Red clover
Trifolium pratense
Flowering tops · cooling-bitter · moving
The meadow blossom in the old blood-and-skin jars.
In the mouth
How it tastes
Mildly sweet, floral, hay-like, soft green. Pleasant and light.
Traditional use
A gentle bitter-sweet blossom. Folk practice put red clover in spring teas when the skin was eruptive and the blood felt thick after winter. Often blended, rarely a harsh solo.
In the cup
1 tbsp dried blossoms, steeped 10–15 minutes. Pleasant, hay-floral. A quart jar overnight is the mineral-style infusion.
Blood
Bitter blood · bitter
Bitter is first hot, then cold. It speeds digestion, moves lymph and waste, wakes circulation, and calls bile from the gallbladder. As that hot, caustic bile travels, the body cools — which is why the old bitter cups were given for fever. Bitter is the strongest medicine in this tradition.
Read bitter bloodReached for
The promise
A careful hand
Some people, or a long pot, need extra care.
Isoflavone phytoestrogens. Caution or skip in pregnancy, nursing, and hormone-sensitive conditions. Possible company with hormonal medicines and blood thinners. An occasional cup for a healthy adult is the ordinary story — not a long, high pot.
Read the whole promiseSits well with
Nettle
Urtica dioica
A green salt — the mineral broth of the hedgerow.
Stiff joints · Hollow energy · Irritable skin
Mineralize, soothe, and restore fluid
Violet
Viola odorata
The heart-leaf of spring — a cool green for lymph and dry heat.
Cough · Irritable skin · Dryness
Mineralize, soothe, and restore fluid
Calendula
Calendula officinalis
Pot marigold — the gardener’s skin flower, also a golden broth.
Irritable skin · Sore throat
Ground, build, and settle
Traditional kitchen and folk use only. This is not medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. If you are pregnant, nursing, on medicine, or unwell, ask a clinician before drinking anything as a remedy.