In January 9th, 2004 CNN News reported: ‘worldwide demand for herbal remedies is threatening natural habitats and endangering up to a fifth of wild medicinal plant species which are being harvested to extinction,’.” –Journal of Medicinal Plant Conservation

Whether a regular herb imbiber or a newcomer to the plant world, one must ponder not only the effect taking herbs will have on oneself, but also what effect that usage will have on the plant. As herbs gain recognition for their ability to care for humans, it is our duty to reciprocate and protect these green allies.

The best way to help increase plant populations for our predecessors while simultaneously ensuring potent, effective plant preparations is to grow your own herbs and make your own remedies. Learn in depth the uses of a handful of herbs and how to make herbal remedies by reading books (written by herbalists), taking classes, or apprenticing with your village herbalist. Stewarding a small stand of herbs selected specifically for what ails you, your family and possibly your community encourages increased health for the gardener, plant, land, village and planet. When we grow our own organic herbs we eradicate damage done by fossil fuels, GMO seeds, petroleum packaging materials, chemical fertilizers and pesticides, while cultivating an intimate relationship with our environment. Experiencing and assisting the growth of herbs ensures a personal healing loop between planter and planted. There is no better remedy than one nurtured with care and intention from preconception to packaging.

Increase diversity in your area by planting native herbs, utilizing exotic invasives that need to be uprooted. Kudzu, the bane of the South, for example, makes excellent cordage, is a thickening agent in cooking and has been used for centuries to treat alcoholism and hypoglycemia.

Specialize in weeds. I believe it was Ithaca-based herbalist 7song that said, “If people knew the virtue of dandelion, it would be extinct.” Dandelion, chickweed, cleavers, yellow dock, violet, prunella, and countless other widespread weeds are apothecaries in and of themselves. These discarded, cursed and mowed-over “weeds” come back with relentless vigor humbly pleading their case; “No matter what harm you bring to me, your body and your environment, I will return to offer my help.” Look first to the plants at our feet when choosing a remedy, as they are always abundant and generally safest for habitual use.

If you must purchase herbs, buy from a reputable herbalist, after checking that the remedy you seek is not replaceable with a more common plant. For example, Japanese honeysuckle, an invasive weed, is a powerful surface immune stimulant that may be used as an analog for Echinacea in many cases. Wildflowers like Echinacea are often crucial to insects and pollinators. Ponder each plant’s many roles in the web of life, acknowledging that community is multi-species while honoring herbs as unique beings rather than reducing them to constituents. When this respect is present it is hard to do harm and easier to heal, for when we know plants in their entirety we become competent herb-people matchmakers, if you will.

Use plants that grow in forests or remote places sparingly. Ask which plants would like to be harvested and listen with all six senses. Often times the plant will redirect you to another or raise a leaf and shout “Oh me, me! Pick me!” Some plants such as Lady’s Slipper are best left untouched. Abstaining from harvest does not mean the plant cannot be used medicinally. If you have ever had the delight in sitting next to a family of Lady’s Slippers you may have noticed your nervous system become instantly integrated. It is the friendship offered by plants that does the most healing. Consider use of the flower essence of a plant. Flower essences are made from blossoms at their peak just before they begin to wither therefore no harm is incurred in their creation. “Drop dosing” with herbal extracts is an option advocated by herbalist Matthew Wood. Instead of using 30-90 drops 3 times a day, for instance, he usually suggests 3-5 drops 3 times a day. This energetic approach to administration assumes we need only ingest a bit of the plant to receive its gifts. Many of our endangered plants are so because the root is primarily utilized. Often times other parts of the plant are just as beneficial. Investigate before digging, and if you do dig, return the root crown to the ground to regenerate.

United Plant Savers founded by Rosemary Gladstar in 1994 is an organization whose “mission is to protect native medicinal plants of the United States and Canada and their native habitat while ensuring an abundant renewable supply of medicinal plants for generations to come.” They have done pioneering work in this arena. To practice sustainable use of herbs, one should become familiar with the United Plant Savers list of at-risk and to-watch herbs. The at-risk herbs are already in danger of becoming extinct due to over use, habitat destruction, slow germination time, or limited growing region. To-watch herbs are herbs that are beginning to make it big in the public eye and as a result may face a detrimental decline.

The United Plant Savers At-Risk list:
American Ginseng Panax quinquefolius
Black Cohosh Actea (Cimicifuga) racemosa
Bloodroot Sanguinaria Canadensis
Blue Cohosh Caulophyllum thalictroides
Echinacea Echinacea spp.
Eyebright Euphrasia spp.
False Unicorn Root Chamaelirium luteum
Goldenseal Hydrastis Canadensis
Lady’s Slipper Orchid Cyrpripedium spp.
Lomatium Lomatium dissectum
Osha Ligusticum porteri
Peyote Lophophora williamsii
Slippery Elm Ulmus rubra
Sundew Drosera spp.
Trillium Trillium spp.
True Unicorn Root Aletris farinose
Venus Fly Trap Dionaea muscipula
Virginia Snakeroot Aristolochia serpentaria
Wild Yam Dioscorea villosa

Locals may be surprised by some of the herbs on the At-risk list such as Bloodroot and Black Cohosh. The southern Appalachians are one of the most biodiverse regions in North America, where it is not uncommon to see hillsides of these plants. Though we are graced with their presence, other ecosystems are not, yet their use is worldwide. For example, market analysis has estimate that 10,000 roots of Black Cohosh are shipped weekly to Europe, where it has made it big as a menopausal herb. Luckily, Black Cohosh is easily cultivated, leaving little reason to jeopardize wild populations.

Wildcrafting is the practice of harvesting herbs from their wild homes. To wildcraft or not to wildcraft has become a topic of much debate amongst contemporary herbalists. United Plant Savers (UpS) discourages wildcrafting of At-Risk herbs. Planting the Future, written by UpS members, offers cultivation guidelines for these herbs and suggests herbs that may be viable substitutions for those at-risk. Wildcrafting is not always a cut and dry issue, especially in these parts, where the state protects herbs such as Ginseng from harvest, but has no law protecting them from being bulldozed. It is inequitable to criminalize a person whose family has been financially sustained from the wild harvest of ginseng for generations while allowing that person to witness ginseng patches obliterated to make room for a vacation house rarely visited. Issues such as this beckon us to act on political as well personal levels. Join a local plant conservation group such as our local UpS chapter. Through such alliances we can work to preserve wild places, sacred habitats, and threatened plant and animal species. NC Plant Savers perform plant rescues on land slated for destruction. Plants are respectfully unearthed and transplanted to permanent homes, including Botanical Sanctuaries created to foster and monitor our native herbal treasures, act as educational gardens for the public, and bring people together in nature. Create community by organizing exchanges of dried herbs, herbal extracts, live plants and seeds. These celebrations of life limit waste, spread abundance, and distribute knowledge. Lastly, yet most vital of all; foster the innate seeds of plant wisdom in the saplings of our future by including children in your herbal frolic.

Ceara Foley is the Director of the NC School of Holistic Herbalism, offering classes for beginning, advanced and clinical herbalists, as well as Earth Sprouts! camp for kids. She is a founding member of NC Plant Savers, steward of Soulflower Botanical Sanctuary, certified herbalist, beekeeper and mother of Faye. She will be presenting the UpS At-risk slide show at the Southeast Women’s Herbal Conference. For info on NCPS or NCSHH visit HerbsHeal.com or call 828-350-1221.

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