I learned about Solomon's Seal as one of my first herbs through my teacher,Matt Wood an eclectic herbalist and general genius on Western herbalism.  I knew this plant closely as a gardener, it’s interwoven notched rhizomes twisted around each other creating knots and a puzzle work that speaks to it’s doctrine of signatures of helping ease the pain of tightness and constriction.

This is hands down my favorite musculoskeletal herbs for supporting and strengthen the entire system by soothing inflamed tissues, moistening the respiratory tract, nourishing during menopause and for my creaky back, it promotes flexibility and I LOVE it for repetitive motion injuries (ex: tendentious) as an oil and tincture.  We have Solomon's Seal in our aptly namedJoint Juice.

Elderberryis an immune tonic and something I like to use for the changing of the season, back to school, for traveling and general wellness.  It’s SWEET so it usually is a remedy that kids actually enjoy and I use these immune-boosting berries in conjunction with other herbs: especially for colds and flus. Elderberry is a simple deep black berry, it is a powerhouse of immunity and can really add oomph and vitality to your day-to-day wellness. It is known to build the immune system, shorten the duration of a cold or flu, help with rheumatism and inflammation, reduce the symptoms and duration of a flare up from the herpes simplex virus (HSV). The berries are also supportive of the cardiovascular system and may help lower blood pressure because they are working on helping with inflammation.