As we started our FIRE frugal living, I remember seeing Rachel being incredibly focussed in the garden, beavering away with a mischievous look on her face. Turns out she was planting up the plant tub and so we are now growing some herbs. These serve the beautiful purpose of looking great in the garden and they’re edible as well, making them even better.
It is probably the Sorrel that I have used the most in compost salads and sandwiches. It has quite a nice taste if used sparingly. According to Organic Facts they are pretty healthy with Vitamins A, C, B6, iron, magnesium, potassium and calcium.
Organic Facts also talk about the wide range of benefits in an interesting way and it is the text on kidney health which caught my eye as “Sorrel has been shown to have a diuretic effect, particularly when the leaves are dried and consumed within a few days. As a diuretic, sorrel stimulates urination, which cleans out the kidneys, taking with it any extra toxins, salts, water, and even a certain percentage of fat”.
All this raises a few questions for me in relation to my significantly messed up kidneys. Any of us can read all kinds of things on the web and we don’t know how accurate it is. Then with reading something like Organic Facts commentary on Sorrel, it would be easy to cash in on eating sorrel regularly but my questions are:
- is it really true?
- if it is true, how much do I need to eat to feel a benefit?
- are there any drawbacks to be aware of?
So I have made an appointment with one of the new Doctors at my surgery and I’m planning to ask for a referral to a dietician or a nutritionist who can advise me properly on what to eat and what to avoid. After messing up my kidneys through failing to diagnose things properly, I think they owe this to me.
Anyway, back to frugal living. I do love the way Rachel does these things. A great combination of looking good, providing us with some herbs which can be dried and used through the winter, particularly Basil and Oregano.