after il ness, it is effective in restoring normal functioning to the stomach and reducing cramping. The old texts assert that it assists “to render harmless” gases and helps to dissolve stones in the bladder and kidneys.
R 44. Boil two tablespoons of rose hips roots in one cup of water for 15
minutes. Steep until cool and add one teaspoon of honey. Drink ½ cup three times a day for 7–10 days. Increase the quantity by fol owing these ratios:
a) two tablespoons rose hips to one cup water to one teaspoon
honey
b) four tablespoons rose hips to 16 ounces water to two
teaspoons honey
c) six tablespoons rose hips to 24 ounces water to three
teaspoons honey
R 45. Rose hips liqueur with vodka. Prepare one cup of dried or fresh rose hips. If you use fresh berries, do not cut them. If you use dried, dice them and combine with 8–12 cups of sugar. Add 24 ounces of vodka and steep in the sun for five days. On the sixth day add 10–24 additional ounces of vodka. Al ow mixture Stop Sneezes and Sniffles and Stifle a Cold @ 65
to continue to steep in the sun for five more days. Filter on the 10th day, and take one tablespoon two to three times a day after a meal.
Centuries ago people were inspired by rose hips to write poetic fairy tales and illustrate them with images of beautiful sleeping young women. The arched and curved vines of this plant are closely interwoven and form impenetrable brushwoods, which are riddled with sharp,
crooked thorns. In Europe this plant blooms in late fall
with big, beautiful, and aromatic wild rose blossoms. Because of the dense brush and dangerous thorns, the
flowers and tasty berries are inaccessible to wildlife, except birds.
One of the first herbal infusions I became familiar
with as a child was marsh cudweed ( Gnaphalium uligi-
nosum ) tea. The herb is a dwarf, evergreen shrub with a strong, camphor-like fragrance.
This herb was well loved by my family, and we
had many plants in our stock of herbs to complement it
in our home-made infusions or tonics like elecampane;
astringents like mullein; elder flowers as a phlegm-reducing herb; or wild lettuce as a cough suppressant. The tea of marsh cudweed is used widely throughout Russia to treat colds, bronchial asthma, and rheumatism. This natural healer is an anti-inflammatory fighter, tones up the respiratory system, and gives temporary relief of persistent, hacking cough and shortness of breath.
Here are several remedies:
R 46. Combine 1½ ounces of marsh cudweed herb in a pot with one quart of boiling water. Steep five minutes and drink about 12
ounces five or six times a day. The course of treatment runs from 5–14 days.
66 ^ Mama’s Home Remedies
R 47. Combine 1/8 ounce marsh cudweed herb and ½ ounce nettle leaves with one quart boiling water and steep five minutes. Drink four ounces five to six times a day. Repeat this procedure for five to seven days.
My family used to make another natural medicinal drink called “Bloody tea.” It includes another great healing plant, hawthorn ( Crataegus oxyacantha ). This herb’s blossoms are sometimes blood red with five delicate petals. The berries of the hawthorn plant are usually red, but sometimes red-yellow. This plant, especially its flowers, is an effective natural medicine for colds. R 48. Combine three tablespoons hawthorn flowers with 24 ounces boiling water and steep overnight in a preheated, cooling oven. The next morning filter and warm the mixture. Adults can take one cup three times a day. Children may have two ounces three times a day.
It can be beneficial to eat delicious creams made with black currants because they are rich in vitamin C, glucose, and essential oils. Year-round our herbal stock contained a delicious and effective remedy that we called Black Sofia, which we made from black currants. We named this healing desert Sofia, a woman’s name that means wisdom.
R 49. Make Black Sofia vitamin cream. Wash one pound of black currants and dry them on
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