TeaPot Stories

Yarrow Yarrow is a beautiful wildflower that both repels insect pests and attracts beneficial insects to the garden such as predatory wasps, ladybugs, butterflies and bees. Yarrow is known for its beautiful, intricate leaves and bright flowers and can be effectively used to combat soil erosion. Besides benefitting the garden, this herb can be used as an anti-inflammatory agent, a tonic, astringent, or can be used in a variety of other medical uses. Flowers can be used to make bitters and has been historically used to flavor beer. Due to its hardy nature, yarrow thrives just about anywhere in the garden and comes in a variety of colors, making it excellent for aesthetic and practical purposes in any garden.

Stinging Nettle

stinging nettle is considered a weed by most. Chemical secretions within this plant cause it to burn when handled, so exhibit caution. Despite its drawbacks, stinging nettles are used in a variety of medicines and remedies including gastrointestinal aid, BPH, increasing testosterone in bodybuilding, or as a treatment for rheumatism. The leaves are eaten by many types of caterpillars and will increase the amount of beneficial insects in the garden. Stinging nettles are a natural repellent to aphids and the roots contain anti-fungal properties. Nettle leaves can be cooked as a healthy green or dried and used in herbal teas (soaking in water and cooking eliminate the sting). This weed is extremely beneficial, though care must be taken around the stinging leaves. Nettle is also used for vitality, so if you are trying to slow down on caffein, nettle can give you that morning hit you need! 

Wormwood A strong, but pleasant smelling plant, wormwood is most famously used in absinthe, though can also be used to brew beer, wine, and in making bitters. This hardy bush contains chemicals that are the base of all standard malaria medications, but with wormwood no medication is necessary. It is a natural mosquito repellent, as well as a deterrent for moths, slugs, fleas, flies, and mice. Scattering wormwood around the perimeter of a garden acts as a natural fence to ward off unwanted visitors.

Marjoram/Oregano These perennial herbs are a great addition to nearly any garden. They are unobtrusive to other plants and will increase yields of beans, asparagus, chives, eggplants, pumpkin, squash or cucumbers amongst many others. As long as the light is not being blocked and there is plenty of room for root growth, most plants will thrive alongside both marjoram and oregano. An aromatic mixture of herbs such as mint, spearmint, oregano, lavender or lemon balm can fill any empty spaces in the garden, stifling weed growth.

That time in your life, as small as a grain of sand, when you become heavy with thoughts of past troubles and pain-you let go. When the smile on your face appears with no effort at the thought of moving forward with everything you want out of this lifetime. When your passion for poetry becomes so big, you forgive all subjects of pain, you forgive all metaphors that still cry, you forgive all apologies unmade by ‘you’. You continue. You continue to walk with your body forward, nothing but strength pulling from some infinity of a thing called, heart. You continue because you have to. Because you know no other way to keep on living. Everything you believe becomes vulnerable to expansion and depth. You change. You continuously transform. And you remember why. You remember the purpose of a breath.

Tonight's moon is a waxing crescent one. The word "crescent" comes from the Latin verb "to grow" and literally means "waxing" or "increasing". Over time, "crescent" has become to refer to either the waxing or waning shape of the moon. Because of its association with growth, the "crescent" became a symbol for fertility and fecundity e.g., Aphrodite/Venus is often depicted wearing a hair ornament in the shape of a crescent moon.

Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán