The Must-Have Herbs You Need in Your "Apocalypse" Medicine Cabinet

From appendicitis and gallbladder attacks, to heavy bleeding

Perhaps one of the most common questions I receive is this—“what herbs do I have to have in a situation where the medical system is no longer available”. Ten years ago most of the country would never think about this question. Only ten years ago. But I’ve been thinking about this question for over 18-years. Actually, probably most of my life. God is interesting like that—He put a desire within me to learn these things even when I was young, when I watched my older family members take medication after medication.

In this letter, I’ve put together the herbs that you should absolutely keep in your herbal medicine cabinet. These are ailment specific herbs that most community herbalists would need in order to treat a chronic disease or basic ailment. Most of us know how to help with a cough or headache, but do we know which herbs are good for gallbladder and appendix attacks? What about a gaping wound? Probably not.

I’m going to take the fear out of not knowing for you today…

Let’s get started. Some of these herbs I’ve written extensively about on my website or within my Homestead Herbalist membership here on Substack. Others I have not written about. In this letter, I’m just giving you the basics of each herb, and what they do. You can go into the membership to see more detailed herb profiles.

We aren’t going into the history of these herbs in this letter, but know, there is extensive history of these herbs used throughout every human lived century.

Note: most dried herbs can be taken safely between 1-5 tsp a day if you don’t want to make a tincture. However, tinctures last decades. Any potentially toxic herbs will be listed below.

YARROW (Achillea Millefolium)

Parts Used: aerial parts

Actions: diaphoretic, hypotensive, astringent, anti-inflammatory, antispasmodic, diuretic, antimicrobial, bitter, heptic

Helps with: fever, digestion, infections, hypertension, wound healing, stops bleeding, colds (especially respiratory), diarrhea, dysentery, uterine hemorrhage.

Safety & Dosage:
*DO NOT USE WHILE PREGNANT

Tincture: 2-4 ml 3x a day

AGRIMONY (Agrimonia eupatoria)

Parts Used: aerial parts

Actions: astringent, tonic, bitter, diuretic, vulnerary, antispasmodic, diaphoretic, carminative, hepatic, cholagogue.

Helps with: digestive issues, childhood diarrhea, bitter stimulation of digestive & liver secretions, indigestion, early-stage appendicitis, mucous colitis, urinary incontinence, cystitis, gargle for sore throat & laryngitis, heals wounds and bruises.

Safety & Dosage:
No known safety precautions.

Tincture: 1-4 ml 3x day

ASTRAGALUS (Astragalus membranous)

Parts Used: root

Actions: immunomodulator, heptic

Helps with: stimulates immune system, protects liver, anti-cancer effects

Safety & Dosage:
* May interact with immune suppressing drugs

Tincture: 1-4 ml 3x day

OATS (Avena Sativa)

Parts Used: whole plant, but specifically oat tops before opening. We call these “milky oats”

Actions: nervine tonic, antidepressant, nutritive, demulcent, vulnerary.

Helps with: feeds the nervous system, helps with depression and anxiety, treat general debility.

Safety & Dosage:
No known safety precautions.

Tincture: 3-5 ml 3x day

CAYNNE (Capsicum annuum)

Parts Used: fruit

Actions: stimulant, carminative, anticatarrhal, sialogogue, rubefacient

Helps with: systemic, stimulant, stimulates blood flow, strengthens heart and arteries, strengthens capillaries and nerves, wards off colds, promotes circulation, gargle for sore throat/laryngitis, neuropathy

Safety & Dosage:
* could cause skin irritation

Tincture: .25-1 ml 3x day, or topical (1-3 tsp)

Balmony (Chelone glabra)

Parts Used: dried aerial parts

Actions: cholagogue, hepatic, bitter, antiemitic, stimulent

Helps with: liver, digestive tonic, treat gallstones, inflammation of the gallbladder, jaundice, stimulates appetite, eases colic, malabsorption, round worms

Safety & Dosage:
* no known safety precautions

Tincture: 1-2 ml 3x a day

Fringe Tree (Chionanthus virginius)

Parts Used: bark

Actions: septic, cholagogue, alterative, diuretic, tionic, antiemetic, laxative

Helps with: liver, gallbladder inflammation, gallstones, stimulates the release of bile, liver congestion, acute jaundice, childhood jaundice, malarial conditions, sugar in urine, typhoid fever

Safety & Dosage:
* no known safety precautions

Tincture: 1-2 ml 3x day

Hawthorn (crataegus laevigata)

Parts Used: berry, flower, leaf

Actions: cardio tonic, diuretic, astringent, hypotensive

Helps with: cardiovascular disease, improve coronary circulation, reduces agina attacks, keeps heart healthy, hypertension, myocarditis

Safety & Dosage:
* enhances the activity of cardio active drugs

Tincture: 2.5-3 ml 3x day

Echinacea (Echinacea purpurea or angustifolia)

Parts Used: root

Actions: antimicrobial, immunomodulator, anti-inflammatory, anticatarrhal, vulnerary, alterative

Helps with: microbial infections, bacterial and viral attacks, boils, infection of upper respiratory tract, activities against strep and staph infections, influenza

Safety & Dosage:
* may cause allergic reaction for people who are allergic to plants in the asteracea family. May interfere with immunosuppressant drugs.

Tincture: 1-4 ml 3x day

Ephedra (ephedra sinica [ma huang])

Parts Used: stem & aerial parts

Actions: vasodilator, hypertensive, circulatory stimulant, antiallergic

Helps with: asthma, relaxes airways, where we get “ephedrine”, nasal and sinus congestion pressure, bronchitis, eases allergic reactions, circulatory insufficiency, raises blood pressure

Safety & Dosage:
* can produce cardiac arrhythmia, if used with other medications (such as oxytocin) can cause fatal hypertension, do not us if you have thyroid disease, diabetes, cardiovascular conditions, or prostrate enlargement.

Tincture: 1-4 ml 3x day

Eyebright (euphrasia officinalis)

Parts Used: dried aerial parts

Actions: anticatarrhal, astringent, anti-inflammatory

Helps with: mucous membranes, pink eye, sinus congestion, stinging and weeping eyes, conjunctivitis

Safety & Dosage:
* no known safety precautions

Tincture: 1-4 ml 3x day
Externally: 1 tsp dried herb

Meadowsweet (filipendula ulmaria)

Parts Used: aerial parts

Actions: antirheumatic, anti-inflammatory, carminative, antacid, antiemetic, astringent

Helps with: fever, digestive, eases nausea, gastritis, heartburn, aspirin like chemicals (for fever)

Safety & Dosage:
* avoid if you are sensitive to aspirin or salicylate

Tincture: 2-4 ml 3x day

Goat’s Rue (galega officinalis)

Parts Used: dried aerial parts

Actions: hypoglycemic, galactagogue, diuretic, diaphoretic

Helps with: reduces blood sugar, stimulates milk flow and production, stimtlates the development of mammary glands

Safety & Dosage:
* may potentiate the action of hypoglycemic drugs

Tincture: 1-2 ml 3x day

Lobelia (Lobelia inflata)

Parts Used: aerial parts

Actions: anti asthmatic, antispasmodic, expectorant, emetic, nervine

Helps with: bronchial asthma, bronchitis, nicotine effects, respiratory depression, whooping cough, croup, epilepsy, tetanus, convulsions, tonsillitis, pneumonia

Safety & Dosage:
* similar side effects as nicotine, could cause nausea, dizziness, diarrhea, tremors. Should not be used during pregnancy or lactation.

Tincture: .5-1 ml 3x day

German Chamomile (Matricaria recutita)

Parts Used: flower head

Actions: nervine, antispasmodic, carminative, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, bitter, vulerary

Helps with: insomnia, anxiety, depression, ulcers, diarrhea, aches and pains from influenza, migraine, teething, vertigo, conjunctivitis, inflamed skin, nerve calming, digestive inflammation, indigestion

Safety & Dosage:
* could cause allergic reaction to people allergic to plants in the asteracea family.

Tincture: 1-4 ml 3x day
Tea: 3-4 tsp dried herb as frequently as you’d like

Poke Root (Phytolacca americana)

You can learn more extensively about Poke Root within the Homestead herbalist membership HERE.

Parts Used: root

Actions: Anti-rheumatic, stimulant, anticatarrhal, purgative, emetic, antibacterial, antiviral, anticancer

Helps with: cleanses the lymphatic system, respiratory infections, tonsillitis, mumps, mastitis, arthritis, enlarged thyroid, enlarged lymph nodes

Safety & Dosage:
* in large doses, poke is a powerful emetic and purgative, it could cause vomiting and diarrhea. Only take 1-5 drops

Tincture: .25 ml 3x day (1-5 drops, depending on your tolerance)

Wild Cherry (Prunus serotina)

Parts Used: dried bark

Actions: antitussive, expectorant, astringent, nerving, antispasmodic

Helps with: powerful sedative effect on cough reflex, bronchitis, whooping cough, helps asthma, pneumonia

Safety & Dosage:
* large doses can be toxic

Tincture: 1-2 ml 3x day

White Willow (Salix aeba)

Parts Used: dried bark

Actions: analgesic, anti-inflammatory, tonic

Helps with: original source of modern aspirin, rheumatism, gout, fever, aches and pain

Safety & Dosage:
* could interact with drugs having salicylates

Tincture: 3-6 ml 3x day

Black Elder (Sambucus nigra)

Parts Used: flower, berry, leaf

Actions—
Leaf: purgative, expectorant, diuretic, diaphoretic, emollient, vulnerary
Flower: diaphoretic, anticatarrhal, antispasmodic
Berry: diaphoretic, diuretic, laxative, antirheumatic

Helps with—
best known to prevent common cold and influenza, lessens symptoms and duration, it also strengthens cell membranes to prevent virus penetration

Leaf: topical for bruises, sprains, wounds, tumors
Flower: colds and influenza, antiviral, upper respiratory
Berry: all the same as flower

Safety & Dosage:
* no known safety precautions

Tincture: 2-4 ml 3x day

Comfrey (Symphytum officinale)

Parts Used: root rhizome, leaf

Actions: vulnerary, demulcent, anti-inflammatory, astringent, expectorant

Helps with: would-healing, stimulates cell proliferation, internally and externally, ulcers, hernia, ulcerative colitis, bronchitis, cough

Externally — would healing of even large wounds, fractures, ulcers, varicose veins, varicose ulcers, anticancer

Safety & Dosage:
* longterm studies show hepatoxicity, carcinogenic effects. However, short term uses of comfrey have no effect.

Tincture: 2-4 ml 3x day (root)

Use leaf externally

Thyme (Thymus vulgaris)

Parts Used: leaf and flowering top

Actions: carminative, antimicrobial, antispasmodic, expectorant, astringent, anthelmintic, anti parasitic

Helps with: digestive aid, infected wounds, respiratory infections, digestive infections, gargle for tonsillitis and laryngitis, cough, bronchitis, whooping cough, asthma

Safety & Dosage:
* no known safety precautions

Tincture: 2-4 ml 3x day

Nettle (Urtica dioica)

Parts Used: aerial parts, root

Actions: astringent, diuretic, tonic, hypotensive

Helps with: whole body tonic, hemorrhage (internally), lower blood sugar, improves urine flow, allergies (seasonal)

Safety & Dosage:
* fresh nettles can “sting”. Internal use may decrease efficiency of anticoagulant drugs.

Tincture: 2.5-5 ml 3x day

While this is not an exhaustive list, and there are certainly others I’d consider growing (like lemon balm and mullein), I tried to offer you the very targeted herbs that you’d need to keep on hand or grow for common issues that may arise, including common issues that may arise needing emergency attention.

If you’d like to learn more about herbs, consider subscribing the the Homestead Herbalist portion of this Substack (if you haven’t already).