BLOG 19: St. Johnwort medicinal herb begins to bloom in my region of West Québec on the 24th of June. ‘Wort’ is simply an ancient word for ‘herb’. Why do I find this sooo fascinating do you ask? Well it’s blooming date falls on the day of our province-wide celebration called Saint Jean-Baptiste Day. Saint John the Baptist was the jewish Preacher who baptized baby Jesus in the river of Jordan. Anyway he was wrongly beheaded by Herod. The fascinating information about the St. John’s Wort flower is that it has tiny black dots around each flower petal. When you rub these black dots between your fingers they release RED dye, which many say is the blood of Saint John the Baptist! Cool but, equally cool is the fact that when you infuse the flower tops in oil, it turns red and this red oil is used for wound healing! It can’t replace the head of a beheaded person mind you but it works extremely well on repairing the skin from scrapes, bumps and bruises. It is also very soothing for eczema and psoriasis. To make your own miracle St. Johnswort infusion simply stuff a jar with the flower tops (flowers and buds) and then fill the jar with olive oil. Make sure the oil is at least 1/2 inch higher than the herb. Place the jar in a sunny window for 4-6 weeks. Strain out the flowers and bottle the oil. It lasts one year. Please remember the skin is a functioning organ and one should only apply a thin layer of oil on the affected skin twice daily. A thin layer allows your skin to breathe and heal much faster. Now is the time to get out and pick your flowers!