From Seed to Seed:
Plant Science for K-8 Educators

You may have noticed some new products on the shelves at your local grocery store or pharmacy. For example, echinacea, from the purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea) is reputed to enhance the immune system, and is becoming more and more common in cold remedies. And reports of the mood-lifting properties of St. Johns wort (Hypericum perforatum) have made it a popular supplement. Both of these plants are easy to grow-almost weedy-and have been used for years by herbalists.

Many other common garden plants, including garlic, ginger, parsley, rosemary, sage, cilantro, fennel, basil, thyme, mint, and onion, have been used to create herbal remedies. Students can look for these products the next time they visit the grocery store with their parents. Ask them to record, in their notebooks, the Latin and common names and the uses for one herbal remedy product that they find. Do any of their families use these at home?