Written by Riyaarth Saraogi (Grade 6)
Nature has been in existence long before human existence and ever since it has taken care of mankind and nourished us. Since our inception we have been using nature. If used wisely it is the biggest nourisher and if misused it can be devastating.
Since early times humans have been collecting various items from the forest. Some of the items are wood, timber, fish, nuts and so on. Of all the forest products the one that fascinates me the most are the herbs. Herbs are valued for their medicinal, savoury and aromatic use. Can you imagine a pizza without oregano, or pakodas without mint coriander chutney. I can relish mint coriander chutney with almost everything. Many herbs also enhance the taste of our food. Some such herbs I find my kitchen are coriander, celery, mint and my favorite oregano. Whenever I am down with cough or cold my mother always gives me, tea made of herbs like cinnamon, nutmeg and honey and my cold bids me goodbye in no time. This remedy was passed on to my mother by her great grandfather who was a ayurvedic doctor in his times. Did you know Indian Ayurveda fully relies on herbs? My mother’s grandfather had a herb garden with various herbs like basil, aloe vera, ashwagandha, bhringa and many more. My grandfather would also prescribe herb infused oils to cure many skin ailments. Herb infused oils like Mint oil, thyme oil, rosemary oil are again gaining popularity these days.
In my city Gurugram where AQI is constantly on a rise various air purifying herbs like spider plant, snake plant and money plant are life saviors. Last winter holidays I went to the Amrit Udyan. There I got a chance to see a different section of garden dedicated specifically to different breeds of tulsi. I never knew there were so many types like Rama Tulsi, Sweet basil, Thai basil, lemon basil, African blue basil, Green ruffles basil and purple basil, the list seemed endless. The garden details also stated about the four most popular tulsi found in India- The Rama tulsi is known for its strong aroma and has cooling taste. The krishna tulsi gets its name from its purple hued leaved which resemble lord Krishna’s skin. It can cure throat infections, ear aches, and skin problems. The Vana Tulsi which is rich in antioxidants slows down the aging process. Kapoor tulsi is the heavy flowered tulsi’s sweet fragrance keeps away insects and is known for curing eye disease, insect bites and malaria. This trip enlightened me a lot about the tulsi.
Featured Image Courtesy – Jamie Oliver
