Below.... you can see the Osha growing in its preferred ecosystem. Sub alpine meadows...at 8000ft and higher. She grows where the bears roam...and aspen groves thrive! She tends to have a peculiar love for the mountian mycelium...and is hard to grow in one's own garden. Osha is a true wild one!
I was born in the Rocky Mountains in 1975...in a small town near the southern border of Utah and Arizona, called St George, Utah. As a young boy around the age of 7 or 8....we would immerse into the woods for weeks at time....camping and exploring the range of the Rockies ...that spreads from southern utah...all the way down to the tip of northern Phoenix, Arizona. This land was... and IS... my HOME...and I love the LIFE that lives here!!! The plant colonies that live in this region, in particular.....are very peculiar! Botanically, I feel it's one of the most magical spots on earth....to learn herbalism and just immerse with many wild species.
CLICK THE VIDEO BELOW---- to view one of our harvests on the mountain!
For this post..... I'll focus on one of these plants ....and it has many names! Osha(Ligusticum porteri) is the most common name...but there are many others. Chuchupate(bear medicine)..is one of my favorites! Ligusticum porteri is the species growing in our area of the Rockies.
Osha is FELT!!!! Just working with her is rewarding to the senses! Her smell alone....is uplifting! Powerful terpenes! I learned much about Osha from other herbalists. Two of my favorite are Stephen Harrod Buhner and Michael Moore. They both write about this plant...as if they love it beyond all the others. I testify...she's sacred! In their books, which i'll link below, they helped me to identify osha. I use osha almost daily. A few days break in between usage. I find that it keeps my lungs...cleared out...i can breathe so well! If i ever get sick with fever or flu...i just up my dose...and I'm never sick for too long. I've read buhner and moore calling it nature's penicillin.
Here's Buhner's book where he mentions Osha the most. He mentions it in most of his books...but this one really nails it! https://www.amazon.com/Sacred-Plant-Medicine-American-Herbalism/dp/1591430585/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1523969453&sr=8-1&keywords=buhner+sacred+plant+medicine&dpID=51SVGWs0epL&preST=SY291_BO1,204,203,200_QL40&dpSrc=srch
For Michael Moore, I would scoop this book: TONS OF OSHA info! https://www.amazon.com/Medicinal-Plants-Mountain-Michael-Moore/dp/0890134545/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1523970649&sr=1-1&keywords=michael+moore&dpID=41zQRC5Z0%252BL&preST=SY291_BO1,204,203,200_QL40&dpSrc=srch
These two authors...and their passion for osha...are soooo felt as you read their words!!!! THEY HAVE romantic relationship with this one....lol and i do too! Here's Michael Moore talking about osha:
When identifying osha....there are distinct indicators...and signatures. There are toxic and deadly plants like hemlock that look so much like osha...but smell very differently. Hemlock stinks horribly! Osha does not. There's also other indicators...that help distinguish osha from hemlock. altitude, smell, and red streaks..at the root crown. It's also hairy..and has....upturned hairs...at the root crown. The smell is huge though...hemlock smells..like a "dead mouse" whereas osha smells like spicy celery, or parsley. BE CAREFUL.... though...even advanced herbalists...mis label..the two. That is our disclaimer! She's worth the effort....I TESTIFY!
Osha is a VERY peculiar looking root...once washed off. Looks like an alien to me.
Here's more examples of the color of the stems. pinkish and up turned hairs!
We usually harvest just enough roots to cover our needs for a year or even two. We also store dried root in mason jars.
mmmmmm!!!! I can't express how good this smells!!!!!! magic medicine!!!!!
Once washed.....we tincture the fresh root in organic ethanol. We use 190 proof ethanol from grapes or cane sugar.
Cheers to growing our own food/medicine.... and "wild" harvesting our wild medicines! I hope this post...helps spark a bit of interest...and curiosity. CHEERS TO ALL OF OUR HEALTH!!!!
Thanks for viewing....and sharing this post fellow Steemians! We appreciate ALL OF YOU!!!!