Medicine Wheel

Every survival gardener needs to have a medicine wheel somewhere on their property. First, if you don’t know what a medicine wheel is, take a look here, then we can talk about what goes in a medicine wheel.

Generally speaking, a medicine wheel is a place to grow medicinal plants to have on hand when you need them. This is also a place to go to and be still, think, meditate, feel, and/or pray. You are creating a special area with your own purposes in mind.

Wagon Wheel or Medicine Wheel?

My original plan was to plant a small wagon wheel garden for my medicine wheel. I bought an antique wagon wheel with this purpose in mind. As I researched the plants I wanted to use, I realized that the wagon wheel did not give me enough space for what I wanted to grow.

You might want to start this small though and it’s a great place to start. You can place your wagon wheel or even a small barrel or pot wherever you want to start your garden. Fill it with dirt and plant seeds or plants of your choice in each spoke area.

My final medicine wheel design incorporates the wagon wheel into the center of the medicine wheel design. This way I could still use the wagon wheel but also have a larger medicine wheel garden.

What Should You Plant in Your Medicine Wheel?

You can plant any medicinal herb you want in your medicine wheel. Think about what you and your family need for better health and well being, mentally and physically.

Teas, Tinctures, Poultices?

Also think about how you are going to use those plants. Are you going to make tinctures or poultices? Teas or creams? All of this matters. Once you decide what you want to make or have on hand, you can choose the plants that suit those purposes.

A lot of thought went into the plants I wanted to grow in my medicine wheel. After much consideration, I decided on plants for healthy teas, to fight fevers and viruses, in case of accidents, to help with any pain, for more energy when needed, and generally to help with better health and well being for my whole family.

I wanted to be able to make tinctures, creams, poultices, infused oils and teas for keeping my family healthy all year round. Having the right variety of plants on hand for winter cold and flu remedies was an important consideration too. Another important consideration for me was having plants I could use for natural antibiotics. I like the idea of having my own natural antibiotics growing in my yard, just in case. Accidents happen so I also wanted plants in my yard that can help ease any cuts, pain or swellings that might occur as a result of an accident or injury.

Small is Good Too!

While this might sound complicated, it really doesn’t have to be hard. You can start with a small medicine wheel with only a few plants. Or maybe just start with four plants for making tea. This is very easy for anyone to do. You could even start with 4 plants on a sunny windowsill in your kitchen for making healthy teas. Your own tea will taste wonderful and it gets you started in the right direction.

A medicine wheel can be big or small depending on your needs or the size of your family. Since I have a pretty big family, I decided to make my medicine wheel 22 feet in diameter. My growing space is 18 of those feet and my pathways take up 4 of those feet. This size is big enough to grow what I want but still be easy enough to maintain.

My Medicine Wheel Design

Here is a picture of the drawing of the design that I finally decided on:

And here is a picture of how it actually looks in the yard before the plants are planted:

I used bricks that I already had in different locations of my property. This is the wagon wheel that I bought a couple of years ago at the antique flea market.

What’s In My Medicine Wheel

Now, what’s in my medicine wheel? This is the fun part. I chose 18 medicinal herbs. They are:

1. Oregano
2. Borage
3. Chamomile
4. Lavender
5. Self Heal
6. Calendula
7. Catnip
8. Tulsi
9. Peppermint
10. Yarrow
11. Astragalus Root
12. Boneset
13. Comfrey
14. Sage
15. Lemon Balm
16. Ashwaghanda
17. Wintergreen
18. Goldenseal

You can see from the diagram above where each plant will be situated.

The herbs I chose were all small enough to fit in my design without getting too big or taking over. They also are all very versatile and have more than one purpose for using. All the plants chosen in this design can be used to make countless combinations of teas for various purposes. A myriad of remedies can be made just using these 18 herbs.

I will share everything I am making over the upcoming months so bookmark this site and check back often.

Which medicinal herbs do you want to plant and why? What would you like to make with them? Let me know below. 🙂

May the rest of your life be the best of your life!