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The Lost Book of Herbal Remedies

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The Lost Book of Herbal Remedies is helping Americans achieve medical self-sufficiency even in the darkest times using the time-tested methods of our grandparents without spending lots of money on toxic drugs and without side effects. Color pictures of 169 healing plants, lichens, and mushrooms of North America (2-4 pictures/plant for easy identification). Here you'll find the most powerful medicinal plants & mushrooms of North America. This book is for both beginners and seasoned herbalists, and covers identification, color photos, edible uses, medicinal uses, harvesting instructions, a medicinal index, and much more!

317 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2021

203 people are currently reading
6004 people want to read

About the author

Nicole Apelian

12 books185 followers
Dr. Nicole Apelian is an herbalist, a biologist, an author, an anthropologist, a wilderness skills instructor, and a mother. Nicole was a challenger on the second and fifth seasons of the History Channel’s TV series “Alone”, where she thrived in the wilderness totally solo with little more than her knife and her wits, and was recently on the UK Channel 4 documentary series "Surviving the Stone Age", now available on Amazon Prime & Discovery +. She is the author of three books, The Lost Book of Herbal Remedies: The Healing Power of Plant Medicine, A Reference Guide to Surviving Nature: Outdoor Preparation and Remedies (GEAR-WILDLIFE-WEATHER-FIRST AID), and The Forager's Guide to Wild Foods: Edible Plants, Lichens, Mushrooms, and Seaweeds.
An unexpected diagnosis of multiple sclerosis in 2000 led Nicole to apply her scientific research skills towards her own personal wellness. She focuses on a healthy living strategy, including deep nature connection and gratitude practices. Through changes in her lifestyle & diet, recognizing profound mind-body linkages, and making and using her own herbal remedies, Nicole went from bedridden to being fully alive and from surviving to thriving.

She has spent years living in nature with the San Bushmen of the Kalahari Desert, one of the last Indigenous peoples who still live as hunter-gatherers. Developing strong relationships within the tribe helped Nicole learn many of the remedies and skills she practices and teaches today and she continues her work with the San through her non-profit, "The Origins Project".

At home in the Pacific Northwest, she makes her own herbal medicines from local plants as part of her healthy living strategy, especially as related to autoimmune issues, and has her own herbal medicinal apothecary line.

Find out more about Nicole at www.nicoleapelian.com.

www.nicoleapelian.com

https://nicolesapothecary.com/

https://www.instagram.com/nicole_apel...

https://www.facebook.com/nicoleapelia...

Blog: www.nicoleapelian.com/blog

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5 stars
544 (69%)
4 stars
178 (22%)
3 stars
41 (5%)
2 stars
14 (1%)
1 star
7 (<1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 61 reviews
Profile Image for Mabi.
7 reviews
August 8, 2025


The Lost Book of Remedies by Claude Davis explores the healing power of forgotten plants and natural remedies. The book provides detailed instructions on identifying, harvesting, and using medicinal plants to treat common ailments and promote health. It combines historical knowledge with practical advice for utilizing nature?s remedies to improve well-being and self-sufficiency.
Profile Image for HillbillyMystic.
510 reviews36 followers
March 30, 2023
I have rarely been more rapt up in a non-fiction piece before. I feel like Noah with far less criticism because no one sees my "ark" being built. The Master Within, my spirit guides, spirit animal, holy spirit and the Great Spirit are all screaming at me to get prepared for the nightmares ahead. I now firmly believe Tesla when he said, "You may live to see man-made horrors beyond your comprehension." It's already like a confluence of They Live, Invasion of the Body Snatchers and Terminator. Most everyone I ever know lives life staring at a screen, still Obeying orders and hence Pfascist Pfizer Compliant Pfo Sho. They don't even have a clue anything is wrong. They're too scared of being called a racist to speak out about the sexualization of our children. They're too fluoridated to understand The Nuremberg Code, border crisis, or planned economic collapse. They are far too indoctrinated to ever question the money laundering and support for Nazi pedovores in Ukraine. Jacques Attali was correct in 1981 when he said, "We will find a cause or something, a pandemic targeting certain people, a real economic crisis, a virus affecting the elderly, it doesn't matter, the weak and fearful will succumb to it. The stupid will believe in it and ask to be treated. The selection of idiots will therefore be done by itself; they will go to the slaughterhouse alone." And so they have. As for me and my house we are 100% off the big pharma teat and only "fucking with" plant medicine these days as one of my clients with schizophrenia used to say. I like the holistic approach to plant medicine and looking at the entire lifestyle rather than just treating symptoms. Unlike a physician I am constantly asking questions like, "Are you happy at home? How is your diet? Given the large amounts of strontium, barium and aluminum floating down on us how many metal cleanses are you doing per month? How much cardio, yoga and meditation are you doing? How many times per week do you cave bathe or forest bathe and discharge barefoot into Mother?"
Profile Image for Cat Leonard.
169 reviews10 followers
May 11, 2020
This book is a wonderful resource. There is an excellent medicinal herbal reference guide in the front, along with information on harvesting herbs and how to prepare many types of remedies. Then there is a guide to many different herbs and medicinal plants, complete with photographs and suggestions for how this plant has been used. The last section is on household remedies.

This book will be one I carry with me when I want to identify plants or weeds. The photographs will be so helpful compared to the line drawings in my old foraging companion book. I only wish this was a smaller volume and easier to haul around.

As I read through this book, I was so happy to realize that these authors have made this giant effort to preserve the old knowledge that my great-grandmother attempted to pass on to my sister and I. We both wish we had paid more attention. I am very grateful to have this book now. This information has been artfully saved.
Profile Image for Angel Pickard.
144 reviews14 followers
July 16, 2020
This is very helpful! I am pairing this with an online course where I am planning to build a more homeopathic first aid kit and also start to recognize and grow plants that can support mine and my families health and wellness!
Profile Image for Emily.
355 reviews10 followers
April 1, 2021
Really good resource but does feel a little... Home printed? Example: in the Black Eyed Susan section you can see the author's shadow in the photo she took of the plants. But the information is soooo helpful, but also a little out there when they talk about dengue fever being a massive future problem for North America. Overall the information is so helpful I will look past the thin paper and home printing to use.
1 review
April 11, 2020
Oh how I really wanted to love this book.... however, it is not worth the cost! It is way overpriced. Definitely not a beautiful book. The pages are super thin, photos are blurry, just a horrible print job! I could have printed these pages on my cheap home printer and they would have looked nicer! The info is good, but there are many other books out there just like this that are much better quality for less than half the cost of this one. I wished I would have opened this book up and fell in love, but instead I felt I was cheated.
5 reviews21 followers
January 2, 2022
I love this, it’s filled with copious amounts of useful information!! The only reason I give only 4 ⭐️ is because I’m not the biggest fan of the layout. I wish things were grouped differently but, then again I’m not sure how they could have possibly done that. I do also wish that each herb was its own page and didn’t stick another herb directly below one, it gets a little confusing if your scanning for something specific. Overall though this is a must have if you forage or use/grow herbs. I have learned a lot
Profile Image for Marie Green.
1 review
October 4, 2022

Really good reference source for herbal home remedies. The detailed pictures are very helpful when identifying the plants out in the wilds. The detailed instructions on mixing the herbs gives me confidence that I haven't skipped anything important.
The only thing I wish was different about the publication is I would have put a list of illnesses and symptoms at the FRONT of the book so when an emergency happens you could just reference the needed page without having to dig deep into the back of the book to figure out the needed remedy. Or even just an illness breakdown .. respiratory ailments in a chapter, circulation problems in a chapter, skin ailments in a chapter, etc...
But all the information the reader needs is in the book.
I feel the book is well worth the money and should be a staple on any self-reliant persons bookshelf.
1 review
January 20, 2024

I almost passed on buying this book due to the cost. I am so glad I have it on my shelf!! Haven’t you always wondered about those plants around the house? Especially the ones we call weeds? Well what a suprise to receive Mr. Davis’s book and open it up to see dozens of “weeds” in clear pictures with well written explanations about them. Healing is truly in the earth and all around us. Mr Davis explains each common plant, what it’s medicinal uses can be and then how to make them into safe and effective medicines. I can’t wait to get out there and harvest some that grow around my house and used to fall prey to the weed wacker!! Thank you grandfather Davis.... your grandson has done you proud. The book and pages are copy paper size and well illustrated and very easy to read. I just love it!!
Profile Image for Charity (TAKING A BREAK).
140 reviews17 followers
June 27, 2024
First read by this author(s). A family member asked me to read it for them.

I want to start off by talking about the book print.

A lot of the older folks in my family don't use or want to use/know how to use e-books so they only read physical books, however most of the women in my family have bad eyesight and/or partially blind so they normally read Large Prints. The reason I'm mentioning this is because I don't see a Large Print option for this book online, or even a kindle option (since you can adjust the font size to your liking), and I feel this makes many books accessible to people who are visually impaired. Young or not. I'm also mentioning this because now I understand why a family member asked me to read it for them. The font print is very small. Some words are also blurry BUT still readable depending on your eyesight!

So, if you're thinking of picking up this book but you struggle to read small prints I would definitely wait until a Kindle version, or a Large Print becomes available! I tried to access their page before reviewing to double check if they do sell them but it's currently down on my end. Amazon only has the paperback.

EDIT: Apparently there is a digital copy. The website finally loaded and it mentioned you can purchase a digital copy for $37 that includes 2 bonus digital books.

(Note: The print does not affect my review.)

Thoughts:

Take my review with a grain of salt because I am NOT an herbalist. I read books like these to learn information so if I am reading false information, I am unaware.

Please read the Disclaimer Page in the book!! It's there for a reason. I see many reviews expressing their disappointment in leaving out information, but the disclaimer clearly states that it does not contain all the information available on the subject of natural remedies.

This book provides quick reads on the plants, how to use them/identify them, and even provides recipes. It also lists warnings and has a clear image of each plant. It includes a Medicinal Herbal Reference Guide that is very organized. (Guide includes Bones, Cancer, Childhood Diseases and Issues, Digestive and Intestinal Issues, Drug Addiction, Ears, Eyes, Glands, PCOS, etc.)

There is also a small section dedicated to Household Remedies.

I'm unsure how to rate this book. On one hand I would consider it an easy read for a beginner like me. Simple information with basic knowledge that doesn't put my brain into overload. (For those of us that rarely read non-fiction - if you know you know!) It's also a great guide to identifying over 800 plants!

On the other hand... I've also read a lot of good points about some of the misinformation in here. Like I said above I have little knowledge on this so I'm just sitting here like, "Mhmm, who do I trust?" (According to the disclaimer/warnings I should trust my doctor so that I will do before trying any of these.) I'm not against Herbal remedies but I am very cautious about the information I read because I do not play with my health.

I'm conflicted, so I will give 3 stars for now. Even with the mixed reviews about misleading information there is a lot of plants mentioned in this book that I have never heard of so this book would be a great guide to keep around.
Profile Image for Arune.
54 reviews1 follower
March 17, 2024
I wouldn’t say I’ve finished reading this book because you have this book on hand whenever you need answers about specific topic. So I’ll keep coming back to this book for answers!

Really liked the way it is written and explained. Have tried some salves written in the book and loved it!

The only downside is that now I want to grow every plant that’s in this book haha
Profile Image for Jennifer.
63 reviews11 followers
August 4, 2020
I’ve been growing and researching so many plants lately and also collecting and drying wild herbs in the mountains of Lake Tahoe. This book is amazing and provides a great source of knowledge with photos and usage. I am so thankful I stumbled onto this book!! A must have for every home and encouraging for those who are growing herbs as well.
80 reviews
August 25, 2019
This is more of a reference book. I got it because it lists the uses of many common yard "weeds"
Pretty Neat Book. Th copy I bought was soft cover. I also got the e-book...
Profile Image for Leslie.
43 reviews
December 7, 2020
Loved this book!! So full of useful knowledge! It stays within reach at all times, because I use it so much!
Profile Image for Teri.
270 reviews1 follower
August 22, 2024
This is a beginner-friendly. non-intimidating and accessible book on herbal medicine. The print is large and comfortable to read. There are color photos of each herb, but the pages look like they were run off on a home printer, so the photos aren't as sharp as they could be. Apart from the largest section on individual herbs, it has a small section at the beginning for how to dry herbs, how to make tinctures, infusions, salves, etc. There's also a section at the beginning called Medicinal Herbal Reference Guide that is an index of health symptoms, along with a list of herbs that treats them and the page numbers to the referenced herbs. There's a small section at the end for household remedies. Everything is well indexed and well organized.

However, the author has never been a clinical herbalist. She has a bachelors in biology and a doctorate in anthropology and ethnobotany. I don't doubt her abilities as a seasoned herbalist, however. For more advanced herbal books by a clinical herbalist, I'd get Dr. John Christopher's School of Natural Healing and Herb Syllabus, both of which are more like college texts. He was the greatest herbalist of the last century in America. But The Lost Book of Herbal Remedies is a good entry level book that will serve well. It is more expensive than other similar herbal books, however.
Profile Image for WHTTR (Who Has Time To Read?).
167 reviews76 followers
July 2, 2025
https://youtu.be/8wUALDrS6tw


🌿 Simple plants. Powerful healing. The remedies your ancestors relied on.

In The Lost Book of Herbal Remedies, Dr. Nicole Apelian (with Claude Davis) offers a comprehensive guide to North American plant medicine—covering over 100 herbs, mushrooms, lichens, and more. Packed with color photos, foraging tips, and herbal recipes like salves, teas, and tinctures, it’s a survivalist’s tool and a wellness primer. While praised as a rich resource, some reviewers caution about accuracy concerns—so it’s best used alongside credible reference texts.


📖 Purchase The Lost Book of Herbal Remedies on Amazon
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Profile Image for Jessica Martinez.
1 review
September 27, 2022


The Lost Book of Herbal Remedies is a step by step 318 page colored book(in both digital pdf and physical printed book). It shows you how to treat and cure the most prevalent infections and disorders naturally using some naturally growing plants.

There are more than 800 helpful plants and medicines inside. It contains recipes for numerous natural treatments that our ancestors have used for ages, including tinctures, teas, decoctions, essential oils, syrups, salves, poultices, and infusions. This book is unique in that it includes between 2 and 4 high-resolution, color photographs of each plant along with thorough identifying instructions to help you choose the proper plant for healing.
1 review
Read
September 28, 2022


The Lost Book of Herbal Remedies is a step by step 318 page colored book(in both digital pdf and physical printed book). It shows you how to treat and cure the most prevalent infections and disorders naturally using some naturally growing plants.

There are more than 800 helpful plants and medicines inside. It contains recipes for numerous natural treatments that our ancestors have used for ages, including tinctures, teas, decoctions, essential oils, syrups, salves, poultices, and infusions. This book is unique in that it includes between 2 and 4 high-resolution, color photographs of each plant along with thorough identifying instructions to help you choose the proper plant for healing.
Profile Image for Vannessa Anderson.
Author 0 books224 followers
May 15, 2023
What I like about The Lost Book of Herbal Remedies is

1) It's inclusiveness.
2) Pictures of plants are in color and large enough to hold next to a living plant and make a possible identification.
3) Table of contents.
4) Appendix.
5) Easy to follow explanations.
6) Recipes
7) Large letters.
8) Receive email updates.

At first, I thought the book was pricey but after reading it I realize I made a good investment.

Individuals who practice healing through plants and foraging will want The Lost Book of Herbal Remedies in their library.

My copy of The Lost Book of Herbal Remedies is in paperback. To preserve the cover I covered it with quality clear packing tape.
Profile Image for Ladonda.
349 reviews
July 15, 2023
This book is super cool. It’s as if a Native American medicine man put down all of his or her knowledge in one book as it relates to plants and herbs. My favorite section had to do with household remedies. The items listed under this section are easily obtained and have practical uses. In fact, I’m going to start using the diatomaceous earth information and apply it to my dogs. Some of the other sections, for instants Backyard Plants and Forest, Scrublands. and Woodlands are less applicable, depending on your geographical location. If an apocalypse hit and I survived, this would be the book that I would pack to take with me because it would be the only pharmaceutical interventions you would be able to obtain. Loved it.
Profile Image for Elizabeth Nelson.
1 review
January 17, 2023
First thing i read about is using aloe vera to lower my blood sugar. It states I can do that by simply adjusting two tablespoons of aloe vera juice or pulp extract daily. And as you get to the end of aloe vera there's a warning that says long-term internal use of aloe vera is not recommended due to latex found in aloe vera. So how can I regulate my blood sugar without taking the remedy daily for a LONG time!
Profile Image for Mike Harris.
Author 1 book2 followers
May 1, 2025
I waited months to get my hands on this book about historical recipes & remedies that will help you survive a zombie apocalypse if it happens. It includes lots of great teaching about herbs & plants that help you live a healthier life, which is great when you're doing life with a partner battling terminal cancer. If you want to learn more about old-school medicines from the bush, this is your book.
1 review
September 13, 2025
This book will teach you how many medicinal options are in Mother Nature, the effectiveness and the dangerous herbs and plants to stay away from.
I have recently been able to make my small family medicine using the safe knowledge from this context. I do believe we need real rx pharma medications in certain situations and diagnosis….however it is both enlightening and intriguing to learn the benefits of things growing in your back yard!
Profile Image for Kirsten.
135 reviews
October 22, 2024
This book serves as a valuable resource, featuring a comprehensive medicinal herbal reference guide, harvesting information, and remedy preparation instructions. It also includes an extensive guide to various herbs and medicinal plants, accompanied by photographs and historical usage suggestions, culminating in a section on household remedies.
2 reviews1 follower
October 27, 2020
COWRITTEN WITH CLAUDE DAVIS. THE TWO AUTHORS TEAMED TOGETHER TO WRITE A GREAT MANUAL ON THE HEALING POWER OF PLANT MEDICINE. IF YOU HAVE READ ANY OF MR. DAVIS' BOOKS, YOU OWE IT TO YOURSELF TO PURCHASE THIS ONE AS WELL. VERY DETAILED AND COMPLETE.
Profile Image for Victoria.
780 reviews1 follower
February 6, 2024
Amazing book, especially for those who want to make your own medicine. The author is very clear on how to mix everything.

I am not going to do the work but it was very interesting seeing all the different herbal remedies
for various problems. There are a few I plan on trying.
1 review
July 2, 2024
A simple and straightforward guide that clearly explains the various common herbal species. The content of the book is well done, it has nice cards that explain the herbs in a simple and clear way.Given the price and content I would say it is a good buy.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 61 reviews

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