Valerian
Valeriana officinalis
---Flavor Profile and Uses
---Identification
---Harvesting Instructions
- Rather unpleasant, earthy taste and stinky smell, most often taken as a tincture or paired with other herbs and sweetened when taken as a tea
- Roots are an effective sedative for most people (a small % of people find it stimulating instead)
- Reduces symptoms of anxiety and depression and helps people fall asleep
---Identification
- Plants start flowering during their second year of growth and generally only live for three to five years before their life force wanes and they die
- Had deeply divided, pinnate leaves emanating from a basal rosette during the first year of growth and forms multiple erect flowering stalks up to 6' tall in subsequent years
- Flowers are ray shaped and range from pure white to punk on multiple umbrella-shaped inflorescence and have a distinct smell that people either love or hate
- Rhizomes resemble a small rage mop in their appearance from the numerous and thin white rootlets branching off of the main rhizome
- Roots have a strong, earthy, stinky smell that gets stronger as they dry
- Thrives in partial shade but can tolerate growing in full sun in cooler climates
- Loves fertile, moist, nitrogen-rich soil (drought conditions stunt growth)
---Harvesting Instructions
- The most potent roots are harvested in early spring of the second or third year of growth, before the plant starts putting energy into leaves, stalks, and flowers
- Loosen the soil around the dead plant then dig by hand with a spade, fork, or shovel – carefully work the root out of the ground, maintaining as much of it as possible without breakage
- Cut up and wash rootlets with a scrub brush, then dry in a single layer on a rack or tincture fresh
Carpenter, Jeff, and Carpenter, Melanie. The Organic Medicinal Herb Farmer. Chelsea Green Publishing, 2015.