Hawthorne Berries.

Herbal Medicine. The people's medicine. Hawthorne Berries.

Autumn is the time to collect hawthorne berries. They grow wild and are plentiful around the Wanaka area. Just remember to not collect them from the roadside. This humble berry is one of the oldest know medicinal plants. Used by native Americans for a heart tonic and gastrointestinal problems. Also recored in ancient Greece by physician Dioscarides in the 1st Century AD as a remedy for heart problems. It is also very popular in Chinese medicine.

It is a antioxidant powerhouse. Full of polyphenols. High in Vitamin C and magnesium. Best know for heart health and blood pressure. Also great for cholesterol and preventing the build up of plaque in the capillaries. As well as strengthening them and improving circulation. Improving immunity. Reduces inflammation and histamine production, (useful for allergies ). Reduces anxiety. Also great for digestion and helping improve bile and gastric secretions.

I collect them and dry them. My preferred method with hawthorne berries is to put them in apple cider vinegar. Then later mix them with elderberries and rosehips as a winter tonic to drink ( first thing in the morning, 1 -2 tablespoons added to water, on an empty stomach), or use in salad dressing. I love to put a teaspoon into herbal tea. But they can be made into a powered form to add to smoothies. Also can be made into a tincture. Make it yourself or if not I sell the teas and the vinegar here at Massage in Wanaka under my label Wild at Heart in Wanaka.