The Quality of Herbs
The quality and excellence of herbal ingredients is seldom noticed in factories and stores where they are formulated and sold. There are, however, big differences in the nature of ingredients, the methods used to harvest them, the methods used to preserve them and lengths of time they will remain medically effective. The differences which this grading expects to make obvious to the consumer is that the potency - effectiveness of herbal remedies depends on how the herbs are collected and prepared for use by you and me. In this essay I am going to try to make this apparent.
The lowest grade of herbs is labeled: c/s. "c/s" is shorthand for "cut and sifted". It tells you that these herbs are collected by driving into the field of herb a big machine which is a combination of a mowing machine, a chopping up machine and a large laundry-drying-machine. Th herb is mowed down then chopped into small pieces and put into the drying machine where it is heated and dried like your laundry is dried. Then it is sifted to take out the big pieces like stems and weed seeds. After this process it is powdery enough to put in capsules and thence into the jars which you buy. The "c/s" quality depends upon: 1) What time of day the herb is cut [This makes a BIG difference.] , 2) How hot the drier is set [Hotter driers evaporate the essential oils quickly but do the job faster.] , 3) How many 'weeds' are in the field (These are adulterants which reduce the amount of medicinal content of the end product.). These are all reasons why c/s herbs are the cheapest for corporations to buy for the maximum profit per pill.
When I was first learning herbalism, c/s peppermint herb was selling for 70 cents a pound. Remember this price!
The second category is 'hand processed'. This means that the herb was picked by hand in the field. and hung somewhere to dry the same way tobacco is dried in barns. One of he benefits here is NO WEEDS. One of the difficulties here is the amount of light in the drying room: too much light destroys the quality of the herb and bleaches the color from bright green to dull green. Bright green is much better for most herbs. One fourth generation herbalist I know of, John Warner of Crossville TN, buys his herbs from people only if they are bright green. These herbs can be graded and priced at time of purchase. Most of these herbs are grown and dried by farner's wives for extra income. Large crops are being grown also by some farmers who make their living growing medicinal herbs.`[See: The Herbal Connection on the internet.]
When I was a beginner, peppermint processed this way generally sold for $1.40 a pound wholesale. Twice what c/s was selling for.
The third category is also hand processed but is seldom found in the market place. This grade is very carefully picked and the leaves laid out on trays and dried delicately. I had opportunity to open a big box of peppermint leaves prepared this way in Germany and the aroma jumped out of the box into my nose. The leaves were still whole and the essential oils were all there in my nose.
When I was a beginner, the price for this kind of peppermint was $2.10 - three times the price of c/s. This stuff never gets into capsules and onto the general market. You need to be lucky to find it at all!
Then there is the whole business of organic and non-organic. Organic herbs have no chemicals put on them to poison the soil and make the herbs more voluminous. Sick people do not need more poisons in their bodies from non-organic herbs. The price here is about 50% more for 'organic' than non-organic. I collect most of my medicinals in wild places and prepare them myself. This way I can control what I feed my clients.
The best way I know of to preserve herbs is rarely used: putting them in honey within half an hour (or less) of picking them. This way extracts the essences of the herb within 3 days and preserves them longer than any other method. I have used honeysuckle flowers that were preserved in honey for four years and they still took down fevers in 20 minutes. Apparently the ancient Egyptians used the method 6,000 years ago. Somebody else around Seattle WA also does it too.
The very best way of using herbs is fresh cut right at time of use. It is my opinion that fresh cut is ten times stronger than dried herbs. This seems true because the older herbals use the same weight of herbs fresh or dried and the fresh herbs are 90% water but still alive and vital. The dried herbs have been dead for a year or so. Fresh is best.
That brings us to the question of how long herbs can last after being dried. Most herbs last about two years if they are stored in a cool, dark place. Some, like Skullcap, only last for 6 months after harvesting. Some roots last more than 2 years. Knowing this is vital to an herbalist. Lemon Balm is useless to me dried, it looses its essential oils rapidly after being cut. I only use it fresh cut. Five hundred years ago, herbalists grew their herbs right outside the cottage door so they could have their medicines very, very fresh.
Frontier Herbs in Iowa is the largest retail herb business in U.S. and marks their herbs as c/s if they are c/s or nothing if they are not c/s and marks them OG if they are organically grown. The fancy stuff, they may not sell at all.
The culinary herbs - parsley, sage rosemary and thyme, etc. - are all very old time medicinals from ancient Egypt and many of these are now being sold fresh in markets. Unfortunately, most of the markets have no idea of their medicinal use and sell them for flavoring 'gourmet' foods. They are still medicinal anyway, whether anyone knows it or not. These are often grown in the 'kitchen garden' and used daily in food, a very good way to stay healthy. ("An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" is an old herbalist saying!)