. And most importantly - do not use chemicals and pesticides that will kill all the larvae. 

• There's a program where you can certify your backyard as a Wildlife Habitat through the National Wildlife Federation. Pretty cool. I may have to do this myself. You can also sign up to participate in a Firefly Watch to help scientists learn more about the evening lightshows.

•  There's a place in Tennessee where there are annual Firefly Watches. Thousands of fireflies flicker in synchronicity. This is going on my dream trip list.

• This is cool and sad at the same time. Fireflies have dedicated light organs that are located under their abdomens. The insects take in oxygen and, inside special cells, combine it with a substance called luciferin to produce light with almost no heat.  But also, luciferin is used in many medical research projects. It is used used as markers to detect blood clots and tuberculosis cells, as well as other research. Luckily, there is a synthetic luciferin available, although some place still harvest fireflies for the chemical.

• That twinkling glow is created by the most perfect light source. 100% of the energy in the chemical reaction is used for light. No heat is created.

I like to think of fireflies as the harbingers of summer. They are the singers of the warm days, the fairies that light the path. They are a part of the magic of nature, 

Beating the Steaminess with Lemons and Cucumbers

I might have said this before, but I'm a soda drinker. I know, it's bad for me. When they take blood it makes that pop top "pptt shshshsh" sound. I'm trying to be better. Especially in the steamy, humid, New Jersey summer. In weather like this, hydration is so important. And as much as I love my diet beverage, it doesn't cut it.

My favorite way to get refreshed in the summer is a cool as a cucumber infused water blend. So easy, so quick and so good for you.

There are lots of recipes for this spa style water out there. Below is my favorite.

Cucumber Water 
1 large lemon  
1 goodly sized cucumber
1 knuckle of ginger

Thinly slice the lemon. I like to use a mandolin so the slices are nice and thin.
Thinly slice the cucumber the same way.
Finely chop the ginger. If you like a more gingery kick, grate the the ginger.
Throw everything into a pitcher, about quart sized. Fill the pitcher with water.
This tastes best if you let in sit overnight.
I'll refill the pitcher 2 or 3 times before I'll ditch the lemon and such and make a new batch.

You can always make a few adjustments to suit your tastes. Every now and then I'll add some sliced strawberries, some mashed blueberries, some diced watermelon, or a dash of crushed mint leaves.

You'd be surprised how wonderful this tastes, and how cooling. Really makes you understand the phrase Cool as a Cucumber.

Have you ever made something like this? What's your favorite blend?