The Boreal Herbal: Wild Food and Medicine Plants of the North – Beverley Gray

What others are saying about the Boreal Herbal:

“..The Boreal Herbal is more – it’s a masterpiece. This book has it all” Is sure to become the definitive herbal for backyard locavores in many countries. This Boreal Herbal has enormous “wow” factor. It’s the motherload of plant books..”

– Alive magazine, December 2011 reviewed by Helene Meurer

“…both a practical guidebook and wonderful celebration of the flora of our northern forests. Let it heal your wounds, fill your stomach and inspire in all of us an ever greater appreciation of the extraordinary place we call home.”

– Wade Davis, Ph.D, ethnobotanist, Explorer in Residence for National Geographic

– Susun S. Weed, herbalist, author of the Wise Woman Herbal series

“…a treasure chest of information about the world’s largest ecosystem. When you open it, you are dazzled by its beauty, which seems to be inspired by the northern lights. On closer examination you see jewels of information on edible and medicinal plants that is valuable to all… The Boreal Herbal goes way beyond a list of uses for herbal enthusiasts, to an art form that just might redefine herbals into the future.”

– Terry Willard, CIH, PhD, Clinical Herbalist

The Boreal Herbal: Wild Food and Medicine Plants of the North is an indispensable guide to identifying and using northern North American (and in many cases European and Asian) plants for food and medicine.

Whether you’re hiking in remote areas or gardening in your backyard, this easy-to-use handbook will help you recognize and use fifty-five common wild plants that have extraordinary healing properties.

With The Boreal Herbal by your side you will learn how to soothe aches and pains with willow, staunch a bleeding wound with yarrow, treat a urinary-tract infection using bearberry, and create a delicate and moisturizing wild-rose skin cream.

Author Beverley Gray has also included dozens of healthy and delicious recipes, including Wild-Weed Spanakopita, Dandelion Wine, and Cranberry-Mint Muffins.

The Boreal Herbal features:

• Profiles of 55 herbs, berries and trees found in the northern boreal forest: including information on their habitat, harvest times, medicinal applications, as well as food uses, cosmetic uses, and spiritual uses
  
• Full-colour photographs and botanical illustrations of each plant profiled in the book (and similar-looking plants) for easy identification
  
• Instruction on how to gather and preserve wild plants
  
• More than 200 recipes: teas, tinctures, powders, flower essences, topical treatments, beverages, jams and jellies, baked goods, soups, entrées, and much more
  
• Safety tips for harvesting and using edible and medicinal wild plants, including information on calculating dosage and plant-specific cautions
  
• A resource section for people interested in starting up a non-timber forest-products business
  
• Botanical and medicinal glossaries, an index, and handy reference charts listing the plants’ medicinal actions and vitamin contents

Author Beverley Gray is a boreal herbalist, aromatherapist, natural-health practitioner, journalist, and an award-winning natural health-product formulator. She owns the Aroma Borealis Herb Shop in Whitehorse, Yukon.

The Boreal Herbal is Co-published by Canadian Circumpolar Institute Press (CCI Press) and Aroma Borealis Press. ISBN 978-0-9868271-0-5