Spring is here again and I couldn't be happier. While winter is a time for study and reflection, spring is the season to get back into all the outdoor activities I love. And, just as importantly, the time that I gather the herbs that I use all year long. About a month ago was the great hawthorn flower harvest which I failed to register here on Hive. Now that the roses are blooming I am out there collecting every day, making promotional content for my online store - and today - sitting down to write about why I find roses to be such a useful herb.
If you were to open up an herbalism book most tend to say that roses' main properties lie in their aroma. They have been used in perfumes for centuries. And while the scent of roses tends to remind people of their grandmother's, to me the scent of roses is much more complex. Yes, roses are beloved by elderly ladies, but it is also the go to rose for mother's day and often gifted to young women as signs of romantic love.
Beyond the scent and symbolism, roses have an important role to play in herbalism. They are often listed as digestive herbs in the books that I own. I have also seen the word "emmenagogue" ascribed to rose. According to Wikipedia "Emmenagogues (also spelled emmenagogs) are herbs which stimulate blood flow in the pelvic area and uterus; some stimulate menstruation."
Also, roses have a sweet flavor and add a pleasant smell to teas. I like to combine roses with other, bitter, emmenagogues when I want my period to start such as mugwort. And rose is a nice addition to spicier herbs like ginger to support the cramps I often have on my bleeding days.
The ritual of collecting roses is also medicinal. I try my best to be present as I pick the flowers. No podcasts, no phone (except to take these grainy pictures). Just me and the roses. The best time to harvest roses is mid morning, before the sun is at it's height in the sky but after the dew has dried. I collect petals from the already open flowers, leaving the center of the flower for the bees.
I also collect rose buds that are just barely open, especially the red and pink roses for my online store. The roses buds are just as useful in medicine making but, their beauty makes them very desired for crafts and rituals of all kinds. In so many ways the medicine of rose and the mysticism associated with the flower overlap. The history of use in love potions, the support for women of all ages from menstruating teens to mothers to grandmas is so potent that I myself find it hard to separate the magic from the medicine.
So, I harness them both. In self love spells and in the steeping of oils.