It’s been on my mind to have Michael Pilarski on the show for quite a while now, so when he dropped by the other day to see my garden, it seemed like the perfect time to invite him to be here.  I loved talking with Michael about his experience of both wildcrafting and farming, and his perspective about the benefits and drawbacks of both of those ways of working with the land.  And it was so much fun chatting with him about our love for herbal gatherings!

Michael also shared some fantastic tips on gathering arnica and making medicine with it, including his recipe for Arnica Liniment.  You can find the link to a beautifully illustrated recipe card for Michael’s liniment at: https://bit.ly/4daL0Z5

Arnica is an herb that belongs in everyone’s first aid kit! Here are two ways arnica’s medicinal gifts shine:

► To help speed recovery of bumps and bruises

► To reduce joint and muscle pain and swelling

To get all the details and hear more about gathering and working with arnica, be sure to tune in to the entire episode!

By the end of this episode, you’ll know:

► How working with wildcrafted herbs can sometimes be more sustainable than working with farmed herbs

► Which arnica species are medicinally active - and how to tell by looking at the plant

► Why Michael prefers using arnica liniment rather than arnica-infused oil

► Why medicine made with fresh arnica is better than dried - and why you should make your own!

► Harvesting tips for arnica

► and so much more…

For those of you who don’t know him, Michael Pilarski is an herb farmer, wildcrafter and educator with 50 years of experience in Washington State, Oregon, north Idaho and Northwest Montana.  He farms a diversity of medicinal and food plants in agroforestry/permaculture systems and has expertise in seed collecting, value-added products and propagation of native and non-native species. He has worked with over 1,000 species of plants.

Michael combines the science of herbs with the magic of herbs through his studies in plant spirit medicine. He has initiated and organized many herb gatherings including the Northwest Herbal Fair, the Montana Herb Gathering, and the Medicinal Herb Growing & Marketing Conference.

I’m thrilled to share our conversation with you today!

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Get full show notes and more information at: herbswithrosaleepodcast.com

For more behind-the-scenes of this podcast, follow @rosaleedelaforet on Instagram!

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On the podcast, we explore the many ways plants heal, as food, as medicine, and through nature connection. Each week, I focus on a single seasonal plant and share trusted herbal knowledge so that you can get the best results when using herbs for your health.

Learn more about Herbs with Rosalee at herbswithrosalee.com.

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Rosalee is an herbalist and author of the bestselling book Alchemy of Herbs: Transform Everyday Ingredients Into Foods & Remedies That Heal and co-author of the bestselling book Wild Remedies: How to Forage Healing Foods and Craft Your Own Herbal Medicine. She's a registered herbalist with the American Herbalists Guild and teaches many popular online courses. Read about how Rosalee went from having a terminal illness to being a bestselling author in her full story here.