Calendula blossoms drying. Photo by David Taliesin

This weekend is the big herb festival in my hometown. My general rule of thumb is that I take a certain amount of cash with me. When the money is gone, fun time is over! Then I get the joy and privilege of planting all my little preciouses in my garden and watching them grow.

I don’t know if you’re a gardening geek like me, but my growing of medicinal herbs is a spiritual as well as a physical process. Yes, I get lots of exercise as I prepare the soil, weed the garden, tend to the plants and harvest them. But it’s a spiritual process as well. I begin by making sure I’m grounded and centered. I take this peaceful energy with me into the garden and try to impart it to the plants. I talk to them (yes, I really do!) and give them words of encouragement as they grow. Come harvest time, I also thank them for the bounty they provide from which I make tinctures, healing creams, etc.

My favorite plants to work with are lavender, lemon verbena, lemon balm, calendula, echinacea, and peppermint. I also choose herbs that bees love such as bee balm, wild bergamot and anise hyssop. Giving my support to the bees is important to me and I enjoy watching them have a ball amidst the flowers I grow.

So, if you look at gardening as just another chore on your list of things to do, try adding a spiritual element to it this year. The bonds we form with our plants can be both sacred and profound. They give us more than we often realize. Blessed be!

Copyright ©2018 by David Taliesin, http://www.sabbatsandsabbaths.com