Breathing Space
Report
Richard Mandelbaum
9/5/16
I visited Breathing Space on August 17 2016, and was
taken around the property by Angel Ramos and Ray Rios. While walking we discussed the possibilities
for the property.
The plants I identified on the property that have some
potential are listed below with some notes, and then some additional thoughts
at the end.
Medicinal plants growing at Breathing Space:
Jewelweed / touch me not Impatiens
sp.
Useful in many topical preparations such as salves,
ointments, etc. This was abundant around
the old farm house and on the trail to the river.
Witch hazel Hamamelis
virginiana scattered plants
Useful in salves, ointments, tinctures, infusions. There was not a lot on the property but it is
possible we missed some.
Oak Quercus
sp.
Oak bark is used as herbal mouth wash, topical
preparations, and in small amounts in teas.
Smaller trees could be harvested for inner bark by thinning out the
woods without disturbing mature trees.
Blue cohosh Caulophyllum
thalictroides
This herb is an over-harvested native plant, and is
listed by the United Plant Savers as “at risk” so it needs to be
protected. That said there was more wild
blue cohosh growing at Breathing Space than I have ever seen anywhere else –
enough to harvest it sustainably, and it could be propagated in the woods to
maintain the population.
Goldenrod Solidago
spp.
This is a common plant but there is enough here to
include as a tincture, tea. etc. for wild harvesting.
Chaga Inonotus
oliqua
This fungus that grows on birch trees (yellow and black
birch) is used medicinally. It is not
very abundant though so it would be best to use in small amounts or for
educational purposes.
Hemlock Tsuga
canadensis
This is the native hemlock tree, a conifer, not the
poisonous hemlock which is a completely different plant. The hemlock tree’s needles can be distilled
into essential oil.
Yarrow Achillea
millefolium
Yarrow is a commonly used medicinal herb that can be made
into tincture, tea, etc. There was a
fair amount growing on the lawn by the buildings.
Solomon’s seal Polygonatum
sp.
Solomon’s seal can be made into tincture or used as
tea. There is not a large amount of it
growing but it could be propagated in the woods.
Lobelia Lobelia
inflata
Lobelia is most often used as tincture. There is a small amount growing by the river.
Black cherry Prunus
serotina
Black cherry is abundant on the property, especially in
the woods on top of the hill. The inner
bark is used as tea or tincture. Smaller
trees could be harvested for inner bark by thinning out the woods without
disturbing mature trees.
Mugwort Artemisia
vulgaris
Mugwort is a common roadside weedy herb; at Breathing
Space it is mostly by the edge of the woods near the old farm house and in that
general area. Mugwort can be dried as
tea or tinctured, is used in Chinese traditional medicine as moxa and as tea,
and also by local herbalists.
Sugar maple Acer
saccharum
Sugar maple is fairly abundant on the property. Perhaps someone who has experience tapping
trees and making maple syrup could evaluate the feasibility for Breathing
Space.
Black / sweet birch Betula
lenta
Black birch bark is used as a tea or can also be
tinctured, or distilled into essential oil.
Smaller trees could be harvested for inner bark by thinning out the
woods without disturbing mature trees.
The trees can also be tapped for birch water (a traditional beverage in
Europe and becoming increasingly popular in NYC and the area), or made into
birch syrup.
Hawthorn Crataegus
sp.
There were several hawthorn trees growing in the woods on
top of the hill. More could easily be
planted. The leaf, flower, and fruit are
all used as tea or tincture.
Black walnut Juglans
nigra
We didn’t see this on our walk but Angel and Ray
mentioned there is a fair amount growing in the area that they have access
to. The green hulls are harvested and
dried for tea or tinctured.
Thoughts and Next Steps:
The woods at Breathing Space have enough medicinal plants
naturally growing for some small-scale production of remedies and educational
purposes.
Production:
·
Preparing herbal teas would require drying
facilities. I can imagine part of the
barn being converted into an effective drying facility and perhaps funding
could be sought for that. There would no
doubt be county or state health codes, or USDA regulations to comply with.
·
Ointment, salve, cream, and/or tincture making
would require some additional equipment, although to begin it would not have to
be expensive. On the other hand, the FDA
has oversight of tincture making so a facility would ultimately have to comply
with the FDA’s Good Manufacturing Practices (although in reality many very
small companies do not).
Growing and Harvesting:
·
The open space by the buildings could
potentially support a very small amount of herb growing.
·
Often people separate wild crafting and growing
with a strong line, but it is not always so black and white. One possibility to strongly consider in my
opinion would be woodland cultivation.
Garden beds can be prepared within the woods, simulating natural habitat
and without much disturbing of existing trees and shrubs. In this way many of the plants listed above
could also be cultivated in the woods so that the native population does not
diminish. Also, many additional plants could be
considered for wild-simulated propagation, such as our native American ginseng,
goldenseal, black cohosh, and others.
These can be valuable crops that can be grown within a natural woodland
setting, and are native plants so would also be a way of repopulating the woods
with important native herbs. Another use
of woodland would be to grow mushrooms on logs, such as shiitake mushrooms.
Educational opportunities:
·
Breathing Space’s commitment to the ecological
well-being of the land was very clear and impressive to me while there. Breathing Space may want to look into the
Botanical Sanctuary program of United Plant Savers, an organization dedicated
to preserving our native medicinal plants.
This is the link to learn more: https://www.unitedplantsavers.org/botanical-sanctuary-network2
·
The land could be used as a teaching space for
community members to identify herbs, prepare and use remedies for affordable
and natural family and self-care.
Partnerships with local herbalists, herb schools, and others could
facilitate this and build capacity.
·
Herbal study groups for the community and for
students of herbal medicine.
·
On-site education including signs on the trails,
brochures or pamphlets describing the plant life and how the herbs can be
used.
We also discussed potentials for community partnerships
with the ArborVitae student clinic.
