Safety Discussion: Elderberry and COVID-19 – Herbal Academy

For those of you joining in or following along with the discussions here and elsewhere on whether or not elderberry should be used during the current outbreak of COVID-19, we’ve rounded up our clinical herbalists to put together this resource for you. Because elderberry is already a common part of supportive care during cold and flu season, it’s …

How to Make Elderberry Syrup for Immune Health

Each year as winter approaches, I reliably find my patients asking me about the best herbal remedies to use during the cold weather months. One of the most common questions I encounter is, “What nutritional preparations can I use to help keep my family strong and healthy throughout the sniffle season?”. There's a wide array …

Beloved Elder – Ally for Healing from the Flu and Much More

My first plant ally was the elder tree or, as I like to call her, my beloved elder. It was one month before I formally became a herbal-medicine apprentice, so this was before I knew that a plant ally is a plant or tree that you choose (and are chosen by) for a lifelong relationship. As your …

Elderberry Syrup Cockaigne Recipe

The name of this recipe is a homage to one of my go-to cookbooks, The Joy of Cooking, where the extra-special recipes have the moniker “Cockaigne” added. The word comes from a middle-English fable meaning “luxurious and idle paradise;” or abundance! Feel free to add other delicious herbs to the recipe such as organic Vanilla Beans, Hibiscus, Allspice, Star Anise, and more! …

Ginger Cinnamon Elderberry Syrup ~ Immune System Support

The elder tree is known to many herbalists as a sacred tree. While we’re sure it has its own stories to tell, there’s already an abundance of recorded folklore. In Scandinavian and Danish myths, this tree was thought to be guarded by a forest spirit named Hyldemoer, also known as Elder Mother. Before anything was …

Herbs To Have In Your Medicine Cabinet This Fall

It’s the time of year, where more often than not we are turning to our medicine cupboard to support our bodies and our families. An abundance of tea herbs, honey, and lemon, fresh herbs like ginger, turmeric, cayenne, and garlic are all great to have on hand throughout the winter. A few herbal tinctures also …

Medicinal Trees: Elder

Elder {Sambucus nigra} Also, Known As: Bourtree Elder Elder-berry Elder-flower European Elder Pipe Tree The plant called the elder is used to describe a bushy shrub like plant that can reach a few feet in height as shrub-like forms normally do or it may be referring to a tree reaching up to fifty feet in …

DIY Ginger Cinnamon Elderberry Syrup

The elder tree is known to many herbalists as a sacred tree. While we’re sure it has its own stories to tell, there’s already an abundance of recorded folklore. In Scandinavian and Danish myths, this tree was thought to be guarded by a forest spirit named Hyldemoer, also known as Elder Mother. Before anything was …