Along with Elderberry, and Yarrow, Echinacea is one of my ultimate go-to for winter illness.

“Echinacea (echinacea angustifolia) is the prime remedy to help the body rid itself of microbial infections.  It is effective against both bacterial and viral attacks…It is especially useful for infections of the upper respiratory tract…In general it may be used widely and safely.”  David Hoffman “Holistic Herbal” p.197

The part of the plant used medicinally is the root. When using medicinal roots ideally the root needs to be a least two years old, three or four years is even better. I use a lot of echinacea during the winter, I don’t like to be without the tincture. I have planned and eagerly anticipated the time when I would be harvesting my own roots.  This year was the year!

These sweet little babies are two years old and had a great summer, they were big, thick and full of flowers.  When harvesting medicinal roots the best time is in the fall after a few frosty weeks, the energy of the plant is diverted down into the roots, making the medicinal properties richer. We have had a succession of cold nights and sparkly mornings and the forecast was calling for a hard freeze.  It would have been fine to harvest after the hard freeze, but I didn’t want to be digging in the cold and I wanted to make sure I could see the plants and only take the strongest and healthiest.
In my patch I picked about half of the biggest most healthy plants.  Healthy plants make good strong medicine. With a fork I gently lifted each plant with its root system intact.  They looked so beautiful.

The big roots were sliced in half and about half of the smaller roots broken off, the green foliage and flower heads were trimmed back. The smaller roots and about a third of the big root stalks were set aside in my foraging basket.
The remaining roots were tucked back into their original spots, a few were planted in a new patch. My goal is to have a continual supply of 2-3 and 4 year roots.  To do this I have to be very deliberate and thoughtful about how much I take, how much I re-plant and where.
And true to my nature and philosophy, all the greens and spent flower heads were laid right back from where they came.  They will compost in place, feeding the soil that fed them.
This is my harvest, they will dry out for a few days, the dirt brushed off and then they will be tinctured for six weeks. These beauties will help keep my family healthy throughout the winter. They are also going to go into a formula I am working on that will be an even more powerful ally against the cold and flu.

Keep watching, we will be launching a web store very soon where you can get my herbals, syrups, tinctures and soaps. We are so excited to be able to share the goodness with everyone.