A Spring Herbal Pantry: 8 Wild Herbs to Know and Use
Triple H HomesteadEach spring stirs something deep in our souls. God fills the fields and forests with the plants our bodies need most.
After months of stillness and snow, when the sun returns and the ground begins to soften, I find myself exploring the nature with a quiet kind of joy. Not rushing, not looking for anything in particular - just watching, noticing, remembering.
And without fail, the herbs begin to appear. Not in tidy rows, but wherever God placed them. Along the fence line. Beneath the lilacs. In the gravel by the shed. In those places, I see His provision.
These plants aren’t fancy or rare. Many would call them weeds. But I’ve come to know them as gifts - gentle, reliable, and wise in their timing. Every spring, they return just when we need them most. They help the body wake up, let go, and rebuild. And they remind me of something I never want to forget: that healing often begins with the humble.
Here are 8 humble but powerful plants to harvest, prepare, and keep on hand as part of your spring herbal pantry.
1 . Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale)
This one always makes me smile first. Bright, cheerful, uninvited and completely welcome.
I think about how many people try to rid their yards of dandelions. But here, we harvest them. The roots go into jars for liver support, the leaves into teas and soups, the flowers into oils that soothe sore joints.
Dandelion reminds me that bitterness can be good. That it wakes up what’s sluggish. That God often puts what we need right in front of us, even if it looks inconvenient.
Every part of the dandelion is useful.
Roots: Traditionally used to support the liver and gallbladder. The bitter taste stimulates digestion and helps move waste out of the system. Dry and decoct for teas or tincture fresh.
Leaves: High in potassium, calcium, and magnesium. Eat fresh in salads, cook like spinach, or dry for tea. Excellent diuretic that doesn’t deplete minerals.
Flowers: Infuse in oil for skin-healing salves or make dandelion jelly. Mildly anti-inflammatory and cheerful in appearance and effect.
Preparation ideas:
Liver tonic tea with roasted dandelion root.
- Spring salad mix with fresh leaves and vinegar.
- Flower oil for chapped skin or sore muscles.
2. Nettle (Urtica dioica)
I have great respect for nettle. She demands you pay attention. You don’t rush her harvest. You come with gloves, and care, and gratitude.
Nettle nourishes like few others. After a long winter, she brings the iron, the minerals, the strength. I brew her daily in springtime. Sometimes I whisper a thank-you when I pour my infusion, remembering how she helps rebuild what’s been worn down.
She’s not soft, but she is generous. And isn’t that true of so many things that help us grow?
One of the most mineral-rich herbs you can harvest.
Contains iron, calcium, silica, vitamin K, and vitamin C.
Strengthens the kidneys, supports joint health, eases seasonal allergies, and nourishes hair and skin.
A strong “building” herb after a depleted winter.
Use:
- Drink as a daily infusion (steeped for several hours).
- Cook fresh like spinach or add to soups.
- Dry for teas or herbal mineral blends.
Caution: Wear gloves when harvesting. The sting disappears once dried or cooked.
3 . Plantain (Plantago major or lanceolata)
If you’ve got kids, livestock, or clumsy hands, you want to know this plant. Plantain is always there when someone gets stung, scratched, or splintered.
I’ve crushed her fresh on bee stings and watched the swelling fade. I’ve steeped her for tea when a sore throat hits. I’ve infused her into oils for salves that we reach for again and again.
To me, plantain is steady, faithful—like an old friend who doesn’t say much but always shows up when you need help.
God gave us a remedy for cuts, scrapes, and stings that grows underfoot.
- Fresh leaves: Apply directly to insect bites, bee stings, or splinters as a poultice. Pulls out toxins and calms inflammation.
- Dried leaves: Make tea for irritated throats, ulcers, or urinary tract support.
- Infused oil: Base for salves to treat minor wounds, eczema, or dry skin.
Properties:
- Cooling, moistening, drawing.
- Excellent for hot, inflamed, or irritated tissue.
4. Violet (Viola spp.)
Violet is one of spring’s tender mercies.
She’s quiet, almost hidden at first. But her soft purple flowers open like little hymns in the grass. I gather them with the girls, not because we need them, but because they make us slow down and smile.
Violet is gentle and moistening—perfect for dry coughs or tender hearts. She’s a balm for swollen glands and swollen feelings alike. I always think of her as a reminder to speak softly, and to listen more.
Soothing, calming, and quietly powerful.
- Leaves: High in vitamin C and rutin. Traditionally used for swollen glands, dry coughs, or skin eruptions.
- Flowers: Add beauty and lift the mood. Can be infused into honey, syrup, or vinegar.
Uses:
- Gentle lymphatic support.
- Moistens dry tissues.
- Infused oils or balms to soothe inflamed skin or minor burns.
Violet teaches us that soft can still be strong.
5 . Cleavers (Galium aparine)
Cleavers is not elegant. She clings to your clothes, your baskets, your goats if they get too close. But she is one of my favorite spring cleansers.
She supports the lymph and helps the body let go of what it doesn’t need anymore. I use her fresh, in cold infusions, often first thing in the morning. She’s not sweet or comforting, but she is deeply helpful.
She teaches me about surrender. About moving things that have been stuck for too long. About the value of letting go.
One of spring’s best lymphatic allies.
- Helps move lymph and clear out stagnation.
- Supports the kidneys and urinary tract.
- Traditionally used for swollen lymph nodes, skin eruptions, and fluid retention.
Use fresh:
- Cold infusions or juicing are best (it doesn’t dry well).
- Tincture in spring for seasonal lymphatic support.
Preparation:
- Fill a jar with chopped fresh cleavers and cover with cold water. Let sit overnight, strain, and drink.
6. Chickweed (Stellaria media)
I usually find chickweed when I’m not looking for her—growing in the shadows, near the compost pile or beneath the dew line.
She’s mild, but she does a lot. She cools inflammation, soothes skin, and gently breaks things down in the body that no longer serve. I use her fresh in salads or tinctures, or turn her into salves for rashes and scrapes.
There’s something deeply comforting about chickweed. She doesn’t try to impress—but she always helps.
A cooling herb that gently breaks down heat, inflammation, and even fat.
- High in chlorophyll and minerals.
- Traditionally used for cysts, inflammation, minor infections, and wounds.
- Externally for itchy, irritated, or rash-prone skin.
Use:
- Fresh in salads, smoothies, or pesto.
- Infuse in oil for anti-itch salves.
- Make tea or tincture with dried herb.
Chickweed is perfect for cooling and moistening dry, irritated systems.
7. Purple Deadnettle (Lamium purpureum)
She often grows near the nettles, and people confuse them at first glance. But where nettle stings, deadnettle doesn’t. She’s soft, fuzzy, and mild—like a younger sister.
I add her to teas, to smoothies, to vinegar infusions. She doesn’t demand centre stage, but she brings subtle, steady support to the immune system and digestive tract.
To me, deadnettle is about gentle resilience. About quiet strength. And about growing even when no one’s cheering you on.
A common, overlooked weed that quietly supports health.
- Mildly astringent and slightly bitter.
- Traditionally used to soothe inflammation and support the immune system.
- Also used to slow minor bleeding (topically).
Use:
- Add fresh to salads or smoothies.
- Dry and mix into tea blends with nettle and plantain.
- Infuse in vinegar for spring tonics.
Bonus: It’s a strong bee forage and grows alongside chickweed and cleavers.
8. Lilac (Syringa spp.)
Lilac doesn’t stay long. But when she’s here, everything feels more alive.
We clip blossoms for syrup or honey, float them in bathwater, or just stand beneath her breathing deep. The scent brings calm in a way words can’t explain.
Lilac reminds me that beauty is not optional-it’s healing too. That God didn’t just give us what we need to survive, but also what helps us rejoice.
Short bloom, long-lasting blessing.
- Flowers are edible and aromatic. Infuse in honey, syrup, or vinegar.
- Traditional uses include uplifting the spirit, easing anxiety, and supporting relaxation.
- Not commonly used internally in modern herbalism but still valued for its emotional and spiritual benefits.
Use:
- Add flowers to bath blends.
- Make a lilac sugar scrub or flower-infused vinegar.
- Combine with rose and violet for an emotionally soothing tea or oil.
Lilac reminds us that beauty is also part of healing.
This is the Pantry I Build in Spring
Not with cans or packages, but with baskets and glass jars.
Not by stocking up, but by slowing down.
This is how I prepare our home for the season ahead. By gathering what grows. By preserving with care. By trusting the rhythm God wrote into the land itself.
These herbs don’t fix everything. But they remind me of what matters. They nourish, they soothe, they gently lead us back to balance. And that is more than enough.
How to Preserve Your Harvest
- Hang herbs in small bundles out of direct sunlight.
- Once dry, store in labelled glass jars.
- For delicate herbs like cleavers or chickweed, use fresh or freeze into cubes for smoothies.
If you’d like to learn how to prepare these herbs for your own pantry:
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Let’s keep the old ways alive. Let’s honour what grows underfoot. Let’s build pantries that feed more than the body.
© Triple H Homestead - 2025
