The Herb Farm Newsletter
Sage Sage ,by Lynn Kirkland
Herb of the Week December 12th 2008
Herb
of the Week for 12th December
By Lynn Kirkland
Sage Sage
Sage is known as the herb of wisdom and I am sure that including sage in
ones diet is a very wise thing to do.
It is a herb rich in antioxidants which protect the cells from damage.
It has calcium, Vitamin A, iron and potassium so it is little wonder it
has been revered over the centuries as a very beneficial herb.
Sage and onion stuffing for the turkey takes on a whole new meaning.
Italians, where sage grows so well, love to use sage in pasta sauces, fried
in butter or olive oil and as a flavouring in meat dishes.
Sage comes in quite a range of foliage colours ranging from green, purple,
silver and golden.
All the sages can be used for cooking with the purple sage being regarded
as the best variety for healing.
Sage is great as a gargle for sore throats, excellent for a tea for menopausal
women suffering from hot flushes and if a mother has weaned her baby but
the milk is still being produced it helps dry up the milk.
Rub your teeth with a leaf while in the garden to remove plaque and whiten
teeth.
What a clever little herb it is and not too little actually, as well established
sages in flower need about a meter square of space.
I have just cut back my spent purple flowers on a green sage bush and found
that little seedlings have germinated around the bush from the seeds produced
after the flowers.
Nature is wonderful indeed with this recycling system that works without
our input at all.
Sage plants are perennial and love hot sunny conditions in order to thrive.
