NETI POT news...

I have just learned how to use the neti pot! And I thought I knew how to do so before...not so!
Here is the correct way...
1. Prepare your desired solution (I like a pinch of sea salt or a weak Thyme leaf tea, (thanks Maggie H!) and fill pot.
2. Tilt your head to one side over a sink or basin.
3. Insert spout of pot gently in the raised nostril, creating a seal between pot and nostril.
4. Raise the pot slowly to develop a steady flow of solution through the upper portion of the nostril allowing it to drain out the lower nostril into the sink. (You may want to cover your front with a large towel to prevent wetness to clothing.)
5. During this process, BE SURE to breathe through the mouth so that the solution will flow freely and you do not choke on it-this was the part I was doing wrong!
6. Now exhale forcefully several times into a tissue to clear out the sinus passages.
7. Repeat process with other nostril.

Please feel free to contact me if you have further questions or concerns..

TIP Talks Newsletter-Holiday 2009

Holiday/Winter 2009-2010
TOXIC INFORMATION PROJECT NEWSLETTER (not directly affiliated with Lily's Garden Herbals but a great resource put out by some dedicated Rhode Islanders doing great work!)

Highlights: Holiday Guidance: Christmas Trees, Candles, Kitchens, Handwashing...

Legislation: Household Products Labeling, BPA in Food Containers; Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals Bill; Toxic Substances Control Act; Why City Pesticide Ban is Good for Business...

Hope for the Holidays: OCA on the Organic Answer to Hunger, AMA Resolution...

Go to: www.toxicsinfo.org/tiptalks/winter10.htm

Don't miss...

Lily's Garden Herbals Holiday Shopping Day at the Cottage

Take 15% off all your favorite Lily’s Garden Herbals products in the Cottage*

Gift tubs, stocking stuffers and other seasonal goodies also on sale

Enjoy seasonal snacks and libation while you shop!

*excluding seasonal items

When? Tomorrow Saturday, December 12th from 9 am to 4 pm at the Cottage at:

50 Tuckertown Road
Wakefield, RI 02879
phone: 401- 284-2798

kim@lilysgardenherbals.com
www.lilysgardenherbals.com

Here is some data obtained from the 'Environment and Society' class my daughter is taking at McGill University. The take away from it is: reduce intake of animal protein for better personal and planetary health!

Meat based diet of the Americans and most Middle Income Countries is is very detrimental to the environment:

Impacts:

Resource Use-
>1/2 the world’s cropland grows livestock feed

The land used to feed 1 meat eater could feed 20 pure vegetarians

Livestock consume about 38% of the world’s grain, and that consumption is growing twice as fast as people’s grain consumption. Pigs and chickens account for 2/3 of this consumption and dairy and beef cattle much of the remaining 1/3

>70% of the grain consumed in the US is fed to livestock, compared to only 2% in sub-Saharan Africa

Almost 2/3 of US cropland is used to produce livestock feed; only 2% is used to produce vegetables eaten by people

1/3 of the world’s fish catch is converted into fish meal and fed to livestock in MICs

About 40% of the commercial inorganic fertilizer used in the US is applied to cornfields used to produce livestock feed

Livestock use more than 1/2 the water withdrawn each year in the US, with most of this water used to irrigate crops fed to livestock and to wash manure away. The water used to produce the meat on a 1000 lb grain-fed steer would float a battleship

A person switching from a trypical meat-based diet to a pure vegetarian diet saves 5.3 million liters of water a year (enough to fill 2 olympic size swimming pools)

If everyone in the US switched to a pure vege diet, the country’s oil imports could be cut by 60%

Almost half the energy used in American agriculture goes into the livestock sector


Damage to the Environment:
About 85% of US topsoil loss is directly associated with livestock grazing

Overgrazing of sparse vegetation and trampling of the soil by too many cattle and other livestock is the major cause of desertification in arid and semiarid areas

Cutting down tropical forests in South America and converting them to short-lived pasture for cattle to raise beef for export to MDCs and for domestic use have destroyed vast areas of these storehouses of biodiversity


Pollution;
Cattle belch out 12-15% of all the methane released into the atmosphere

Some of the nitrogen in commercial inorganic fertilizer used to produce livestock feed is converted to nitrous oxide, another greenhouse gas

Nitrogen in manure excapes into the atmosphere as gaseous ammonia, a pollutant that contributes to acid deposition

Meat accounts for 55% of the pesticide residues in the US diet, compared to 6% from vegetables, 4% form fruits, and 1% from grains

Livestock in the US produce 125 tons of shit every second

Only about 1/2 of the livestock waste produced in the US is recycled in the soil. This leaves farmers with high fertilizer bills and livestock producers with high waste disposal costs.

Livestock wastes and sediment from land eroded by livestock account for about 1/2 the water pollution in the US


***Resolution= Sustainable production of meat:
Reducing the number of livestock animals in many areas

Producing crops and livestock together in areas where such diversified farming systems have disappeared and encouraging them where they survive

Raising the price of agricultural inputs (soil, water, fertilizer) and products to reflects their true environmental costs

Slowing and eventually halting human population growth

Nutritional Supplements and Herbs for Influenza

A common sense approach to the flu-H1 N1 or other strains by well-respected herbalist, Paul Bergner. Well worth watching. Be sure to take notes!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8g-QWXIEVXE

(you may need to copy and paste this link to your browser window)

For more information, you can attend my free talk entitled 'Building Vitality for Winter Wellness-nourishing ourselves and our families during the cold months ahead' which will be held:

Thursday, November 19th from 7 to 9 pm at:
Alternative Food Cooperative
357 Main Street
Wakefield, RI 02879

Call 401-789-2240 and leave a message for Tracey Blahey to register

350.org Day of International Climate Action

On October 24, 2009 (yes, it's coming up soon!), an International Day of Climate Action will cover almost every country on Earth, the most widespread day of environmental action in the planet's history.

What does '350' mean?

350 parts per million is what many scientists, climate experts, and progressive national governments are now saying is the safe upper limit for CO2 in our atmosphere.

Accelerating arctic warming and other early climate impacts have led scientists to conclude that we are already above the safe zone at our current 390 ppm, and that unless we are able to rapidly return to 350 ppm this century, we risk reaching tipping points and irreversible impacts such as the melting of the Greenland ice sheet and major methane releases from increased permafrost melt.

So, to exemplify the urgency of getting the Earth's carbon dioxide at this safe upper limit of 350 part per million, the dedicated members at 350.org are overseeing the organization, by citizens like you, of big rallies in big cities and incredible creative actions across the globe--like mountain climbers holding banners on our highest peaks, underwater demonstrations in island nations that are threatened by sea level rise, churches and mosques and synagogues and ashrams engaged in symbolic action, star athletes organizing mass bike rides--and hundreds upon hundreds of community events throughout the world to raise awareness of the need for urgent action.

Every event will highlight the number 350--and people will gather at some point for a big group photo depicting that all important message. Soon after, at 350.org all photos will be assembled for a gigantic, global, visual petition.

The thousands of events on October 24th will drive 350 and all that it represents into the human imagination, and change the negotiating environment as we head towards the crucial UN Climate Negotiations in Copenhagen this December, 2009. Copenhagen may well be the pivotal moment that determines whether or not we get the planet out of its climate crisis, and YOUR actions on October 24th will help our leaders realize we mean business-a real solution that pays real attention to the indisputable scientific evidence.

Please log onto 350.org to find an event near you.

Planting the Future Conference, Saturday, September 19th

Join the Ocean State Herbal Association this Saturday, September 19th as we host:

United Plant Savers ‘Planting the Future’ Conference. A day of classes, workshops and herb walks. Teachers include herbalist, Susun Weed along with many well-known New England herbalists. Win herbal products! Shop for locally made herbal products and crafts throughout the day at the Apeiron Institute for Sustainable Living, 451 Hammet Rd. Coventry, RI. For directions to the center call: 401-397-3430 or go online: www.apeiron.org.

Lily's Garden Herbals bloggers, you can contact Kim Falcone if you have questions.

For event registration call Betzy Bancroft at United Plant Savers: 802-476-6467 or go online: www.unitedplantsavers.org or register the day of the event. Tickets are $60 for UpS members/$70 non-members.

'Planting the Future' is hosted by the Ocean State Herbal Association to benefit United Plant Savers in the preservation of endangered and at risk medicinal plants in North America

Event Schedule

9:00 am Opening Circle

9:45 – 11:15 class session 1
Donna Wood Eaton - The Earth Doesn't Like Bare Spots!
Karyn Sanders - Planting Medicinal Plants from a Native American Perspective
Aviva Romm - Wise Women: Wise Choices
Tim Blakley – The Therapeutic Use of Essential Oils
Herb walk – Tony(a) Lemos

11:30 – 1:00 class session 2
Kate & Dan Rakosky - Gardening with Gaia
Michael Ford - Indigenous Uses of Plant Species of Southern New England
Susun Weed - Favorite Herbs for A High-Energy, High-Intensity Life
Nancy Scarzello – UpS and YOU ~ A Creative Partnership
herb walk – Chris Marano

1:00 to 2:00 lunch
2:00 – 3:30 class session 3
Jeff Carpenter - Growing Threatened Medicinal Herbs for Market in the Northeast
Donna Wood Eaton - A UpS Medicine Trail on Cape Cod
Lupo Passero - Flower Essence and Energetic Medicine of the "At Risk" Plants
herb walk – Betzy Bancroft

3:45 – 5:15 class session 4
Susun Weed – the Peaceful Gardener
Kate & Dan Rakosky - Creating Sanctuary: Tour Sagewood Herb Farm, a RI UpS Botanical Sanctuary
Margi Flint – Plant Love
Jody Noe – Wild Medicinals Traditionally used in Cancer Care
herb walk – Lesley Wooler

5:15 – 5:30 Closing Circle

Here is a recipe for Neem Garden Spray that I have just begun to use on my vegetables and other garden plants with great success!

Neem (Azadirachta indica) is a tree that is native to India. Its seeds, bark and leaves have been used extensively in Aryurvedic medicine for several thousands of years. Indians there call Neem 'the village pharmacy' and depend on its medicines for all types of skin problems, as an antimicrobial and and anti-inflammatory. Its tender shoots and flowers are also eaten as a vegetable. Neem oil, which is pressed from the olive-like seeds (see photo above), is a very effective bio-insecticide for garden plants. Neem doesn't actually kill chewing insects, but interferes with hormonal processes so the bug forgets to eat and/or reproduce. It does not affect pollinating insects, however, because they do not chew on plant leaves. You won't notice results right away, so do not think it is not effective. Be patient, as it takes about a week to see results. I can actually see my lettuces and Echinacea plants growing new leaves without big holes being chewed in them.

Neem Garden Insecticide

Ingredients:
5 ml Neem Oil (about 1 teaspoon)
2 ml dish detergent (less than 1/2 teaspoon)-Castille soap is good. (Make sure it is not something that has been sitting around for over a year.) There is also a product called insecticidal soap, available at many green markets/retailers and hardware stores.
1 liter very warm water.

Directions:
Fill trigger sprayer bottle with water.
Add dish detergent
Add Neem oil.

SHAKE WELL. It's also necessary to shake each time you use this product.
Spray vegetables, flowers, shrubs to alleviate chewing insect problems. For further information on Neem, log onto: http://www.discoverneem.com

Happy Gardening!