I just love roses! All roses, wild and cultivated (as long as they’re organically grown) are medicinal. High in vitamin C, many people harvest and use the hips (fruits) of roses in the Fall and Winter months to add to teas and syrups during Cold and Flu Season. But today, I want to talk about the flowers, which are gorgeous and abundant this time of year.
Rose petals have been used for menstrual cramps, menopausal discomforts, sore throats, and diarrhea. But my favorite way to use rose is for the spirit-I believe this is where the flowers really shine. Just being amongst the roses, inhaling their sweet aroma (not all roses have a scent, but the essence is still present) harvesting them, having them around the home can be enough to uplift the mind and open the senses. Roses are an excellent heart-opener, and can help us cope with grief, sadness, anxiety, tension. It doesn’t take these things away, but uplifts the mind and heart on an energetic level, making it easier to process our emotions. We all know rose to be a symbol of love and romance. This may have to do with the beauty and heart-centered uplifting qualities, and less to do with an aphrodisiac effect. But then, anything can be an aphrodisiac, and we are more likely to feel amorous if we are open-hearted and uplifted, so if it works, then it is.
The yellow beauties pictured here are some kind of vintage variety-I can’t remember the name-but they smell absolutely amazing! This week they went into some brandy and local honey along with a few vanilla beans, for a delicious Vanilla-Rose Elixir. It will be ready mid-August, so keep an eye out.
If you have any way to be with roses this month, then please do so-you’ll be glad you did! Any roses-Wild ones are the best medicinally in my opinion, but all roses help to uplift the spirit, whether you sit with them, smell them, make teas or tinctures with them, or use them in bath and body products. Indulge yourself with the magick and medicine of roses-you deserve it!
