Nuts and seeds

“Semi-contract = Dysphania ambrosioides (wormseed, epazote). The name probably comes from the old drug name "semen contra" (worm seed), unconfirmed.”

“Chemistry: fresh seeds hold about 0.6 to 3% caffeine plus some theobromine (sources differ).”

“Pruimen, stroop, lijnzaad. Soaked prunes in the morning, stroop on the roggebrood, a spoon of lijnzaad in the pap, always with a big glass of water. Oral tradition in the Peel, no written source found (Blankaart 1698 has linseed only as a poultice). Gentle. Whole lijnzaad without water makes it worse. And regelmaat, fibre, fluids and a walk.”

“Oostrum, the Peel's own Maria. A farmer weeding flax found a wooden Mary in May 1350: Onze Lieve Vrouw Behoudenis der Kranken. Six kilometres from Overloon.”

“The toko soup pack. A bag of dried roots, dates and seeds for one pot. Liang teaches people to read it: the red dates, goji, lotus seed, fox nut and Chinese yam are food, the roots and barks are herbs. Anyone on medicine, pregnant or breastfeeding, or in an Always-Refer group asks the pharmacist first. Buy from a trusted shop. One line: star anise tea is never for babies.”

“Add-ins the tradition uses: Chinese yam in small cubes, lotus seeds, or adzuki beans (soaked first), cooked along with the rice. Job's tears with barley and adzuki for damp weather.”

“Seeds of the carrot family. The carrot family is one of the largest groups on attari shelves. Families buy seeds such as fennel, anise and cumin for the kitchen and the household, and fennel and aniseed are among the foods mothers take after birth. Breastfeeding mothers ask the midwife or pharmacist before herbal teas.”

“The seeds that swell. Quince seed, khakshir, basil seed (tokhm-e sharbati). Summer drinks and the tradition's gel for a cough. Kept apart in time from medicines.”

“The household. A few seeds after the meal, from a little box on the table, in many Indian homes with cardamom and rock sugar. Fresher breath, and a calm belly, the household says.”

“If she likes, a little coconut or sesame oil swished in the mouth for a few minutes, spat into the bin, the mouth rinsed. Adults only.”

“What the old people say, without a book. "Luk ot semi nedug", onion against seven ailments, and "Luk da bania vse ispraviat", onion and the banya will put everything right. Nicolai says these only as "what the old people say", never as Dal's.”

“Autumn. Lingonberries and cranberries, rosehips after the first frost, cedar nuts. Cedar nuts are the seeds of the Siberian pine, which the Russians call cedar: whole villages go out to knock the cones down and roast them, and the nuts are cracked between the teeth all winter. Its resin, zhivitsa, from the word for life, is chewed and valued for wounds in Siberian folk use. One line: nut allergy, and sometimes pine nuts leave a bitter, metallic taste for days that passes by itself.”

“Herbs and seeds for the mother beyond food amounts: the midwife, the GP or the pharmacist first.”

“The attar. In the market there is the attar's shop, sacks and jars of dried plants, seeds, resins and spices. In one study of a district near Khartoum a quarter of the medicinal plants people used were bought in the market, and the rest gathered wild or grown. Her grandmother sent her to the attar for helba, karkade, black seed and coffee beans. "The attar knows everyone's business. He sells seeds and gossip in the same paper."”

“Negative seeds (laziness, dishonesty, cutting corners) also produce a harvest - just one you don't want.”

“Spring - The time of opportunity, new beginnings, planting seeds. Spring doesn't last forever. When opportunity comes, PLANT. Don't hesitate, don't overthink. "What you plant in the spring, you harvest in the fall."”

“Fascia is not just connective tissue. It is a body-wide, liquid-crystalline, semi-conductive communication network. It connects every cell, every organ, every muscle from head to toe in one unbroken web. Your tongue is connected to your toes through fascia. When fascia is hydrated and mobile, it conducts electricity, transmits mechanical signals, and allows fluid to flow. When it dehydrates, thickens, or adheres - everything downstream suffers.”