The “Healthy Bodies Healthy Minds Initiative “ offers
edible fresh food to anyone who wants to pick it!
A recent article about choosing different food colours for
health and for influencing moods certainly got imaginations flowing. I have had
a lot of good comments about the benefits of “Eating the Rainbow” and not just
sticking to mono colours. One interesting comment I heard was about growing
plants that contain pain killing properties. Multinational pharmaceutical
companies would probably prefer that we didn’t know anything about such matters
as their profits might take a bit of a nosedive.
We have been using medicinal plants for thousands of years
though and there are a lot we can use safely, which might save us a trip to the
chemists. There are some instances where we might need something over the
counter. I know when I get toothache it
can take over your whole life, as my mother used to say “Any pain above the
neck it all consuming” so cloves don’t
always do the trick and something prescribed is more urgent. It is great to
have the choice of both though.
Plants with
Pain Relieving Properties
There are hundreds of common herbs, flowers, berries and
plants that serve all kinds of important medicinal and health purposes. They
are used as: anti-inflammatory,
anti-fungal, insect repellent, antiseptic, expectorant, antibacterial,
detoxification, fever reduction, antihistamine and pain relief. It’s what we used before the multinational
pharmaceutical companies took over!
- Hemp ( Marijuana) was widely used before it was criminalised to treat depression and anxiety and to reduced blood pressure, pain alleviation and glaucoma treatment.
- The Californian poppy is an effective nervine (anxiety reliever)
- Ginger alleviates cramps, migraines and headaches.
- Turmeric has lots of virtues including being a COX-2 selective inhibitor, which is a form of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug.
- Red seaweed is said to ease pain. The deep oceanic flora contains all the minerals the body needs for cellular rejuvenation
- White willow bark can be taken as a supplement or brewed into a tea to alleviate pain and reduce inflammation.
- Devil's claw and stinging nettle are herbs that act as analgesics to help relieve pain, particularly osteoarthritis pain.
- Boswellia (arnica) , is a herb often used in topical products to reduce muscle and joint pain
- Capsaicin is another natural pain killer that is extracted from chili peppers.
- Diluted eucalyptus oil or lavender are often used as natural pain killers in aromatherapy.
Usual disclaimer . Patients with chronic or severe pain should talk
to their doctors about their conditions before using natural pain killers.
Planting food in
urban spaces
Edible planting in urban spaces is catching on around cities
and towns. Instead of putting bedding plants or shrubs in containers, some places
are now seeing attractive vegetables and herbs being grown. Instead of staring aimlessly at your phone as
you wait in the bus station for the number 15 you can help yourself to some
salad leaves and a carrot from a planter.
The idea could catch on I hope.
Any urban place could be used to grow all sorts. Pam Warhurst who co-founded Incredible Edible
has helped to transform her home town of Todmorden in Yorkshire from a
tradition market town into an area full of fruit, flowers and vegetables by
what she calls “Propaganda Gardening” The railway station, health centre, police
station and people’s front gardens have all been transformed into lush edible
landscapes.
Gareth Austin has done something similar on a smaller scale.
The Project 'Healthy Bodies Healthy Minds' saw the installation of 15 mixed
herb planters at the front door of the Tower Building in Strand Rd. The herb planters are for both the catering
students to become more familiar with the source of fresh produce and also for
all students to pick and enjoy.
Community Garden
Network of Ireland meeting in the City of (Horti) Culture!
Gareth is also arranging the next meeting of the Community
Garden Network of (All) Ireland which will
be held in Derry/Londonderry on the 9th of March. The meeting will take place
in The Playtrail from 12-2pm and then a series of tours will be offered to
participants in the afternoon. From 2-3 there will be a guided tour of the
Leafair Community Garden and from 3-4 a tour of the Fountain Community Garden -
these two gardens recently won a second place in the All-Ireland Pride of Place
awards , followed by a tour of the playtrail facility.
YouthAction NI will give a presentation on how best
community gardens can engage with young people. This meeting is free to attend
and all are welcome, and to allow for numbers please book your place by going
to Gareth’s website garethaustin.com. Together we can make this a real cross
border initiative.
