How many of you are growing a garden this year? How many of you have flowers in your garden? How about medicinal flowers?
We started our garden out with just things that could be eaten. It was a way to help cut down the food cost and to know the story of where our food was coming from. Which growing methods were used, where the seeds came from, the type of soil that they were growing in.
Equally important as our vegetable garden though are our medicinals that we grow as well. It's handy to also know where our medicine comes from as well.
Today we thought we would share a bit about a favorite medicinal flower that we are growing here on the farm. Bachelor Buttons also known as cornflowers are used in many of our teas but that isn't there limitation. Join us as we go over their culinary and medicinal uses!
Bachelor Buttons come in many different colors from this brilliant blue, to white, pink, purple and in between. We use them often because they add a lovely pop of color to our teas. They are generally flavorless and so they don't affect the flavor of our tea blends when adding color. They are super easy to grow! They aren't only beautiful but very useful as well for different culinary and medicinal uses.
Some of the other names that bachelor buttons are called are: cornflowers, blue poppies, blue bonnet, and blue cap. Known in latin as Centaurea Cyanus.
Culinary Uses for Bachelor Buttons
They add a great pop of color when used fresh in salads. When fresh or dried the petals make great decorations for cakes, cupcakes, other dessert dishes. Add them to a sugar for a rim sugar for drinks. They are perfect for adding color to loose leaf tea blends, how about a special coffee blend?
Bachelor buttons are high calcium, absorbic acid, folate and mineral salts. They are also high in antioxidants and tannins as well as anti inflammatory.
Medicinal Uses for Bachelor Buttons
Due to their anti-inflammatory property they are good to use in a mouth rinse, they also help with bleeding and sore gums. They also help the digestive system with stomach ulcers and constipation. UTI infections and liver detoxification are also helped by bachelor buttons.
Parts of the Bachelor Button to Use
The most used part if the flowering part of the plant. The stem and the leaves are also useful. The juice in the stem of the flower is useful to stop bleeding and as a mouth rinse. The inside of the stem is also useful for polstice for aching and sore muscles and may even be used in open wounds for bleeding unlike arnica.
Grab Your FREE Journal Pages by Clicking Here
Record all these wonderful bachelor button facts on our free Materia Medica & Herb Garden Journal pages. There is a place for drawing or storing a picture or piece of the plant you are studying. Locations for writing down their common names and scientific names. Listing the properties of the plant, recording recipes you make with them, how to grow them, when to plant them and much, much more!
Plantain & Bachelor Button Wound Salve
For use on cuts, wounds and scrapes.
Makes approx. 6.5 oz (8- 1 oz tins, 3 -2 oz tins)
3/4 Cup Olive Oil 1/4 c + 1 tsp bees wax pellets
1/4 c. dried Organic Plantain
1/4 c. dried Organic Bachelor Buttons
1.) Add olive oil and plantain to double boiler. Make sure that the olive oil throughly covers the plantain leaves & bachelor buttons, mixing if necessary. Simmer in double boiler 2-5 hours.
2.) When oil is done infusing, strain using an unbleached cheese cloth or French Press.
3.) Add infused oil to clean double boiler along with bees wax. Melt on medium high heat until bees wax is throughly melted. Stir to insure even distribution using a wooden skewer or non metal tool reserved for working with bees wax.
4.) Pour hot salve into metal or heat resistant glass containers. Allow to cool.
5.)Place lids on cooled salve and label with ingredients as well as intended use.
Colorful Spring Salad
4-6 Cups Mixed Spring Greens
1 carrot, peeled and sliced into rounds
1/2 cup fresh Bachelor Button Flowers
4-6 radishes, sliced
1/2 cup broccoli cut into bite size pieces
Mix all ingredients together into a salad bowel. Drizzle with organic olive oil, apple cider vinegar, salt, pepper & enjoy! This is our nightly salad in the spring down on the farm. Feel free to add other veggies that you love as well!
Dive in more with our video on Bachelor Buttons
Are you getting weekly tips on all things herbal?
Growing, creating, recipes, herbal medicine tips, and more every week right to your inbox (including sales on herbal goodness!) Make sure you grab it here!
We hate SPAM. We will never sell your information, for any reason.
