Echinacea (pronounced 'ekin-nay-sia') is an herb that’s becoming very popular across the Western world. It’s not new on the herbal or medicinal scene by any means, in fact, the Native Americans used echinacea for hundreds of years before Europeans arrived on their shores and it’s just as effective ...

Shallots are an extremely well recognised part of folk medicine native to Asia as well as being a versatile ingredient. They are closely related to onions as you've probably guessed, and share some similarities with garlic. If you love onions and would never dare to pick up a shallot, let me see if ...

Lion's mane mushroom, or the bearded hedgehog, is a medicinal, parasitic fungus found in North America, China, Japan and Europe. With the most common species being Hericium erinaceus, this mushroom comes under the 'nootropic' (i.e., smart drug and cognitive accelerator) group of foods having been ...

Potentially the most powerful member of the fungi kingdom, the chaga mushroom or 'Inonotus obliquus', contains possibly the greatest medicinal properties of all herbs. It's a parasitic but also symbiotic fungus that grows primarily on birch trees in cool climates and has been used for its profound ...

Cordyceps (caterpillar fungus) is a medicinal mushroom that is a wild fungus and has been used in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) for over 5,000 years. There are numerous species of cordyceps, however the most researched and popular is Ophiocordyceps sinensis. It is found at high altitudes of ...

Edamame beans are young, immature soybeans (also known as 'Glycine max') that are harvested prior to the bean's natural hardening process. These beans have a green colour differing from the soybean's light brown. The bean is believed to have been domesticated from its wild relative, 'Glycine soja', ...

Milk thistle seeds are one of nature's most powerful detoxifiers. All parts of the Silybum marianum plant are able to be used, however the seeds are the most medicinally valuable, having been used as a herbal remedy for liver disorders for over 2,000 years. The name 'milk thistle' comes from the ...

Evolution has programmed us to be desirous of sweet flavours, however the knowledge of the host of detrimental effects of excessive sugar intake is now part of mainstream consciousness. Such increased awareness has lead to a saturated market of ‘sugar alternatives’, which unfortunately, are ...

The sociable South American tradition of passing around a gourd of Yerba (‘herb’ in Spanish) mate leaves soaked in warm water has now developed into a health craze in the Western world. With the botanical name 'Ilex paraguariensis' a member of the holly family, Yerba mate is known for its ...

With no agreed place of origin, a multitude of myths from a host of cultures surrounding their uses as signs of social hierarchy through to symbols of immortality and their ambiguous position in nature in which they are considered more closely related to humans than plants – the prehistoric ...