The Forager's Path School of Botanical Studies

https://scitechdaily.com/scientists-discover-plants-scream-we-just-couldnt-hear-them-until-now/

Scientists Discover Plants “Scream” – We Just Couldn’t Hear Them Until Now Scientists have discovered that many plants emit faint ultrasonic clicks when distressed.

Agave in a local Flagstaff garden. These plants are monocarpic - they flower only once, then dies

Spring blooms of Arizona Valerian

Bitterness: The Signal We’re Losing

In today’s diet, something subtle has changed: Bitterness is disappearing.

Sugar has increased dramatically over the past century, while modern foods are designed to remove bitter compounds.

But bitterness is not just a taste.

From both Chinese medicine and modern science: It’s a regulatory signal for the body.

In the Huangdi Neijing (《黄帝内经》), it says:

“苦入心，泄而燥。”
Bitterness enters the Heart; it drains and dries.

In simple terms:
• It calms
• It clears excess
• It reduces heaviness and stagnation

It helps the body reset movement and flow.

Modern research shows something similar: Bitter receptors exist not only on the tongue, but in the gut.

Bitterness can:
• stimulate digestion
• support metabolism
• influence appetite and blood sugar signals

It’s a whole-body cue, not just a flavor.

Spring makes this even more relevant.
It’s a season of movement and transition.

If everything we eat is still heavy, sweet, and rich—
it’s easy to feel:
• sluggish
• bloated
• emotionally stuck

Bitterness brings balance. It prevents buildup while everything is rising.

• dandelion greens
• arugula
• bitter melon
• green tea
• even coffee (without sugar)

Maybe the deeper question is this:
Why do we resist bitterness so much?

We’ve become used to choosing only what feels good.

But the body doesn’t regulate itself that way.

Bitterness isn’t here to please us.
It’s here to keep us clear, responsive, and alive.

Today, we honor the historic Native Alaskan civil rights activist, Elizabeth Peratrovich, who was monumental in passing our country’s first Anti-Discrimination Act in 1945.

Her fight for equality continues to this day. Unnecessary laws that require an ID to vote block Americans from choosing their leaders and shaping the policies that affect their lives.

Fighting to protect the right to vote is just one way we can keep her legacy alive.

🎨: Mural by Crystal Worl commemorating Elizabeth Peratrovich, member of the Tlingit Lukaax̱.ádi clan of the Raven moiety.

Welcome friends and relatives! We are the living descendants of the ancestors who left their footprints and writings across Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. Together, we've formed the Grand Staircase-Escalante Inter-Tribal Coalition to ensure that Tribal voices, perspectives, and priorities are meaningfully included in the monument's management.
👍🏽If you'd like to support us, please give us a follow.

☆Brewing up a tea to share at the Mountain Town Market this fine Sunday! 10 am-2pm Flagstaff City Hall.

◇Hope to see many smiles and for sure enjoy being amongst my wonderful community!

Last call for The Family Herbalist Program.
Registration closes March 1.
Two spaces remain open.
Our initial weekend is March 14-15.

https://www.theforagerspath.com/educational-resources/family-herbalist-program-2022/

Shadow magic with Ocotillo (Fouquieria splendens) during a field study in the Sonoran desert