In spring we celebrate the dawn of life in the cycle of the year. Fresh, green leaves emerge to offer nourishment and the promise of new life. Outside are the gifts of lush, green, mineral-rich leaves decorating the earth and offering a plentiful herbal harvest.
The Earth is emerging from the dark winter months, witnessing the re-emergence of the sunshine and light as we approach the point in the year when day and night are equal, the Spring Equinox. Feelings of hope and excitement and a rise in energy can be felt at this time. Generally, people are happier and more excitable during the spring months – we have a spring in our step – mirroring the new growth that’s occurring in Nature.
The energy of the new growth spring leaf is full of vitality. The verdant, fertile earth once again becomes clothed in wonderful green vegetation. We start to feel enlivened.
The new growth leaves are particularly useful for the cleansing needed in the spring months. They contain all of the bursting fresh energy of life, filled with minerals and various phytonutrients. Leaves picked at this time are rich with medicine for the lymph, urinary system and for remineralising, cleansing and strengthening the body.
So called superfoods have flooded the market place with exotic grains and fruits selling for high profits. Superfood is a marketing term for food with supposed health benefits as a result of some part of its nutritional analysis or its overall nutrient density. Leafy spring greens are about as nutrient dense as you can find, packed with the molecule chlorophyll. They have the added benefits of being in your gardens and parks: no air miles used to get to you! They are free and offer a chance to get outside with friends and family and get creative with Mother Nature’s bounty.
Chlorophyll is the pigment which gives plants their green colour and is found in most plants and algae. Chlorophyll facilitates the process of photosynthesis, allowing energy creation from the absorption of light. Chlorophyll is green because it absorbs all the colours in the light spectrum except green which it reflects. The chlorophyll molecule closely resembles haem, the pigment that combines with protein to form haemoglobin in human blood. Haemoglobin is present in the blood cells and carries oxygen to the tissues making the production of energy and life possible. When chlorophyll is consumed it increases oxygen transportation within the body thus aiding optimum health and vitality.
Vinegar, from the French vin aigre, meaning ‘sour wine’, can be made from almost any fermentable carbohydrate source, including wine, apples, pears, grapes, berries, maple syrup, potatoes and malt, amongst others. We use apple cider vinegar to preserve and extract our herbal nutrients.
Raw apple cider vinegar has been shown to have many healthful positive qualities including:
The use of vinegar to promote immunity, fight infections and to treat other acute conditions dates back to Hippocrates (460-377 BCE, the father of modern medicine), who recommended vinegar preparations for a host of ailments including internally for respiratory conditions and externally for cleaning ulcerations and for the treatment of sores.
Preserving fresh green herbs in vinegar is an easy way to capture their nourishing goodness. Apple cider vinegar has been used as a health-giving agent for centuries and is an exceptionally good medium for extracting these valuable minerals from the lush green spring leaves. There are many healing powers of vinegar. It helps lower cholesterol, improve skin tone, moderate high blood pressure, prevent or counter osteoporosis and improve metabolic functioning. Herbs and vinegar make a superb combination: the healing and nutritional properties of vinegar married to the aromatic and health-protecting effects of the herbs.
After winter’s lack of light and the more sedentary inclination we feel during colder months, we can be depleted of essential vitamins and minerals. As the winter months draw to a close, a spring vinegar can capture the minerals that are abundant in virulent new sprouting spring leaves. Making your vinegar at this time of year marks the start of new endeavours and renewed enthusiasm as spring gets underway.
Try a tablespoon of herbal vinegar in a drink of warm water every morning to start the day hydrated with a mineral supplement; you can add molasses to sweeten the drink and give you added iron. You can pour your vinegar over beans or grains, add to oil and mustard to make a delicious salad dressing or use it straight to season stir fries and soups. Regular use boosts the nutrient-level of any diet with very little effort and it offers you an easy way to keep your calcium and mineral levels at an optimum.
Osteoporosis, meaning porous bone, is a common disease (it occurs in 1 in 3 women and 1 in 5 men) in which the density and quality of bone are reduced. As bones become more porous and fragile, the risk of fracture is greatly increased. The loss of bone occurs silently and progressively. Often there are no symptoms until the first fracture occurs. Our bones are living tissue and constantly changing. From the moment of birth until young adulthood, bones are developing and strengthening. Our bones are at their peak bone mass or most dense in our early 20s. As we age some of our bone cells begin to dissolve bone matrix (resorption), while new bone cells deposit osteoid (formation). This process is known as remodelling. For people with osteoporosis, bone loss outpaces the growth of new bone. Bones become porous, brittle and prone to fracture.
By ensuring a nutritious diet with plenty of minerals and adequate calcium we can go a long way to preventing osteoporosis.
Adding vinegar to your food helps to build bones because it makes the minerals from the vegetables you eat more readily available for your body to metabolise. A spoonful of vinegar on your broccoli, kale or dandelion greens increases the calcium you get from these vegetables. Taking two tablespoons daily is a therapeutic dose.
You will need:
A clean jam jar
Foraged spring greens
Organic apple cider vinegar
A label
Method: Firstly harvest your lush, mineral rich, spring greens; dandelion leaves (Taraxacum officinale), cleavers (Galium aparine) and nettle (Urtica spp.) are great ones to start with. Dandelion leaves are a wonderful kidney support as a potassium-rich diuretic. Cleavers, also known as ‘sticky willy’ and ‘goose-grass’, is a celebrated lymphatic cleanser. Nettle tips are a rich source of iron and also have anti-histamine properties; great as a preventative before the hayfever season gets underway.
You can add many other greens as long as you are familiar with the plants and confident with identifying them. You might want to add ramsons/wild garlic (Allium ursinum), ground ivy (Glechoma hederacea) or garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata) which all have wonderful aromatic flavour as well as being super nutrient dense. Next chop the leaves finely and fill a jar that has a plastic lid (metal lids can be corroded by the acidic vinegar). Cover the leaves with your vinegar and leave for two weeks before straining, bottling and labelling (put on the date, and where harvested from as well as what is in it).

Karen Lawton, Fiona Heckels and Belle Benfield are the Seed SistAs, three sensory herbalists who have a passion for educating others about plant medicine. Their mission is to connect people with their local plants promoting empowerment, autonomy, freedom and diversity in health care.
Karen and Fiona are medically trained herbalists who met at university and have worked together ever since. They combine their clinical experience with ritual, art and creativity to teach herbal medicine in a unique, inspiring and accessible style, led by the plants themselves. https://seedsistas.co.uk