====== UNIT 4: Materia Medica 1 ======

===== Introduction =====

This is the first of three Materia Medica units, the first of which contains a detailed consideration of five common medicinal plants:
  * German chamomile, Matricaria recutita L.
  * Fennel, Foeniculum vulgare Mill.
  * Elder tree, Sambucus nigra L.
  * Lemon Balm, Melissa officinalis L.
  * Meadowsweet, Filipendula ulmaria (L.) Maxim. 

===== Overview =====
  * Get to know 5 important medicinal plants (particularly how and why they are used), and develop a strong affinity with each plant so that you can use them wisely and appropriately
  * Understand research into medicinal plants compounds and into the effects of whole plant extracts
  * Use key texts and modern sources to conduct your own research into the historical use of key plants within Phytotherapy, and compare these uses with modern approaches confirmed by research
  * Learn to use your senses to identify and know more deeply the subtleties of medicinal plants, thus building up a more complex and nuanced understanding and relationship to them
  * Explore the making of simple home recipes and practical pharmacy, learning how to transform a plant into something pleasant and remedial to use (e.g., tisanes, infused oils and electuaries).
==== Learning Outcomes ====
=== By the end of Section 1, you will have an understanding of: ===
  * The structure of this Unit, and some central concepts underpinning Western herbal medicine.
=== By the end of Section 2, you will have: ===
  * Undertaken a Plant Tasting with the 5 herbs using the Goethean method
  * Defined 5 keywords for each tasting
=== By the end of Section 3, you will have an understanding of: ===
  * The basic botany of German chamomile
  * The parts used, main constituents, main therapeutic actions, methods of preparation and use, cautions and care, and research relating to the plant
  * The central role and importance of the digestive system and mucus membranes in herbal medicine
  * How to use tisanes/herbal teas.
=== By the end of Section 4, you will have an understanding of: ===
  * The basic botany of fennel
  * The parts used, main constituents, main therapeutic actions, methods of preparation and use, cautions and care, and research relating to the plant.
  * Links between the digestive system and other systems in the body, including the nervous system and the hormonal system
  * How to make an aromatic digestive electuary.
=== By the end of Section 5, you will have an understanding of: ===
  * The basic botany of the elder tree
  * The parts used, main constituents, main therapeutic actions, methods of preparation and use, cautions and care, and research relating to the plant
  * The effectiveness of herbal medicine in the treatment of children
  * The uses of elderberry, and how to make an elderflower infused oil.
=== By the end of Section 6, you will have an understanding of: ===
  * The basic botany of lemon balm
  * The parts used, main constituents, main therapeutic actions, methods of preparation and use, cautions and care, and and research relating to the plant
  * Making a lemon balm infused oil
  * How the nervous system interacts with other body systems, including the digestive system and the immune system.
=== By the end of Section 7, you will have an understanding of: ===
  * The basic botany of meadowsweet
  * The parts used, main constituents, main therapeutic actions, methods of preparation and use, cautions and care, and research relating to the plant
  * Case histories demonstrating how the herbalists’ approach is uniquely tailored to each individual.
=== By the end of Section 8, you will have taken part in an activity about herbal history and folklore and have an understanding of: ===
  * Have gained a good understanding of some of the history and folklore surrounding the herb you have selected.
  * Know where traditional uses of your chosen plant have been carried forward into present day use and reflected in research.
  * Explored how to take information from one referenced source and show you have understood its meaning by putting it in to your own words.

==== Additional Information ====

This Unit contains **Reference and Resources** lists as well as the tutor’s own tasting notes.