Like a Solitary Flower: A guide to the medicine of Flower Essences

Pretty Little Things

Flowers are such magic. Not only are they stunning and indicators of when our earth is at the season of new beginnings, they contain a very special type of medicine. Just like each herb provides it’s own unique benefits, each type of flower has it’s own individual flower power that can be harnessed as medicine (and mind you, as long ago as 3000BC schools of herbal medicine existed in Egypt). Ideally, flower essences are used to treat emotional and mental imbalances before they manifest in the physical body. This article will share the notion of what flower essences are, what flower essences are made of, how they can benefit us, and how the essences are made. 

While flowers do provide us with medicine for our physical system via teas, tinctures, etc., the essence of the flowers provide for our emotional and mental systems. This depends on the part of the plant as well. Let’s look at calendula as an example:

 

Externally, the flower is an excellent vulnerary herb, meaning it heals wounds. Internally, calendula offers anti-inflammatory support in the digestive system and can be used if gastric and duodenal (upper part of small intestine) ulcers are present, as well as indigestion. 

Now for the flower essence, let’s take a turn towards the emotional side 🙂 Calendula is also known as The Flower of the Sun (Sunflower is known as The flower of the Incas in case you too were wondering). To the Aztecs, calendula represented the cycles of life since the flowers open with the sun and produce seed, the womb of the flower. Since this is related to the Word, the source of all creation, this is connected to written or spoken word. The flower essence of calendula helps people listen compassionately to others, to understand their message clearly, and to express warmth and caring in return. Healers, teachers, counselors can benefit from this as well as authors for the power of the written word. It increases the ability to listen receptively, bringing warmth and consideration for the feelings of others. 

(Please note that the genus calendula contains about 20 named species, but only Calendula officinalis is utilized for its medicinal or culinary benefits.)                            

High Vibe

Flower essences are vibrational medicine, derived from the life of flowers. They affect the spiritual and energetic bodies which looks like positive changes in moods, attitudes, and thought patterns. The essences flood the self with the corresponding positive frequencies which allows us to return to our higher selves both internally and externally. Each flower essence resonates at a specific frequency corresponding to specific psycho emotional needs of the person. The different frequencies from the flowers is what empowers them to provide different aspects of healing. They can also be used with animals or plants. 

 

Here are a few examples of the varying frequencies of the flowers:

Sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) is for those affected by low self-esteem and lack of confidence in themselves, who hide their light under a bushel. For others who shine too brightly, full of their own self-glory. It helps to balance the masculine side of your nature, enabling the sun-like qualities to shine forth, healing others with its warmth.

Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) is for those who tend to be forgetful, absent-minded, dreamy, and not grounded in their physical body. They may feel more insecure, and lacking in warmth and vital energy. The essence increases warmth, vitality and confidence physically and emotionally and awakens the mind.

Yarrow (Achillea millefolium) is for those who are easily affected and depleted by their surroundings and the influence of others, and tend to be prone to environmental illnesses, allergies and psycho-somtic problems. It helps shield from outside influences and reduce leakage of energy and absorption of negative influences. 

Purchase homegrown Oregon Yarrow Flower Essence here!

How do you make flower essences?

Check out the full visual story of making flower essences here: Achillea millefolium flower essences

Flower essences can only be made on a sunny day and when flowers are at their peak bloom. During the process you want to have as little human contact as possible. This is so our energy doesn’t transfer into the medicine. Ensure you have at least 4 hours of time to dedicate to the process and begin in the morning since their vibrational energy is the freshest.

Supplies needed:

• Tweezers
• Leafs
• Small glass bowl
• Mason jar filled with spring water
• Brandy
• 2 1oz tincture bottles
  
  Process:

• First, sit with the plant and make your intent and gratitude known and open yourself up to receive information from the plant.
• Have ready a prepared a glass bowl halfway filled with spring water and have it sitting in the sun. This area should have no shade from trees or anything else.
• Carefully pick the flowers with the leaves of the plant. Have another leaf nearby and place them right in the leaf, not making contact with the flowers. Tweezers are helpful for the process.
• Bring your leaf of flowers over to the bowl and layer them across the surface of the water, ensuring the whole surface is covered and each flower is in the water. Don’t touch the water. Let the bowl sit in the sun for 3-4 hours infusing or until the vitality of the flowers has noticeably diminished.

See the little bubbles in the picture below? This is the life force of the yarrow flower essence in the water!!

• Then take the flowers and give them back to the plant and pour the water into the mason jar. This is your mother essence.
• Fill a 1oz bottle with brandy and add 2-4 drops of the mother to this bottle, making your stock bottle. 
• Take another 1oz bottle and fill it half with brandy. Add 2-4 drops from the stock bottle. The other half can be filled with spring water, hydrosol or simple syrup. This is your dose bottle – to be taken orally 4 drops 4x daily or as often as needed.

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN FLOWER ESSENCES AND ESSENTIAL OIL?

Flower essences are a water infusion with the flower and essential oil is a concentrated steam distillation. Flower essences are vibrational medicine used in dilutions (similar to homeopathic medicine) that supports our spiritual and energetic bodies. Essential oils are volatile aromatic oils of plants most often extracted through steam distillation. You generally need an essential oil still and definitely a whole lot more plant matter to make essential oils. The oil itself is much more concentrated and affects both our physical and mental and emotional systems.

FLOWER POWER

Flower essences are one of my favorite types of medicine to make. I love setting out with the intention of harvesting the flowers that I grew myself or that I find in nature. Some of my favorite medicine making moments are laying in a hammock near the stream that I used to infuse the water while the essences infused in a glass bowl nearby, just being immersed in their energy and loveliness. Flowers have so much to teach us and have so much more power behind them than just being pretty little things.

External Links:

• Calendula. American Botanical Counsil: https://www.herbalgram.org/resources/herbalgram/issues/77/table-of-contents/article3229/Flower
• Power: Flower Remedies for Healing Body and Soul Through Herbalism, Homeopathy, Aromatherapy, and Flower Essences by Anne McIntyre, David Hoffmann (Foreword)