Episode 233: Pleurisy Root: Healing Land, Monarchs & Lungs with Linda Shanahan

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Episode Summary

What if one medicinal herb could change the way you think about healing—not just in the body, but across entire ecosystems?

Pleurisy root (Asclepias tuberosa), also called butterfly weed, is often thought of as a lung herb. But as this conversation with herbalist, farmer, and nurse Linda Shanahan reveals, this brilliant orange wildflower has a much bigger story to tell—one that stretches from monarch butterflies to microbiomes.

In this episode, Linda shares the remarkable story of transforming a chemically treated sod farm into a thriving wildlife sanctuary where native plants, pollinators, birds, and beneficial insects returned together. Along the way, we explore pleurisy root's medicinal uses, why it's such an important plant for monarch butterflies, and how thinking like an herbalist invites us to see connections everywhere, from restoring habitats to supporting the microbiome within our own bodies. 

This episode’s “recipe” card is something a little different: a guide to creating your own Monarch Medicinal Mini Garden. You can learn how to create a beautiful habitat that nourishes monarch butterflies while incorporating native medicinal plants into your landscape—find your copy in the section below.

By the end of this episode, you’ll know:

► The surprising scent of pleurisy root that strongly hints at who it’s meant to help

► How pleurisy root can support specific respiratory conditions in ways that conventional Western medicine simply can’t

► Special considerations for using pleurisy root medicinally

► Practical tips for successfully growing milkweed from seed

► Why planting milkweed alone isn’t enough—and what monarch butterflies really need to thrive

► and so much more…

For those of you who don’t know her, Linda Shanahan is an herbalist, registered nurse, and community health educator who co-owns an organic herb farm and farm-to-bottle apothecary in Doylestown, Pennsylvania with her husband, Eric. Together, they cultivate and craft herbal extracts rooted in ecological integrity and bioregional connection. 

Linda’s journey began over 25 years ago apprenticing with herbalists Howie Brounstein and Steven Yeager in Eugene, Oregon, where she first discovered the profound spiritual nourishment found in wildcrafting and the intimate dialogue between people, plants and place.

This conversation with Linda is a beautiful reminder that every medicinal herb exists not in isolation, but within a web of relationships. I hope it inspires you to deepen your own connections—with the plants growing around you and the ecosystems that sustain us all.

Would you prefer reading this episode? If so, click here to download a transcript.

Would you prefer watching this episode? If so, scroll down below.

Connect with Linda:

• Website | BluestemBotanicals.com
• Instagram | @bluestembotanicals
• Facebook | Bluestem Botanicals 

Visit the Xerces society to learn more about how you can help monarch butterflies and other insects: Xerces.org

What You'll Learn from This Episode

• [1:09] Introduction to Linda Shanahan + Linda’s plant path
• [11:43] Why ecosystem health matters in herbalism
• [15:52] Medicinal benefits of pleurisy root
• [22:46] Monarch Medicinal Mini Garden “recipe”
• [30:49] Tips for starting pleurisy root from seed
• [32:23] Linda’s herbal projects
• [36:40] How working with herbs has changed the way Linda sees the world
• [44:25] Student spotlight
• [45:25] Herbal tidbit

Get Your Free Download!

-- TIMESTAMPS -- 

• 0:33 - Introduction to Linda Shanahan + Linda’s plant path
• 12:32 - Why ecosystem health matters in herbalism
• 16:43 - Medicinal benefits of pleurisy root
• 23:49 - Monarch Medicinal Mini Garden “recipe”
• 32:04 - Tips for starting pleurisy root from seed
• 33:39 - Linda’s herbal projects
• 38:05 - How working with herbs has changed the way Linda sees the world
• 46:02 - Student spotlight
• 47:02 - Herbal tidbit

Connect with Rosalee

• On Instagram | @rosaleedelaforet

• On Facebook | Herbs With Rosalee
• On YouTube | Herbs With Rosalee

• Website | herbswithrosalee.com


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