Greetings Darklings:

Today’s post focuses on how you can protect your health this autumn season.  Summer has said farewell, and the winter chill creeps in. It is very important to practice self-care now. I am treating a sore threat and ear infection. I have used lots of herbal cough drops, elderberry syrup, herbal teas such as Throat Coat and trying to keep warm and hydrated. I’m almost over it. But this is one example of why we need to guard our health for the cooler months to come. 

I will include a few links below. They are articles from the Herbal Academy blog and are worth reading and checking into. I will also include information here about what we can use to protect our health. Chances are, you already have it in your kitchen. There is no need to spend a fortune. We will focus on root veggies, herbs and how to use them for our benefit. 

It is easy to catch a cold or sore throat now. The cooler temperatures and social events where people interact like at parties, for example, make it easy to catch a cold and can make us miserable. Fortunately, there are ways to soothe a fever or make a nutritious syrup to soothe a sore throat. 

Pay attention to how you feel.

1. Do you feel rundow, irritated, achy?
2. A scratchy feeling at the back of your throat? Swollen glands?
3. Exhausted?
4. Irritated by bright lights or computer screens?
5. Unable to keep your eyes open during the day?

You may be susceptible to a virus or head cold. But take heart: there are ways to ease the suffering. Those are all ways of your body telling you to yes, turn off the monitor and to lie back and rest.  Those are classic flu/ fever or cold symptoms to watch out for. So while you are napping or browsing the internet, turn on the kettle and read. 

I am a huge believer in good quality root veggies for fall and winter. Organic potatoes, turnips, carrots and onions will keep you healthy. You can add them to stews, soups, or other recipes. They add flavor and their health boosting powers to any recipe. 

A few good herbs to use during the cold season are cinnamon, ginger root, fresh lemons, elder, dandelion root, echinacea, thyme and tulsi. I will tell you why each herb can benefit your health and how they do that. 

Cinnamon aids the digestive system and has a warming energetic quality. I will happily reach for this herb again and again. The bark smells so fresh and earthy. Add it to a mug of hot cocoa or a nice rich herbal syrup.

Ginger root is a beautiful, pungent root with a warming energetic property much like cinnamon. Ginger aids in easing nausea, soothes the digestive system and is very warming due to its fiery pungent taste. I find it very strong. Ginger in powdered form is also suitable. 

Lemons are good to have on hand during fall and winter because they are astringent, a bitter and anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, a digestive and antiviral. Lemons can be used in food, juice, syrups, teas, tonics, tinctures and decoctions. Lemons are a citrus fruit rich in volatile oils which are mostly concentrated in the zest (so keep the lemon zest!). Lemons can prevent scurvy and have an extremely high content of Vitamin C, as do oranges, but lemons have more Vitamin C. That is another great reason why you could consider keeping lemons in your panty!

I am including elder here, but with a caution. Elderberries are toxic. I make elderberry syrup almost every fall. I cook the berries and that is what makes them  safe to consume. Elderberry syrup is easy to make, affordable and the process of making the syrup is about as much fun as foraging for them. The syrup has a beautiful dark purple color. I usually take 1/4 cup of the syrup when my throat feels sore. It usually helps heal a sore throat within a few days. I will post an elderberry syrup here in this post. 

Ingredients 

• 2 cups dried organic elderberries
• 4 cups cold water (distilled, purified, or spring water works best)
• 2-3 tsp. organic dried ginger root
• 1 organic sweet cinnamon stick
• 1 cup raw, local honey (or organic maple syrup or agave for a vegan/infant-friendly recipe); double the amount of sweetener to increase shelf life
• 1 cup vodka or brandy (optional to increase shelf life)

Directions

1. Combine berries and herbs with cold water in pot and bring to a boil.
2. Reduce heat and allow herbs to simmer 30 to 40 minutes.
3. Remove from heat and let steep 1 hour.
4. Strain berries and herbs using a funnel overlaid with doubled cheesecloth or undyed cotton muslin bag and squeeze out liquid (careful, liquid will likely still be hot!). Discard used herbs in compost.
5. Once liquid has cooled to just above room temperature, add honey and stir to incorporate. 
6. If using vodka or brandy, add here and stir until well combined.
7. Bottle in sterilized glass and store in the refrigerator.

Pro tips:

• Be sure to add honey in a ratio that is at least half of the total volume of liquid after it has simmered. This amount can change slightly and you want to make sure you have enough preservative (honey) so that your syrup won’t spoil. (Example: If you are left with 2 cups of elderberry decoction, you will want to add at least 1 cup of honey.)
• This recipe is easy to multiply if you’d like to make a big batch to store or give as gifts (glass pantry jars and amber bottles are great choices!). My family enjoys a teaspoon or two of this syrup, right out of the fridge, just about every day during the sniffle season. 

Dandelions are awesome herbs, because the entire plant is safe to consume and very good for your health. Dandelion root tea has a very earthy flavor and taste. I enjoy the tea. Dandelions are very good for our health. It is best to forage for the roots in the fall when the plant had died back to the ground and the plant puts the energy in the roots, filled with nutrients.

Leaf: calcium, potassium, iron, silica, magnesium, zinc, carotenoids,, flavonoids, triterpenes (taraxasterol), chlorogenic acid, chicoric acid, taraxinic acid, sodium, phosphorus, and vitamins A, B, and C (Cord et al., 2025; Hoffmann, 2003; Holmes, 1997; Tillotston, 2001).

Root: coumarins, sesquiterpene lactones, diterpenes, triterpenes (taraxasterol), polysaccharides, phytosterols, potassium, calcium, silica, magnesium, iron, zinc, phenolic acids, chlorogenic acid, chicoric acid, taraxinic acid, taraxocoside, inulin, and starch (Cord et al., 2025; Hoffmann, 2003; Holmes, 1997; Tillotston, 2001).

Flowers: carotenoids and epoxyxides (lutein, zeaxanthin, antheraxanthin, violaxanthin, and neolutein) (Yan et al., 2024).

Credit for information about dandelions to; https://herbarium.theherbalacademy.com/monograph/dandelion/

That is a great reason to keep dandelions in your pantry or herbal apothecary. 

The following three herbs are also beneficial to your health during the fall and winter seasons: echinacea, thyme and tulsi. Echinacea is famous for the pretty pink petals and the cone shaped seedhead in the center. Echinacea is reputed for its immune system boosting properties such as: “Polysaccharides, glycoproteins, echinacoside, echinacin, polyacetylenes, betaine, caffeic acid glycosides, inulin, sesquiterpene esters, alkamides, volatile oils, flavonoids, and others (Buhner, 2012; Chevallier, 2000; Hoffmann, 2003). Credit is given to the herbarium at the Herbal Academy, https://herbarium.theherbalacademy.com/monograph/echinacea/

Echinacea can be made into teas, tinctures, syrup, decoctions, infusions, juice, poultice and powder. 

Thyme is a lovely herb for the faeries! There are many variations on thyme. They are all good for protecting health during the cold and dark time of the year. Thyme is anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, anticatarrhal, antimicrobial, antioxidant, antiseptic, antispasmodic, antiviral, astringent, carminative (aids with digestion), diaphoretic (promotes the body to sweat), diuretic, expectorant (helps you if you have a strong cough), and a nervine (soothes tired nerves). It can be used in essential oil, fluid extract, gargling, infusion, smoke, tea, and tincture form. Thyme has drying and warming energetics. I think I myself may stock up on extra thyme, as well. I want to make a herbal syrup with thyme!

The last but not least herb to mention here is tulsi. Tulsi is a beloved herb in Ayurveda. Tulsi has many powerful actions (how it affects the body) like anti-inflammatory, antiasthmatic, antibacterial, anticatarrhal, antifungal and antioxidant, among many others. It is good for the circulatory body system and acts as an adaptogen, helping the body respond to stress. Tulsi has many uses, too numerous to mention here. That is enough to get started with. 

I hope the information about herbs helps you to protect your health this fall. Then you can be your best self and relax knowing the herbs are working their nourishing powers!

This should give you plenty to think about while you enjoy a healthy cup of tea as you skim over your manuscript or the book you’re reading, or whatever you do with your time. I love to have a cup of herbal Throat Coat tea if I am trying to heal a sore throat. The herbs in Throat Coat tea are slippery elm bark, licorice root, marshmallow root, and Wild Cherry Bark, Fennel Fruit, Cinnamon Bark, & Orange Peel, all herbs that contain mucilage which coats the throat, and aid in empowering the immune system, have a pleasant taste and protects the respiratory and digestive system. Throat Coat tea is made by Traditional Medicinals. I loooove their teas. 

If you are unsure about the herbal constituents, actions or energetics mentioned above, you can do a google search. Be careful where you search for the information. Try a site like ScienceDirect.com or the Herbal Academy blog. I look up info on their blog all the time if there is something I am not sure of. Here is the link: https://theherbalacademy.com/blog/

A free recipe to try! 

I will post more about editing your own fiction here in the next day or two. Stay healthy! 

Blessings, Spiderwitch )O(