St Johns Wort Harvest
It is our annual St John’s Wort harvest time!
St John's wort is well known as a natural antidepressant but it is so much more than this. It is true that St John’s wort has a great effect on our nervous system and mood but it also works on our all our nerves - mental/emotional and physical.
SJW works on alleviating pain in the nerve damaged areas, so think sciatica, shingles, painful injuries or pain from overuse. It can even be helpful for headaches.
SJW also helps skin cells to regenerate, promotes new growth and our skin can then heal more efficiently - which is why we chose to add to Kawakawa in our oil. The SJW in our Golden Skin repair is hand harvested from Central Otago and then steeped in organic olive oil.
SJW has been used traditionally to help with:
- Minor wounds and burns
- Sunburn and windburn
- Abrasions
- Bruises
- Ulcers
- Herpes outbreaks
In Greece it was known as spathochorto - referring to its ability to help heal from swords. It was used as a vulnerary (something that helps heal wounds in the age of the Crusaders.
There are studies and pharmacological research that supports this. Within SJW is an active constituent called hypericin which imparts an antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial activity all super helpful when healing from an injury/wound or nerve damage issue.
Have you seen the amazing colour this plant goes when infused in oil and left in sunlight? It is the deepest blood red. There are stories that the say that this phenomenon is thought to symbolise the blood of St John the Baptist (the juice of the plant turns red when exposed to air).
