Wild Harvesting Adventure ~ Dandelions
- WHEN: May 13, 2023
- TIME: 9:00 am to 1:00 pm
- FEE: $115.00 USD
- INSTRUCTOR: Suzanne Tabert
- SETTING: In-Person
- LOCATION: Sandpoint, ID
(details & directions provided after enrollment)
Dandelions are everywhere! And we are thankful for that. They tend to show up where they are most needed, yet we don’t always recognize their generosity and incredible wealth of health benefits. We’ll harvest dandelions and make remedies to take home.
Dandelion ~ Taraxacum officinale
Digestive Bitter | Cellular Chaperone | Nutrient Dense
Explore dandelion’s myriad healing constituents, dig roots, pick flower buds and make amazing dandelion medicine!
The ubiquitous dandelion goes far beyond being a primo liver healer and strengthener. It’s an immunomodulator, protects DNA, is anticancer, reduces intestinal inflammation and much more.
Bitter dandelions help the digestive system to obtain full nutrition from the foods we eat. It strengthens and nourishes the spleen, skin, nerves, glands, gallbladder, and the renal, circulatory, and lymphatic systems. Dandelions can aid in reduction of uric acid and reducing edema in the joints. Dandelions can be a good herbal aid for treating inflammatory diseases such as chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia. It contains iron, minerals, vitamins and my favorite trifecta of calcium/magnesium/potassium that are so important to muscle, heart and nerve health. That’s a lot of healing and nutrition from a plant that most people try to eradicate from their yard and gardens!
Dandelions thrive in soil rich in potassium and nitrogen. Their presence is a good indicator for growing other plants that need these nutrients. Dandelion roots can travel through the hardest packed clay and create more fertile soil by its ability to pull up nutrients from deep in the earth, collecting them in the leaves, which die back in the fall and deposit the minerals and organic matter to the topsoil.
The decaying roots create tunnels which bring in earthworms and beneficial microbes along with aerating the soil to allow for rain to better penetrate. The dandelion is one of the best plant helpers to have in the garden!
Along with harvesting dandelion flower buds for pickling and roots for roasting, I’ll share lots of stories about how dandelions brought healing AND as always, talk about their phytochemistry and best ways to extract and preserve their medicine.
Students will make and take 3 remedies to “get the medicine to the people in ways they’ll enjoy taking, so that healing can occur.” Dress for messing as we will be on the ground, digging and cleaning lots of roots. We’ll make dandelion leaf pesto for sharing during the workshop!
What you’ll need:
- 3 half pint jars with lids
- 1/4 onion, 2-3 cloves of garlic, an inch of ginger
- Tamari, shoyu or Braggs liquid aminos
- Chopping knife and cutting board
- Small to medium mixing bowl
- 1/2 pint 100 proof unflavored vodka
- Cutting board and chopping knife
- Masking tape or labels and a Sharpie pen
- Kitchen gloves
- Small towel
- Notebook / pen
- Lunch and beverage
Please consider reading my dandelion article before the workshop. It can be printed out and brought to the workshop for reference and making additional notes.
Roses are red, violets are blue;
But they don’t get around like the dandelions do.
—Slim Pickens
WHERE TO MEET:
We will meet at Suzanne’s farmlet in Sandpoint. (address and directions will be emailed after enrollment)
