Elderflower Tea

Elderflowers make a lovely tasting tea, generally useful to relieve cold symptoms, including catarrh and sinus problems. You can buy ready made elderflower tea from many sources including health food shops and even the supermarket but you can also make your own using either fresh or dried flowers.

To make elderflower tea with fresh flowers take 2 of the flower heads, place in a teapot and add boiling water. Leave to brew for 10 minutes before serving. You can serve with a slice of lemon if you wish.

To make elderflower tea using dried flowers (available from health food shops) you'll only need 2 teaspoons of the flowers to make 2 cups of tea. Put the dried elderflowers  in the teapot and add boiling water, leave to brew for 5 minutes.

Elderflower Champagne

Elderflowers are marvellous as a prophylactic against hayfever. You can take them as tea or cordial two or three times a day. Excellent for those who suffer from a runny nose and eyes.

Mrs Grieves, in The Modern Herbal of 1931,recommends an elderflower infusion as a "good old-fashioned remedy for colds and throat trouble" and whilst Elderflower Champagne isn't exactly what she had in mind it is a lovely drink that is bound to be a bit of a pick you up.

Elderflower Champagne

Pick 6 full Elderflower heads, preferably on a sunny day in the morning, I'm told they smell better then.

In a clean bucket dissolve 1kilo of sugar into 10 litres of cold water.
Give the Elderflowers a shake to remove any dust or insects and immerse in the water.
Add the juice of 2 freshly sqeezed lemons along with the lemon skins.
Add 4 table spoons of white wine vinegar and stir gently.
Cover with a tea towel and leave for 24hours stirring occasionally.
After 24 hours strain the liquor through a sieve or muslin and bottle into sterilised 1 litre plastic pop type bottles. Plastic is best as during the fermentation a lot of fizz is produced which can cause a bottle to explode so don't over fill!
The naturally occuring yeast on the Elderflowers will ferment with the sugar and after a couple of weeks you will have Elderflower Champagne with a very slight alcoholic content. It will be ready to drink but the flavour improves with keeping and it will keep for a year or so in a cool place.

Elderflower Cordial for health

The Elder (Sambucus Niger) is often refered to as “The medicine chest of the country folk” , it is said that it is the oldest herb cultivated by mankind and had been used as a herbal medicine for over 4 thousand years.

Here we give the recipe for Elderflower cordial which can be used to relieve the symptoms of allergies to pollens etc and to reduce the effects of sinusitis. Ideally one would start drinking a glass or two of diluted elderflower cordial a few weeks before the pollens became a problem to help build a resistance, it’s a lovely refreshing drink  so make plenty to store for future use.

You’ll need:
20 heads of elderflower flowers,
1.8kg granulated sugar, or caster sugar ,
1.2 litres water ,
2 unwaxed lemons
75g citric acid (available from chemists)

To make:
1. Shake the elderflowers to remove insects, and then place in a large bowl.
2. Put the sugar in a pan with the water and bring up to the boil, stirring until the sugar has completely dissolved.
3. While the sugar syrup is heating, pare the zest of the lemons in wide strips and add to the bowl of elderflowers. Slice the lemonsand add these to the bowl. Pour over the boiling syrup, and  stir in the citric acid. Cover with a cloth and then leave at room temperature for 24 hours.
4. Next day, strain the cordial through a sieve lined with muslin  and  bottle.

NASA's Top Ten House Plants for Improving Indoor Air Quality

If you suspect that you may be living or working in a place with Sick Building Syndrome installing house plants could help.

A study by NASA and the Associated Landscape Contractors of America (ALCA) in the 1980's  concluded that common houseplants like spider plants not only make indoor spaces more attractive, they also help to purify the air.

NASA and ALCA spent two years testing 19 different common houseplants for their ability to remove  common pollutants from the air. They primarily tested for the removal of Formaldehyde, Benzene, and Trichloroethylene. Formaldehyde is used in many building materials including particle board and foam insulations. Additionally, many cleaning products contain this chemical. Benzene is a common solvent found in oils and paints. Trichloroethylene is used in paints, adhesives, inks, and varnishes.

NASA found that some of the plants were better than others for absorbing these common pollutants, here is

The NASA Top 10 Houseplants for Improving Indoor Air Quality:

1. Philodendron scandens `oxycardium', heartleaf philodendron
2. Philodendron domesticum, elephant ear philodendron
3. Dracaena fragrans `Massangeana', cornstalk dracaena
4. Hedera helix, English ivy
5. Chlorophytum comosum, spider plant
6. Dracaena deremensis `Janet Craig', Janet Craig dracaena
7. Dracaena deremensis `Warneckii', Warneck dracaena
8. Ficus benjamina, weeping fig
9. Epipiremnum aureum, golden pothos
10. Spathiphyllum `Mauna Loa', peace lily
11. Philodendron selloum, selloum philodendron
12. Aglaonema modestum, Chinese evergreen
13. Chamaedorea sefritzii, bamboo or reed palm
14. Sansevieria trifasciata, snake plant
15. Dracaena marginata , red-edged dracaena

The study recommended using at least fifteen samples of a good variety of these common houseplants grown in six inch containers or larger to help improve air quality.

Sick Building Syndrome can cause the following symptoms:

Tiredness & lethargy
Headaches - dull or pressure type
Dry itchy skin
Nausea
Coughing, shortness of breath, wheezing
Ear, nose and throat irritations

(If you have any major health concerns you should consult your Doctor)