Herbal FUN in the SUN!!!
By: Jhoane Robinson, Herbalist, Co-Founder Cedar Bear Naturales
It’s the height of summer, and whether your days are filled with the joyful chaos of kids at home or you’re soaking up the season solo, now is the perfect time to get outside and get creative! These long, golden days are fleeting, so make the most of them. Stretch out in a sunny field, hike to a shady knoll, or bring a basket and blanket for a spontaneous picnic in the wild. Let nature be your summer companion.
This is also one of the most bountiful times of year for foraging. Flowers are blooming, herbs are at their peak, and wild fruits and greens beg to be gathered. But before you pluck that wild mint or dig up a root, let’s talk about something important: ethical wild harvesting. Whether you’re snipping a sprig of yarrow from your backyard or taking a nature walk through public land, harvesting responsibly ensures that plants can continue to thrive—for you, your neighbors, pollinators, and future generations.
And, while summer fun means more time outside, it also means more exposure to things that can throw your digestion off, from food and travel to creepy crawlies and playtime in the yard. A gentle seasonal reset with Cedar Bear’s alcohol-free Intestinal Cleanse helps keep the whole family (and even your pets!) feeling their best, inside and out.
HARVESTING HERBS ETHICALLY
At Cedar Bear, we don’t take shortcuts when it comes to herbal quality. Whenever possible, we source ethically wildcrafted, whole herbs—plants that grow in their natural environments rather than cultivated on organic farms. This is the main reason we don’t carry organic certification. Ethically wildcrafted herbs cannot be certified organic. Wild herbs often contain higher levels of active compounds and minerals, thanks to the unique ecosystems they grow in. Soil composition, climate, elevation, and surrounding flora all influence a plant’s medicinal potency, making wildcrafted herbs especially powerful.
Our commitment to quality doesn’t stop at harvesting. Once the herbs arrive at our facility, they’re quarantined, carefully inspected, and sent to a third-party lab for identity testing. This is the first step in our Triple Third-Party Lab Testing process, overseen by our Director of Operations and Quality Control Manager, who thoroughly vets all suppliers and materials. Every step ensures that only the best botanicals make it into our TincTracts®—pure, potent, and crafted with care.
Of course, when harvesting herbs for personal use, you won’t need lab results, yet it is still paramount to harvest with respect and intention. The United Plant Savers (UpS) has established guidelines for ethical wildcrafting to protect at-risk plants and the ecosystems to which they belong. Whether you're gathering from a national forest (first check with the park rangers, as you may need a permit) or your own land, here are a few essentials to keep in mind:
United Plant Savers’ Guidelines for Ethical Wild Harvesting:
- Know the plant. Proper identification is essential. Make sure you're harvesting the right plant and know whether it is safe and legal to collect in your area.
- Harvest only abundant species. Never harvest from plants listed as at-risk, threatened, or endangered. Check local conservation lists or the UpS "At-Risk" list.
- Harvest from healthy populations. Only gather from plant populations that are thriving and reproducing well—never from sparse or struggling patches.
- Leave more than you take. A good rule of thumb is to leave at least 70–90% of a plant population untouched to ensure regeneration.
- Take only what you need. Don’t overharvest. Be mindful of how much you can realistically use.
- Harvest at the right time. Learn the best times to gather different plant parts (flowers, leaves, roots, seeds) to ensure both potency and sustainability.
- Use proper techniques. Cut above the root when appropriate, don’t pull up entire plants, and avoid damaging surrounding flora and fauna.
- Give thanks. Respect the plant, the land, and the cycle of life. Some people offer a small prayer, a pinch of tobacco, or simply a moment of gratitude.
Ethical harvesting is a way to deepen your relationship with the land and the plants that nourish us. Whether you’re blending your own tea, making a sun-infused oil, or just learning your local flora, you’re part of a long tradition of herbal stewardship. Let’s keep it thriving—for summer and beyond.
KEEPING IT CLEAN WHILE YOU SOAK UP THE SUN
Summer is a season for barefoot walks, backyard barbecues, and wild adventures—but it's also a time when our bodies can be exposed to more than just sunshine and fresh air. Whether it's from the foods we eat, the places we explore, the pets we snuggle, or even just playing in the garden, we all pick up things that might not sit so well in our digestive systems. Our environment—both natural and man-made—plays a big role in our overall health, and sometimes our bodies need a little help keeping things in balance.
That’s why we created Cedar Bear’s Intestinal Cleanse—an alcohol-free liquid herbal formula designed to gently support the digestive system. From toddlers to adults (and even your furry friends), a seasonal cleanse once or twice a year can help keep your gut in top shape so you can feel your best all summer long. It’s like giving your insides a fresh start, so you can keep enjoying everything the great outdoors has to offer.
In addition to our Intestinal Cleanse, we offer a range of formulas designed to support the gentle detoxification of various body systems, as listed here:.
CEDAR BEAR HERBAL SUPPORT FOR ADULTS, KIDS, and PETS
Intestinal Cleanse - clears and protects your intestinal tract
Intestinal Cleanse for Kids - gentle, natural digestive support for kids
Pet’s Intestinal Cleanse - intestinal tract healing support
Lymphatic Cleanse - supports healthy lymphatic and immune function
Lymphatic Cleanse for Kids - supports healthy lymphatic and immune function
Pet’s Coat Care - builds healthy coats from inside out
Liver Build - protects, soothes, and builds liver tissues
Herbal Detox for Kids - gentle, deep detox for kids
Pet’s Lively Liver - builds and protects liver health
Kidney and Bladder - soothes kidneys and urinary system
Kidney Kool for Kids - soothes kidneys and urinary system
Pet’s Kidney Kool - soothing support for kidney and bladder
Summer’s herbal bounty isn’t just for your teacup or tincture bottle—it’s a playground for your senses and your imagination. Let this be a season of creative connection with the plants around you. Gather cheerful dandelion flowers, mint leaves, and daisies for playful crafts—think daisy chains, flower crowns, or even nature mandalas on the lawn. Channel the carefree spirit of childhood summers!
Press a few blossoms into your herb journal, sketch the shapes of leaves you don’t yet know, or create your own illustrated plant profiles. Brew a simple herbal infusion from your harvest, pour it over ice, and head to the porch swing or a shady tree. Sip slowly, breathe deeply, and let the wild joy of the season fill you up.
WHY CEDAR BEAR?
At Cedar Bear we firmly believe in constant evolution as we formulate, and reformulate, our proprietary TincTract® singles and blends. Throughout the years we have brought numerous enhancements to the process itself in an effort to continue to bring the most cutting edge, efficacious remedies to the market.
Building and supporting overall health, wellness, and vitality are hallmarks of Cedar Bear herbs. You will find that the support on a micro-nutritional level from Cedar Bear herbs brings astounding results for your mind, body, and soul.
It’s not just the herbs that make Cedar Bear herbal products so effective at supporting your overall health. When they are made with Cedar Bear’s special proprietary process called the TincTract®, (more than a tincture, and more than an extract, and works better than either!), Cedar Bear’s TincTract® process makes the herbs both bio-available and bio-utilizable, so every drop goes right to work supporting your health and well-being.
Best of all, the TincTract® process not only makes herbs work better, but they taste better, too! And, as always, all Cedar Bear® herbs are totally alcohol-free. They have only three things in them: herbs, glycerin, and water. Nothing else!
Boost your overall health today with herbal products by Cedar Bear®!
Contributing Author: Aubrey Loretta Connelly, BA, MH, NC
(These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.)
