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Forage Friday #66 Heal-all

Hello Friends! Tonight’s feature image is titled “Heal-all 71020a”. Typically, Forage Friday images are taken for the sole purpose of illustrations. All of the photos are my original work and are available for purchase by the instructions at the bottom of the article.

Please remember that Forage Friday is only intended to be a conversation starter and not an endorsement of treatment. All of the information is presented as trivia only.

Setting up on a shelf in my grandfather’s study was an antique medicine bottle. It only held a few ounces and the bottle was half full of liquid. I’m certain that the liquid inside was once green but it had turned brown with age just like the label. The Victorian style font was faded but still legible. Bold letters at the top were formed into an arch and read “Heal-all”. The writing at the bottom in a complimentary arch read “Good For Man Or Beast”. The cork stopper was broken off more or less even with the mouth of the bottle. The exact composition of the contents was unknown and my grandfather figured it was from the turn of the 20th century. But this was my introduction to the herb known as Heal-all or Self-heal.

While brushing up on the plant for tonight’s post more than one source stated that Heal-all is one of the most studied traditional medicinal herbs in the world. And that many of claims made by herbalists have been proven to be true. In the middle ages most of the doctors were actually religious leaders. Somewhere along the way it was decided that God placed clues about how to use the plant within the plant’s anatomy. This was known as The Doctrine of Signatures.

Image Titled “Heal-all 71020b” showing details of the flowers.

Because the flowers of Heal-all resemble an open mouth with the tongue out it was decided that it was best used for sore throat and conditions of the mouth. It turns out that they got lucky. Modern science has confirmed that Heal-all has some antibiotic and antiviralcompounds. According to the internet Heal-all was successful in controlling herpes viruses in mice and was even researched as part of a treatment for HIV. The plant has been used to as a wash for wounds and sores as well as pink eye. The flowers are said to have strong enough antioxidant properties to protect from harmful effects of UV radiation. Not as a lotion that’s spread over the skin but as an internal preventive. Peterson’s Field Guide says that Heal-all contains ursolic acid which is antitumor and diuretic. The list of traditional uses is actually pretty long. It’s said to be effective in treating fevers and that makes sense because it is in the mint family. The stem is square just like deadnettle and ground ivy. However, it doesn’t have the a strong smell or taste like spearmint or peppermint.

In fact the flavor of Heal-all is so mild that it’s used in salads and as a pot herb similar to the way one would use spinach. Mints are notoriously easy to propagate. So much so that some people would consider it an invasive weed. But in truth it’s a source of vitamins A, C and K. Like most plants it’s rich in various flavonoids and the Wikipedia entry specifically lists Rutin. Now I had to look Rutin up and it turns out to be a combination of Quercetin and Rutinose. Both compounds seemed to have a few benefits but were hard for the body to absorb. The information about what Rutin actually is and if it is actually one of the reasons why Heal-all has earned it’s reputation was complex enough for me to say that I’ll need to do a lot of reading before I understand enough to make a judgement.

But I have learned enough to say that Heal-all is definitely worth giving some space on the edge of the forest. Perhaps even it’s own little garden box that’s tucked away in some partial shade where it can just do its thing and be awesome.

Image Titled “Heal-all 71020b2” Shows the plant growing in the shade of the mountain.

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A Walk Up The Blacktop

Color Photography

Hello Friends! Tonight’s feature image is titled “Summer Daydreams 63020a” and is available for purchase by the instructions at the bottom of the article.

The warm breeze and bright sun pulls me back through the river of time to the days of innocence. In a simpler age when the road was paved with tar and on a hot day one might spin on a heel and leave a mark on the blacktop. The roads always seemed to be lined with daisies and in a few spots blackberries hung out over the berms. I remember walking over a mile or so to the general store with a little change. Along the way I would just reach out and pull a handful of berries off of the canes to enjoy as I walked. We’d buy a glass bottle of Mountain Dew that at the time still had a hillbilly on the logo. On the return trip there was the daisies. As we passed by insects of every kind hopped or flew to a better location. Butterflies were often so interested in flowers that they didn’t notice our approach until we were almost on top of them. Then with ease they would simply flip to a different bloom a little farther into weeds. We’d follow the clusters of daisies until we ran out of paved road. That’s how we knew that we’d made it home. Hone is always were the blacktop ends and the dirt road welcomes you back.

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The Graceful Visitor

Color Photography, wildlife

Hello Friends! Tonight’s feature image is titled “Graceful Visitor 71020a” and is available for purchase by the instructions at the bottom of the article.

Delicate wings dance gracefully across the quiet country road on a warm breeze. She seems to hover for a moment over the hood of the big blue truck that’s stopped. I couldn’t help but think of her as a living smile happily seeking lives to touch. A messenger of God to bring good cheer at the end of the day. She sails down the sunbeams and comes to rest on the black-eyed Susan. She only hesitates there for a moment before finding the next soul to bless. A moment was all that was needed to be a source of peace and joy.

Hey Friends! Just a quick reminder that Lloyds Lens Photography is available for portraits!

To book me simply reach out using the Contact Page and we’ll set a date. If you’re within a 50 mile radius of Summersville West Virginia all travel fees are waived.

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I’m now using Zazzle to fulfil orders. What this means for you is a secure way to place an order, discount codes & a broader product selection! Simplymessage me on Facebookoruse the contact form on my websiteand tell me which image you want and I’ll reply with a direct link to where you can place the order.

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Sunshine And Roses Part 3

Color Photography, wildlife

Hello Friends! Tonight’s feature image is titled “A Kiss Of Sunshine 71020a” and is available for purchase by the instructions at the bottom of the article.

Over the past few days I’ve learned quite a bit about the carpenter bees. One little factoid that I’ve left out is that how dependant some flowers are on carpenter bees and bumblebees. These two species are more likely to crawl deep into the flowers than honeybees and thus more pollen is caught in the Bee’s fur to be transferred to the next blossom. Certain flowers are designed to take advantage of carpenter bee’s feeding habits and are so adapted that if the carpenter bees are lost then these flowers are lost as well. Furthermore, some garden plants like eggplant and tomato benefit from the strong vibrations produced in the carpenter bee’s powerful thorax. The vibrations set up a sympathetic resonance that shakes lose more pollen than smaller bees. According to the Honeybee Conservancy the economic value of bee dependant crops in the U.S. is around 29 billion dollars. Native Bees like the carpenter bees are responsible for15% of the harvest.

Image Titled “Carpenter Bee In Flight 71020a”

And yet as valuable as they are when they begin boring holes into your home they become a huge problem. So for the third and final part of Sunshine And Roses I wanted to cover a few mitigation and control methods.

When I first noticed a spike in the carpenter bee population in my area it seemed to correlate with a decline in honeybees. I have not seen any studies on this so I am just guessing here. In researching for this article I learned that the size of a carpenter bee’s brood is proportional to the amount of food she’s able to forage. And even though an individual carpenter bee out performs an individual honeybee by large magnitudes there’s far more honeybees in a healthy hive. Remember that only 15% of overall crop production is done by native bees and carpenter bees are only a fraction of the %15. So I propose that if a person us so inclined that learning how to keep honeybees just might have a control effect on carpenter bees. This would be because they are capable of limiting the available forage and thus the carpenter bees have smaller broods.

Mason bees and leaf cutter bees are also highly competitive rivals for the carpenter bees and they’re pretty much care free. Make or buy a special habitat for these bees and place it areas where bee food grows. The wild varieties will show up and limit food access to the carpenter bees. Plus these types of bees don’t make new holes in wood but instead take over holes that are already there.

The true bumblebees live in underground tunnels. And they actually out perform the carpenter bee on a one on one basis. However, in order to attract bumblebees you need bare ground and they have to like that spot. There are tame bumblebee hives available but there’s a significant risk that they will transmit disease to the wild ones.

Finally there are the more traditional methods of control.

Chemical pesticides such as pyrethrin are used to kill a nest on contact and then the hole is plugged with a dowl rod.

A few sources say to use orange oil to make the wood unpleasant for the carpenter bees. An alternative is peppermint oil. In strong concentration the peppermint is said to overwhelmed the bees sense of smell and make them uncomfortable. However, I seen carpenter bees pollinating mints.

Simply painting wood surfaces with a good paint or stain makes it unsuitable for nesting by the carpenter bee. If it’s a surface that you want to keep natural then a clear coat is better than nothing.

There are traps you can make or buy that uses blocks of wood attached to a bottle. The idea is that the carpenter bee will explore holes drilled in the wood that leads to a clear bottle or jar and can’t find their way out again. These are hung near the home and because there’s already a hole that’s the right size the bees will try to save energy by taking over that hole. Carpenter bees only live for one season but the brood will return to same hole and expand the tunnel. Several years of this will destroy the structure eventually and it makes it vulnerable to fungus.

Regardless of the control methods that’s right for you I do ask you to remember that carpenter bees are part of nature and important to some wildflowers that support the other life in the forest. So leave them some space on the edge of the forest well away from your home. Simply drilling 1/2 inch holes in a stump or block of wood and placing it in the right place will both draw them away from the home and keep them out there working as pollenators.

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Sunshine And Roses Part 2

Color Photography, wildlife

Hello Friends! Tonight’s feature image is titled “Feeding Frenzy 71020a” and is available for purchase by the instructions at the bottom of the article.

As the sun continues to beam down and warm the nectar excitement grows among the swarm. The collective hum of wings is loud enough to be heard from several feet away. As I watch the bees rise and fall throughout the roses it’s intriguing how they seem to have an awareness of where each other is without any air traffic controllers to guide them.

I’ve never been in the military myself but as a kid I was allowed to ride in a C-130 and I had a comment from a friend on Facebook that these carpenter bees were the C-130 of the insect world. If you’ve never been around when a C-130 lands it’s probably one of the noisiest experiences in life. They reverse engines like a ship and that really makes a racket.

Could it be that the noise of a Carpenter Bee’s wings is a navigational aid? A bees antenna contains something called a Johnston’s Organ. Basically it’s an ear that detects vibrations. It’s my understanding that bees don’t hear sounds as much as they feel them. So as other bees are buzzing around them the single bee knows exactly where everyone is even when they can’t see them. Don’t get me wrong, bees have excellent peripheral vision and evidence suggests that they have sharper vision than originally thought. But everyone has a blind spot and it seems that bees can actually fly in the direction where that blind spot should be.

I also need to correct an error that I made in part 1. Bumblebees and carpenter bees are not just two different species but two different genera of bees. Bumblebees live in a familial hive where at best Carpenter Bees form loose colonies at best. Bumblebees are more fury and carpenter bees have almost no hair on their abdomen.

When compared to honeybees an individual carpenter bee can pollinate somewhere in the neighborhood of 50 times more flowers. ( but I would point out that the larger hive numbers go to the honeybees and the hive ratios are problem going to go to the honeybees.)

Like most solitary bees the carpenter bees do not make honey. They do make bee bread which is pollen mixed with a small amount of nectar.

Image Titled “Duel Between The Giants 71120a”

Being solitary bees the carpenter bees do not have a “hive mind”. The concept of “good fences make good neighbors” is alive and well in the carpenter bee world. I witnessed several “duels” between the carpenter bees over marked territory. I’ve seen honeybees work the same flower together with no tension between them but not the solitary carpenter bees. If you watch close bees will groom a flower and then come back to it. When the do this not only do they leave pheromones on the flowers to claim them but in response the flowers sweeten the nectar to encourage them to return. By slipping in to claim a flower that’s already groomed one solitary bee is able to live off of the labor of another and thus conserve energy. However, these duels seemed to be little more than a wrestling match and the deadly stingers are withheld.

Image Titled “Contentment 71020a”.

Generally speaking it always seemed like the bee who was not the bee that groomed the flower gave up easily and the original bee won the right to forage that flower.

Lord willing, I’ll finish up the carpenter bees with part 3 in the next post.

Hey Friends! Just a quick reminder that Lloyds Lens Photography is available for portraits!

To book me simply reach out using the Contact Page and we’ll set a date. If you’re within a 50 mile radius of Summersville West Virginia all travel fees are waived.

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https://youtu.be/FDcrY6w8oY8

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