An Herbalist’s Perspective on Autumn Care

A footpath through an autumn forest.

Autumn in the northeastern United States means that green becomes gold as plants stop producing chlorophyll, the pigment that makes leaves green, causing the familiar and fleeting warmer pigments to shine through. The trees are preparing for the coldness and darkness of winter. One way they do this is by consolidating and drawing their resources down and inward. Plants also release parts of themselves that cannot be sustained, mostly their foliage, as an answer  to Autumn’s call of necessity and discernment. 


The transition seasons are beautiful and embody an energy of "bothness." For this reason Autumn and Spring may require us to spend a bit more attention orienting to time and space, our bodies, daily rhythms, and both the kind of and preparation of  herbs, foods and beverages we have daily. What metaphorical foliage are you called to drop as you move into the quiet and fertile darkness of Winter’s womb? What are you drawing inside for sustenance?

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