One of my favorite herbs in the garden is the bright yellow and orange petals of calendula. It was chosen as Herb of the Year 2008 by the International Herb Association.

Calendula officinalis, not to be confused with the ornamental marigolds found outside nearly every supermarket, is the medicinal variety. Throughout the ages in Europe, these “pot marigolds”, as they were called, were dried and used in broths as a restorative for the eyes. During World War I calendula was used in dressings for the injured. Typically used to heal wounds, Calendula is very soothing to the skin. It helps heal cuts, burns, insect bites, bruises and aids dry skin. I use the dried petals in all of my salves and lip balm.

Because the plant is an anti-inflammatory, astringent, and antimicrobial it has a variety of uses. As a tincture or an extract it is used as a gargle for inflammations of the mouth, throat, and nose. It also eases digestive disorders, is a good detoxifying herb for the liver and gallbladder, and is high in antioxidants. Calendula tea is excellent for the eyes.

Calendula’s golden petals are easy to grow and beautiful to look at. When the last danger of frost has passed Calendula can be planted. It likes well-drained, moderately fertile soil and lots of water, especially as the summer heat begins. Bees are drawn to the deep yellow and orange petals. The other day I was cutting off the blossom heads to dry the petals; I had to be careful as there was a bee sucking nectar out of nearly every blossom.

The florets from the center of the flower have a bitter quality. The petals are very flavorful in soups, broths, or salads in addition to their medicinal qualities.
To dry the petals, I cut them off from the center and put them in a paper bag to dry. The more blossoms I cut from the plant, the more they bloom. It’s wonderful!  I hope I have inspired you to grow some in your garden.
Ruth Madocks is a school teacher and the creator of Ruth’s Handmade Herbal Remedies, a line of products made from organic, all-natural plant extracts, carrier oils, and essential oils.

What's good for the Coral Reed is good for US

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A History of Contraceptives

Part three concludes the summary of women’s contraceptive    practices over the past 4,000 years. Defying death, sin, laws and the medical community, women have historically sought control over their fertility.

As the sun rose on 20th century America, contraceptive information remained in darkness. While Americans wrestled with the legal, moral, and practical issues of contraception, the Comstock morality continued to imprison women’s power over their fertility. Then, inadvertently, a war reintroduced the condom, but not for contraception.
Venereal disease was a widespread public health problem when World War I broke out. In 1917, with VD infection rates in new recruits at 5.6%, and in some areas as high as 25%, the crisis of soldier health became paramount to the war effort.
Unfortunately, our Defense Department was headed by “Comstock era” men who believed that VD was, in essence, the result of immoral sex. While struggling with the moral dilemma of protecting “red-blooded” troops abroad from engaging in sex, everything from punishment and loss of pay, to painful post-coital prophylaxis procedures were employed on soldiers admitting to having intercourse while on leave. While our troops endured psychological and physical trauma, the allied troops were supplied with free condoms. It wasn’t long until American troops figured out that procuring condoms protected them from venereal disease and from humiliating post-leave inquiry.
Returning U.S. soldiers brought condoms home to a grateful female population, both as a protection from venereal disease, and for the publicly silent contraceptive benefit. Because of its success in disease prevention, the condom became legal here in 1918. Prevention of venereal disease was important; unintended pregnancies were never a public concern. Condom popularity increased, as did the manufacturing and mass-marketing of inexpensive and sometimes inferior products. By 1926, condoms of latex rubber, which were uniform and of a higher quality, became available, though the inference between condoms and prostitution, or immoral sex, continued. Sales boomed in the 1920s-1930s, but the medical community and newly-vocal birth control advocates discounted men’s ability to be diligent users, stating that contraception should be solely in the woman’s control. However, with the Comstock Law still in effect, there was scant contraceptive information legally available.
Finally, in 1936, the ban on contraceptives under the Comstock Law was declared unconstitutional. Concurrently, rubber diaphragms with spermicidal jellies became the most widely prescribed contraceptive device in America. For the device to effectively work, a woman had to visit her doctor, who would “size” her and show her how to use it. But diaphragms were also available over the counter in various sizes. Perhaps because of embarrassment, finances, or want of secrecy, many women purchased their diaphragms from the drugstore, with little to no information how to size or use the product. New “modern” feminine douches came onto the market, unregulated by the medical community or the Federal Drug Administration for safety or effectiveness.
Even though contraceptives were now legal, the term “contraceptive” still held a cultural taboo. For the next thirty years, the “code” word for contraceptive suppositories and douches was “feminine hygiene”. The leading “feminine hygiene” product for those 30 years was – drumroll - Lysol! Yes, Lysol. The early formulation contained extremely caustic Cresol and was marketed by advertisements portraying “European female doctors” touting Lysol as a multi-purpose product: douche, gargle, nasal spray and household cleaner. Investigations led to the discovery that none of the “doctors” existed; it was pure fraud committed to the detriment of women’s health. Lysol never worked as a contraceptive, although many gullible women thought it would.
And what about that rhythm method? Though it regained some popularity, contradictions existed on actual timing of “non-fertile” intercourse and when to start counting, with no real knowledge of a woman’s actual cycle.
By the mid-20th century, knowledge of natural plant and herb-based contraceptives was firmly buried in history, except in secluded pockets of rural populations in “third world?” countries like China, India, and South America.  Even here in Appalachia country, women used plant and herb-based contraceptives successfully. One plant, still is use to this day, is the wildflower Queen Anne’s Lace. A small amount of seeds, gathered the previous fall, taken with a glass of water, or simply chewed before intercourse successfully prevents contraception, with no side effects.
In May 1960, the “Pill” was approved by the FDA as the “first” oral contraceptive. The Pill was initially developed to control population growth in “third world” countries. Here it was also intended to curb population growth, but more particularly of certain ethnic and socioeconomic groups, thus relieving the welfare burden on middle- and upper-class (white) society. However, while cost prohibitive for the groups it was targeted for, it soon became the most popular form of birth control among that “white” society. This neat, mess-free, woman-controlled contraceptive, along with the other prescription-only products - Norplant and Depo-Provera - fueled widespread acceptance of medical birth control by both doctors and patients.
Another contraceptive device, the IUD, or intrauterine device, was known and used by women in Japan and Europe in the 1930s. Not until the 1950s did American scientists begin their own IUD research, experimenting with new plastics and all kinds of configurations and sizes, from curlicues to miniature “weapon-like” shields. In 1965, the IUD became available in the U.S., with a doctor’s visit and prescription.
Modern medicine regards itself as the preeminent source for all fertility control and contraceptive information, relegating the ancient, natural plant-based methods of contraception not as folklore, but as myth. Corporations manufacture fertility and contraceptive drugs for economic benefit; physicians prescribe contraceptives after a doctor’s exam, or offer sterilization surgery.
Encouragingly, science is reviewing and conducting studies of prescriptions contained in the ancient Greek, Roman, Arabic and Egyptian texts. They are rediscovering the plants used historically in folk and early premodern medicine.
Research using mice and rats, confirms that most of the mentioned plants and drugs tested perform as intended, with many at 100% effectiveness, without permanent sterility.
With the renaissance of organic and natural homeopathic remedies, and the scientific studies backing up the ancient potions, I can’t help but wonder what our future daughters and granddaughters might use to control their fertility. No, I don’t see animal dung pessaries returning, or Lysol douches, or new supplies of Silphium being discovered, but perhaps a return to the plant-based oral potions that worked for women so long ago.

And for the record:
I must clear up something that has provoked my curiosity for years -the supposed link between camel “IUDs” and human IUDs. My reading of four comprehensive, respected sources, and numerous online sites, reveals that, yes, Arab nomads did, and still do, insert small pebbles attached to a string into their camel uteri to effectively prevent conception on long treks. However, I have found no evidence that this method was ever employed by or on women, nomadic or otherwise. Today’s medical commentary refers to the camel practice as the “first IUD”, but without one source to back up the assertion!

Print Sources:

Contraception and Abortion in 19th Century America, 1994, Brodie, Janet Farrell, Cornell University Press, Ithaca and London

Devices and Desires, A History of Contraceptives in America, 2001, Tone, Andrea, Hill and Wang, New York

A History of Contraception From Antiquity to the Present Day, 1990, McLaren, Angus, Basil Blackwell, Oxford and Cambridge, MA

Contraception and Abortion from the Ancient World to the Renaissance, 1992, Riddle, John M., Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA, London, England.

A History of Contraceptives
Part Two

This is a three-part article summarizing the past 4,000 years of women’s contraceptive practices.  And for the record, abstinence was never a choice given to women so it is not included.  Defying death, sin, laws and the medical community, women have forever sought control over their fertility and the spacing of their children’s births.

Ancient civilizations, with their potions, pessaries and rituals, grasped the concept and embraced the practice of contraception.  Early Christianity’s prohibition of contraception forced vital information, along with women’s power over their fertility, underground and into obscurity.

During the Renaissance, or Age of Enlightenment, the thirst to study classical writings, including those of Hippocrates and Dioscorides, produced a likewise renaissance in identifying the numerous plants described in the texts.  All ancient Greek, Latin, and Arabic classical writings were studied and culled for valuable information, though, as in the Medieval Ages, the translation of these ancient texts was not always performed by competent, knowledgeable, or objective translators.  This enthusiasm founded a passion in botanical gardens and fervor for the discovery of the plants of the New World and Asia.  One “new plant” Native Americans shared with the “civilized Colonists” was pennyroyal or “squaw mint”.  Pennyroyal’s properties as an emmenagogue were mentioned throughout the ancient texts, but were one of the hundreds of plants “lost in translation”.

With an increasingly heavy and merciless hand over the fertility and sex lives of those under its power, the Church sought to extinguish the botanical excitement.  Not surprisingly, information on contraceptives, and abortifacients, continued to be downplayed, or completely removed during translation, and is one theory proposed why the texts from the Renaissance are sparse on medicinal plants for contraception.  Another theory speculates that as university education began, the knowledge of plants for these purposes was relegated to “commoners”- midwives and uneducated women specifically.  Reliance on word of mouth, from woman to woman, mother to daughter, to hand down this valuable knowledge led to a steady decline of information passed on to subsequent generations.

Although medical texts from the Renaissance into the early 18th century included scant information on how to actively avoid conception, they nonetheless included lists of plants that women, who wished to conceive, should avoid eating, drinking or even touching.  This roundabout way of including contraceptive information could not have been lost on a woman searching for it.
Throughout the 17th and 18th centuries, knowledge of contraceptive plants and substances continued to decline.  The gynecology and obstetrics authority often cited in this time period, Francis Mauriceau, would not include any information on contraceptives.  But he also failed to list plants and drugs that a pregnant woman should avoid to prevent unintended miscarriages.

The birth control movement began to flourish in America beginning in the 19th century with new contraceptive devices.  Modern manufactured diaphragms, spermicidal jellies, and douches were easily available.  Coitus interruptus was becoming more popular in the mid-1800’s, though now physicians rallied to quash it by condemning the practice as, again, immoral, and causing “general debility of brain and brawn” in men.

Stem pessaries (think large, blunt roofing nail!), both intracervical and intrauterine, gained increased use in America throughout the 19th century.  An IUD “craze” of sorts late in that century marketed stem pessaries made from soft and hard rubber, metal, ivory and – ouch - glass!  They could be purchased at drug stores or by mail order, could be self-inserted, easily removed or left in place, and could be used in “secrecy”.  These first intrauterine devices were marketed as supports for a prolapsed uterus, or to correct a “malpositioned” uterus, a diagnosis erroneously believed by male physicians to be a common ailment suffered by many women, thus causing little suspicion directed toward purchasers. Regardless of their supposed purpose, their contraceptive benefit was not overlooked, especially used in partnership with the plentiful douches then available.

Douches and vaginal suppositories regained popularity as the birth control method for most women from the 19th century through the mid-20th century.  However, the historically effective natural plant and herbal concoctions began to be substituted by new, “improved” commercial antiseptics and chemicals.  The syringes or applicators for the douches now came in all sizes, shapes, and with attachments for various other handy household uses, including a sprayer for houseplants.

And where were condoms?  The condom made its debut in 17th century Europe, but not as a contraceptive device.  It was used as a barrier against syphilis while visiting brothels.  These early condoms, sewed from animal intestines and fish membranes, were designed to be used, washed, dried, and used again, and again.  By the mid-1800’s, American males had their choice of condoms made from animal intestines, India Rubber or silk.  They were less expensive, though not free from defects.  In puritanical America, condoms continued to be associated by many with prostitution and illicit sex, but in the beds of “respectable” married couples condom use began to gain popularity as their contraceptive benefits were recognized.

In the late 19th century, sexual pleasure began to be publicly defined as possibly separate from just procreation. The increased availability of contraceptive information and devices fueled the moral outrage of a vocal minority that would rise to a fever pitch.  “Pious” Anthony Comstock, and his ilk, viewed birth control as obscene and dangerous to moral integrity, the same as pornography. The Comstock Law, enacted in 1873, outlawed the distribution of obscene materials and information through the U.S. mails, including contraceptive devices and information.  Control over fertility was forcibly and legally taken out of women’s hands, again, as it had centuries before.  Contraceptive information languished underground into the middle of the 20th century, but this time, vital information in the ancient texts truly faded away.
In Part Three, as the 20th century dawns, do modern women gain control of their fertility, and if so, at what cost?

Bay Laurel (Laurus nobilis) was named Herb of the Year 2009 by the International Herb Association for its multiplicity of culinary and medicinal uses. Considered sacred by the Greeks and Romans; laurel leaves and wreaths were adorned on temples and houses for protection. “Wearing one’s laurels” comes from the Roman tradition of crowning a person with a laurel wreath as a great honor. This association continues today with the honors “Poet Laureate” and “Baccalaureate” bestowed on poets and graduates respectively.

Bay Laurel can be grown in a pot and then brought indoors during the winter to avoid frost and harsh winds. Picking bay in the wild is not recommended as there are many species that are poisonous. The California Bay Laurel has an aroma similar to Laurus nobilis, but it is quite bitter and cooking it can cause irritation. It is usually easier to purchase bay leaves at your local health food store. They are fresher than the supermarket and very inexpensive.

Bay Laurel’s culinary history is extensive. It has been a vital herb in Mediterranean cuisine for thousands of years. It is added to sauces, marinades, soups, and meat and seafood recipes. It has a pleasant, balsamic flavor so it combines well with both sweet and savory dishes. One of the most common ways to add bay’s subtle spicy accent is to put it in a Bouquet Garni, a bundle of herbs tied to together and simmered in soups, stews, sauces and ragouts.

The traditional French Bouquet Garni (boh-kay-gar-nee) combines bay leaf, thyme, and parsley. The herbs can be fresh or dried and tied together with a string, placed in a muslin or cheesecloth bag, or in a special tea-like infuser and added to a dish at the beginning to allow the flavors to meld. The herbs are removed just before serving. Any combination of herbs can make a Bouquet Garni depending on your preference and the dish you are concocting. Other herbs often found in the bouquet are oregano, chervil, tarragon, dill, basil, rosemary, savory and peppercorns.