#organic homegrown herbs and spices and herbal oils | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

theburntleaf · 4 years ago

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Sourcing Materials

Though my main goal is to work with plants that I’ve grown myself or are wildcrafted from the local area, it is sometimes nice to explore and use other ingredients.

Trust me I know how tempting it is to want to save some money on perhaps a normally more expensive ingredient, but sourcing is really important.

Herbs, spices, essential oils, supplements, even seeds [X], are some of the most adulterated agricultural products in the market. [X]

What to look for:

Scientific (latin) name: very important! Do you know how many plants share common names ... it’s a lot. Take Ambrette, a source of musk from the “musk mallow” is this the same musk mallow that grows in my yard.... no, it is not (abelmoschus moschatus is ambrette, malva moschata is the other musk mallow)

Plant parts: as noted in the cited article, certain herbs/spices could be adulterated with less desirable parts of the same plant. If you only want say flowers make sure that’s what you’re getting (not flowers and leaves and stems etc)

Country of origin: chain of custody is good to notice. It’s always nice to know where your suppliers are getting their goods from. This can be important for more endangered ingredients: ie. if you see sandal wood grown in Australia you know it’s from a farm and not taken from the wild. Also some countries are just known for their excellent quality of a certain plant.

How was it grown and harvested: Always opt for organic* (certified or from a reputable “natural” non-certified organic grower) especially if your making incense! You don’t want to burn fertilizer and pesticide. (Or any other non-disclosed additives) for wildcrafted ingredients look for for “sustainably wildcrafted”* and origin. Also be mindful of fair trade and other programs that helps manage a respectful harvest and sale of goods.

*organic doesn’t necessarily mean free from such things but it is at least better than conventional alternatives. Homegrown and wildcrafted (away from roads or contaminated sites) materials free from pesticides and synthetic fertilizers are obviously just as good as organic though not certified.

*never buy endangered spieces that have been wildcrafted. Instead look for places who are cultivating these spieces instead.

Price: is it too good to be true? This might mean the product you are buying was adulterated in some way along the supply chain (note the above article) or harvested in an unethical or even illegal way. If you’re not willing to pay a little more to obtain sustainably sourced endangered ingerdients then it’s best to just stick to local and abundant species. (I prefer to work with local woods instead of expensive and endangered sandal or aloes)

Ingredients: If you are purchasing herbal products or mixtures, (especially to burn, consume, or apply topically) be sure you know what you are purchasing. Recipes, because they can’t be patented, are often kept secret which is fair to an extent, but an ingredient list is not a recipe. Ratios and formulas can be kept proprietary, but a source that values health and safety should list all ingredients. As a crafter I put the value of my products in my dedication to creating a perfect formula, my time and care in crafting, and quality of the ingredients and end product; not a secret recipe.

(*note this is for “for sale” consumable products because I do have some recipes that are best kept secret but they’re for personal use)

Essential oils need to be carefully considered. The amount of plant material needed to make such things is astronomical so it’s important to consider all the factors above. Some to definitely stay away from: Rose, rose is usually sold as an absolute (which is fine) but if you see it as “100% essential oil” that’s a red flag. Frankincense, Sandal, White Sage, and other endangered species. EOs from abundant plant speices are best! [Read more: X , X] A great alternative to essential oils are hydrosols, usually a bi-product of essential oil making (and can be more sustainable), they are less intense, easier to make at home, and still offer the extra kick of frangrance eos add. [X] and honestly most people don’t need eo’s there are lots of other products to get similar results.

Recommended vendors:

First and foremost check out your local area for suppliers. Here in Vermont I am lucky to be surrounded by many organic herb farms and seed growers. A shout out to my local favorites: Zack Woods Farm, Foster Farm Botanicals. For seeds and plants: Wilson’s Herb Farm, High Mowing Seeds, Milkweed Medicinal Seeds is now Earthbeat Seeds, Perennial Pleasures

Of course local growers can’t supply everything so other places I source from:

First check your local co-op or health food store, they usually carry from trusted bulk suppliers and is great if you only need a small amount.

Mountain Rose Herbs for bulk herbs, spices, and herbal products

my essential oil supplier went out of business but they were great :( but mountain rose also sells essentials. Honestly I don’t use them in much other than cold process soap making and even then at minimal amount. I also have a still and have made my own eo’s and hydrosols, I want to get into making absolutes as well.

I usually stay away from Etsy for sourcing but the Apothecary’s Garden is a reputable shop for resins and Higher Mind Incense for Makko and Australian farmed sandal. (on Etsy always make sure to check for the things listed above most shops don’t pass the sourcing test)

Strictly Medicinal Seeds (for seeds and live plants; herbs and medicinals) Fedco (for veggies and common garden seeds)

#I write this as I prepare an order for some ingredients!#and I’ve been seeing some sourcing posts that lack important info #pillars

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aquarianwisp · 6 years ago

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Everyday things you can do to build your witchy supplies and cheap ways to do it

Burning to get your witchy supplies started but have no idea where to start? My suggestion- start anywhere and with everyday things! Herbs To get a herb collection started, you do not have to have homegrown herbs or herbs from metaphysical stores which can be pricey. You can start a simple herb collection with just herbs available from your grocery store. If you are not a green thumb or you live in an apartment with no space for a garden, this is a really good option for getting a collection started. Just because something came from the grocery store doesn’t make it any less magical, and many people are under the impression that due to the mundane nature of how the herbs were obtained they are therefore less effective. This is not true at all! If you like doing the whole drying process yourself, you can go to the fresh food sections and pick up bunches of basil, parsley, mint, peppermint, rosemary, sage, dill, lemongrass, coriander, tarragon, oregano etc very cheap and usually already in a perfect bundle ready to be dried! You just need to take them home and hang them up somewhere dry for a few days to a week or so before they will be all dried and ready to use. If you are lazy and can’t be bothered or don’t have time to do the drying process, you can go to the spice section and find many of these same herbs already chopped up and dried out. If the packaging on the product makes you feel a bit “meh”, just take them home and place them in a jar or other similar container where they can remain dry, and the look of the container makes you feel inspired.

Gathering herbs and flowers is another really great option. Of course, if you are not experienced in recognizing wild herbs and flowers, I recommend you practice gathering a bit differently. Try gathering with the help of your community. Some of your neighbours might be green thumbs and be willing to share some of their plants with you. I used to live near someone who hedged their garden with basil, and every time their basil hedges grew out of control they would trim them. They were happy to give me the trimmings of their basil plants. They also gave me the rosehips that they had on their rose bushes, and if they had roses or lavender growing I would always ask for some trimmings if they were willing to share. People are actually more generous with their gardens than you think! A lot of avid gardeners are always willing to share cuttings as well, so if you know how to grow from a cutting this is a really good way to also build a herb collection. Any dandelions I see around my home I like to gather for drying, and any other flowers I can easily recognize such as hibiscus, daisies, frangipani, marigolds, chrysanthemum, cherry blossom, magnolia etc I will always try to gather a bit here and there. Another really cool option is to go to community gardens and gather the plants there that you can use, where they are labelled and everyone is free to take what they need! Save your orange or citrus peels for drying as well, as you can use these to emit the smell of their essential oils when placed over a heat source! Herbal teas are another really great option to safely consume herbs. Of course, check with your medical practitioner as some herbs contained in teas may cause issues with medications etc, (You can never be too safe when it comes to things you choose to eat/drink) however, herbal teas are a really great way to enjoy the benefits of the herbs in a safer manner than say, walking onto the street, picking up what you think is a certain type of herb and then making a tea out of it. Jars Jars are simple to obtain, and you do not have to start buying a million jars from your local dollar store just to have that witchy aesthetic that everyone seems to want. Recycle the jars from your food to store herbs or to use in spells. Pasta sauces, mayonnaise, anchovies, preserved foods, peanut butter, etc etc, anything that comes in a jar. Not only is this a great way to reduce waste, but glass is a safer option for storing things as you will not have the nasty toxins from plastic leaching into your herbs, oils, moon water, floral waters etc, and they look so much more attractive than plastic. And having all sorts of types of jars in different sizes and shapes makes for a very rustic witchy aesthetic look anyway. Collect natural objects Homeware stores have started selling bits of driftwood, false flowers, shells, pinecones, pebbles etc for ridiculous prices so that rich people can look fashionable and “rustic”. There is no point in buying these things when you can go to the beach and pick up a piece of driftwood or some shells for free. Objects picked up in their natural environment also seem to retain their energies more so than those objects that have been commercialised. Scour your local nature strips or parks for pretty looking dried leaves, pine cones, nice shaped rocks and anything else that inspires your witchiness. Make sure that you respect the spirits of these areas. Do not take more than what you need, and ensure that you ask permission from the spirits before taking. It is always good to leave an offering in its place- usually something organic such as fruit, seeds or nuts which can feed the local ants or birds.

Collect ribbons and coloured paper Every time it’s Christmas or you are given a gift, save the ribbons or wrapping. String has so many uses in witchcraft, and different colours have different meanings that can be used in all sorts of rituals. You can reuse them as well if you don’t end up burning them. Coloured paper can also take on meanings if you will it so. Tell people you want candles for Christmas Tell everyone who asks what you want for Christmas or your birthday that you really want to decorate your space and you love candles and you are dying to get some. Then watch as all your friends and family give you tons of different types of candles. Trust me, you can never go wrong with this. Candles are often so cheap that people will buy heaps of them for you in different colours and fragrances. The other good thing about this is that if people know you are a witch and they want to buy you a witchy type present they will often have no idea what to get you and will default to a candle. Buy candles from the lighting/electrical/barbeque section of a grocery store. Buying candles from a speciality metaphysical store, a homewares store, or even a dollar store can be expensive. But many grocery stores sell candles to be used in emergency blackouts or power outages, and some have started selling these types of candles in different colours as well. They often come in bulk packs and work just as well for half the price. You can also buy birthday candles and use those for your spells, especially if you need to do a quick spell. If you are after some really beautiful white candles, buy candles listed as “church candles”. These are sold cheaper than other white candles, probably because churches get all sorts of discounts. But they often are moulded in a really classical shape so they can look sometimes more beautiful than just your plain ol’ white candle. You do not have to burn your entire candle down for a spell to be effective. If you don’t write your own spells you will often see spell instructions telling you to allow the candle to completely finish burning. This is a waste of time and a waste of the precious candles that you conned every one of your family members into buying you last Christmas. It is also ridiculous- some candles burn for 18 hours or more, and it is totally unsafe to leave candles unattended. Do you have 18 hours to monitor a candle? Nope. You can cheaply make your own specialised spell candles, you do not have to waste 20 dollars on one from a metaphysical store. Yes, that’s right, with a microwave and a cheap candle you can carefully melt the wax down, add a wick in one of those jars you saved and then add all the herbs and fragrant oils, flowers, or whatever you want to the melted wax before allowing it to dry. There is a lot of tutorials for this on the internet, but please make sure you go for candles that do not have a foil or aluminium wick holder on the bottom as these will catch fire in your microwave. Candlesticks with nothing but wax and a wick at the top are best for this. Please take precautions with hot wax. Otherwise, there is no reason why you need that fancy candle for triple the price. You do not need a fancy obsidian scrying bowl, a kitchen bowl with water works fine! That’s right! Those metaphysical stores who try and make you buy an expensive obsidian plate for scrying seem to have forgotten that water scrying is an art that has existed for centuries! Any reflective surface can be used for scrying, it doesn’t have to be a fancy looking crystal object. Learn to read playing cards for divination You do not need to spend on tarot if you cannot afford it. Pick up some playing cards and use the power of the internet to learn how to read them for divination! If you are a closet witch as well, no one will suspect a deck of playing cards either. Print pictures of deities at a photo store. Never before has it been cheaper to print pictures now that digital has taken over. My local department store has a photo printing station where you can buy photo prints for 5 cents. I take a USB of pictures I like of my deities that I found online and print them off as photos. Then I frame them in dollar store frames. BAM! You have an altar set up for a few dollars.

Buy festive decorations after the season has passed If it’s yule time and you are dying to decorate your house with holly, red and green, pine etc, wait until the next year to decorate (I know, it sucks, but if you’re frugal you can dig this). Go to a dollar store and buy up big after the Christmas period has ended in preparation for the next year. Holidays such as Christmas, Easter and Halloween have become so commercialised that there is a serious overproduction of decorations each year and after the season has passed the stores just want to get rid of stuff as fast as possible. This is when you can jump in and get some witchy looking objects for a really cheap price. What’s great is that a lot of dollar stores sell some very witchy looking decorations during these typically Christian festivals- Bunnies, eggs, chickens, skeletons, pine branches, holly, cauldrons, etc without realising. Splurge on expensive incense when you can. 20 dollar packet on incense? Get it. My advice here is- quality really shows when it comes to incense. I am a massive incense fan, but whenever I can afford it (which is not always, sometimes I too have to go for the two dollar packets) and I find a really nice packet of pricey incense I go for it. Why? The cheaper the incense, the faster the burn time and the less resin it contains. One of the reasons that incense gets that burnt smell is because it contains sawdust to help it burn. Cheaper incenses smell less fragrant and burn faster because most of the resins coating the sticks are substituted with more sawdust. That way, the manufacturer keeps the costs of production down. More expensive incense sticks often have a ton more resin in their coating, smell more potent, and burn slower with a more beautiful smoke colour. They are well worth their price, and when you experience it you will want to always try and get the pricier sticks. The more expensive sticks also tend to have more of the real resins in them. Sandalwood, for example, is actually an endangered species and has become very expensive to buy. So manufacturers who create cheap incenses often substitute with sandalwood smelling substances but never really use the real thing. If you can afford it, go for incense sticks manufactured with real Australian sandalwood. Australian sandalwood smells extremely similar to Indian sandalwood and is specifically farmed for incense production. Thus you are getting the real thing but you are not contributing to the endangerment of Indian sandalwood which is a culturally sacred species that needs to be protected. That being said, my point here is quality and a long lasting product will save money over time when it comes to incense.

Anyway, that’s all for my witchy money saving tips for now! I hope this helped you!

#witchcraft #witch #spells #spellcraft

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