Have you been wondering what to do with all those left over Blackberry roots? We have an idea for you! On page 26, you will find a recipe for Blackberry root Tincture! The roots are the strongest medicinal part of the entire Blackberry plant! They have both antidiarrheal and astringent properties. The tincture is wonderful to have around in times of need! We hope that you enjoy starting the tincture with your loved ones today! It should be ready in about four weeks!

You can get your own copy of this month’s issue of “Brambly Blackberry” right here:

Or, you can subscribe for an entire year of Herbal Roots zine for just $47. Not ready to purchase yet? Sign up for our free monthly newsletter and receive an issue of Herbal Roots zine for free! The link is on the left hand column.

Happy May Day! We hope that you enjoy your celebrations today! This month we will be sharing the knowledge of Blackberry with you through recipes, crafts, puzzles, a song, and more. For a moment, think about the word Blackberry. What images come to mind? Are your memories more gustatory in nature? Turn to page 7 to begin recording what thoughts and feelings you have about this plant. At the end of the month, the second page of this section can be completed. It will be interesting to see if and how your responses change.

You can get your own copy of this month’s issue of “Brambly Blackberry” right here:

Or, you can subscribe for an entire year of Herbal Roots zine for just $47. Not ready to purchase yet? Sign up for our free monthly newsletter and receive an issue of Herbal Roots zine for free! The link is on the left hand column.

This week’s giveaway is for an adorable wooden warbler from Chris of MamaRoots!

Warbler is a common name for many birds of both different genus and species. Many such as the American Redstart have fascinating markings on their plumage. The Yellow Warbler is found all over North America, all the way up to the Northern tip of Alaska, Yukon Territories, Northwest Territorities and into parts of Nunavut during the breeding season and as far south into South America as the extreme northern tip of Brazil during their non-breeding season. They are fascinating little birds with a melodic song who eat mostly insects.

I love this wooden version that Chris has made for us at Herbal Roots and know you will too!

Chris hand makes all her wooden toys, sands them down, hand stamps or wood burns them, paints them with all natural watercolors and seals them with a all natural homemade sealer to give them a softly buffed shine that delights both children and adults alike. Her collections often feature characters from story books, Waldorf and Montessori inspired learning tools and small journals that are perfect for younger kids learning to write and draw nature journal style. All these items and more can be found in her fun etsy shop. You’ll find all sorts of inspiration for storytelling, birthday celebrations, play time, nature tables and more. The root children is one of my all time favorite children’s book and I adore her Season of the Root Children collection!

If you’d like to become a fan of Chris’ Facebook page, you can find it here.

If you’d like a chance to win this wooden warbler, leave a comment. For more chances, leave a separate comment each time you do one of the following:

-Kids, you get 1 extra point for being a kid! Leave a comment telling me how old you are and what you like best about Herbal Roots zine.

-blog about this contest

-tell me what item you like best in her shop

-Facebook/Myspace/Tweet about it

-Post some pictures of your April activities using Herbal Roots on the Flickr Group Page

-follow Herbal Roots on Twitter

-follow Herbal Roots on Pinterest

Sign up by midnight on Sunday, May 5, 2013 and I’ll announce a winner on Monday, May 6, 2013. Thanks and good luck!

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Congratulations to Trisha P., you won the Mountain Rose Herbs Giveaway! I’ll be emailing you shortly for your mailing address.

We hope that you have enjoyed learning more about Peach this month. On page 7, we recorded our thoughts before we began our explorations. Now, it is time to turn to page 8 and fill out the second part of the Herbal Spirits section. What color is this Herbal Spirit?

You can get your own copy of this month’s issue of “Peach Provides” right here:

Or, you can subscribe for an entire year of Herbal Roots zine for just $47. Not ready to purchase yet? Sign up for our free monthly newsletter and receive an issue of Herbal Roots zine for free! The link is on the left hand column.

This month we’re gonna take a stroll out back to the Blackberry patch. Yep, I know there are no berries right now but we’ll still find plenty of medicine!

Traditionally, Blackberry root has been used as a tonic, for stopping chronic diarrhea and for building up the blood when people are anemic. We’ll also be harvesting the shoots and in time, the berries, for making our medicine this month!

Come along as we make all sorts of herbal medicine including Blackberry Shrub, Tincture, Syrup and more!

Blackberry Table of Contents:

Note to Parents
Supply List
Calendar
Herb Spirit
All About Blackberry
Scramble, Search and More: Word Search, Word Scramble, Alphabetize, Split Words, Find the Hidden Vitamins, Word Bubbles
Herbal Botany
Herbal Lore: Blackberry Becomes Brambly
Songs and Poems: I’m Gonna Go Down to My Blackberry Patch
Herbal Recipes: Blackberry Shrub, Blackberry Root Tincture, Blackberry Sun Tea, Blackberry Mint Ice Cubes, Blackberry Mouthwash, Blackberry Poultices, Blackberry Blood Building Syrup
Coloring Page
Herbal Crafts: Herb Pressing/Drawing, Dyeing with Blackberry
Maze: Find your way through the Berry
Journal: Write your thoughts, medicine making notes and other information about your month with Blackberry
Crossword Puzzle
Resources

44 pages from Cover to Cover page. $7.99

Or, you can subscribe for an entire year of Herbal Roots zine for just $47. Not ready to purchase yet? Sign up for our free monthly newsletter and receive an issue of Herbal Roots zine for free! The link is on the left hand column.

It is time to review what we have learned about Peach this month! On page 13, you will find the word search. What is your favorite word associated with Peach?

You can get your own copy of this month’s issue of “Peach Provides” right here:

Or, you can subscribe for an entire year of Herbal Roots zine for just $47. Not ready to purchase yet? Sign up for our free monthly newsletter and receive an issue of Herbal Roots zine for free! The link is on the left hand column.

Throughout “Peach Provides”, April’s zine, there are beautifully detailed pictures of Peach’s twigs, leaves, and flowers. We hope that you have enjoyed them! Today, the drawings will come alive with a bit of felt, floss, twigs, and paint. We are going to make our very own Peach Blossoms. The picture above will work as a guide. For the complete item list and directions, turn to page 27. The directions continue throughout pages 28 and 29. May the Peach Blossoms bring you much happiness! Enjoy!

You can get your own copy of this month’s issue of “Peach Provides” right here:

Or, you can subscribe for an entire year of Herbal Roots zine for just $47. Not ready to purchase yet? Sign up for our free monthly newsletter and receive an issue of Herbal Roots zine for free! The link is on the left hand column.

For the last few weeks, we have been exploring Peach. We have made Peach Shrub, Peach Elixir, and Peach Oil. We have learned about Peach’s leaves, flowers, and fruits in the Botany section. We have read Peach’s story, sung Peach’s song, and completed the crossword puzzle. We hope that you have made many memories with your loved ones! For more fun, stop by tomorrow as we have another project in store for you. Thanks for joining us today!

We would love to see your photos of your family’s experiences with Peach. Feel free to post them at http://www.flickr.com/groups/herbalrootszine!

You can get your own copy of this month’s issue of “Peach Provides” right here:

Or, you can subscribe for an entire year of Herbal Roots zine for just $47. Not ready to purchase yet? Sign up for our free monthly newsletter and receive an issue of Herbal Roots zine for free! The link is on the left hand column.

Today, we are sharing “Peach,” a song written by Kristine. Here are the first four lines (sung to the tune of “London Bridge is Falling Down”). See page 20 for the rest of the song. If you would like to add a stanza, please feel free to post it in the comments section or on our facebook page!

Tinctured Peach is good for stings,

of venomous insects that have wings,

Tinctured Peach is good for stings,

Peach twig tincture!

You can get your own copy of this month’s issue of “Peach Provides” right here:

Or, you can subscribe for an entire year of Herbal Roots zine for just $47. Not ready to purchase yet? Sign up for our free monthly newsletter and receive an issue of Herbal Roots zine for free! The link is on the left hand column.

This week’s giveaway is for a Blackberry Herbal Package from Mountain Rose Herbs!

Mountain Rose Herbs is a certified organic processor through Oregon Tilth which is fully accredited with the USDA National Organic Program. Since 1987 they have continuously worked for the advancement of sustainable organic agriculture and state they will continue this lifelong passion into the future. They wholeheartedly recommend discovering the joys to be found in organic food products and the best place to start is right here at Mountain Rose Herbs. From the herbs they offer, to the teas they process and the oils they have distilled.

M0untain Rose also has a great YouTube Channel which offers an amazing amount of tutorials and educational videos, many created by John Gallagher and Rosalee de la Foret of Learningherbs.com.

You can also follow them on their Blog for more information and great Giveaway offers!

This month’s giveaway from Mountain Rose Herbs consists of: