Grow Your Own Drugs: Easy Recipes for Natural Remedies … (2024)

The first thing I need to say about Grow Your Own Drugs is that this book is gorgeous. Page after page is filled with beauty shots of herbs and other close-up, photographic plant p*rn. (And incidentally, there are also some great shots of author James Wong, who's not too hard on the eyes, either.)

The name may raise eyebrows, but Grow Your Own Drugs is actually a no-nonsense home reference guide of natural, herb- and plant-based home remedies and beauty treatments. I love that Wong includes a list to help newbies like me set up shop for home remedy making, including stock items needed for many of the recipes.

But that aside, I don't know how well making most of Wong's remedies would work in my lifestyle. Number one, many of the recipes require ingredients that might be hard to find and pricey if you don't grow them yourself. The time to make some of the recipes also seems prohibitive for a working mom, but if you're dedicated to a holistic, organic lifestyle, I imagine you'll find the time.

One final thing I have to point out, though: a lot of the remedies call for vodka to make tinctures or popsicles, etc. The idea is that you steep or distill therepeutic herbs in the alcohol, and yes, many cough syrups today still have alcohol as a main ingredient. But really? One of the cold remedies was basically echinecea steeped in vodka, and the directions recommended ingesting several small cupfulls every few hours. Yes, I imagine that would distract me from my cold symptoms and make me feel quite a bit better. ;-)

Catchy title and nice photos. The recipes and availability of plants left me a little lacking.

Just picked this up yesterday and poured through it. It's hard not to when each page-spread is peppered with lovely color photographs. The recipes are great and use a lot of common, easily grown or found ingredients. I already made one recipe (the athlete's foot powder) just from stuff in my kitchen. It has a UK resource section for the "must purchase" items, which is helpful to me, personally... though in the US you could easily find most of these items at health-food coops.

The only critical thing I can say is that it doesn't actually give you tips on growing the plants. It has a list of the top ten that you could grow. It tells you what kind of soil the plants like and where to find them/harvest them in the wild... but it doesn't actually help you to "grow" them.

I still think it's a great book (think a more accessible, simpler version of Rosemary Gladstar's Family Herbal) with eye-candy pictures.

This could be great for the hippie in me as well as the anti-pill guy in me, as well as the anti-big-industry-especially-the-pharmaceutical-industry guy in me, as well as the me that has no health insurance, as well as the me that is and will likely remain for quite some time broke as a joke. And who knew garlic could do so much?!

Very accessible guide with a wide variety of remedies. Looking forward to trying some out for myself.

This book is an okay general overview of herbs and recipes. It's got really beautiful pictures, but the layout and information could be better. The recipes are good and the review of each herb in the back of the book is useful. However, there is nothing that really stands out about the book. It seems like a rushed, commercial herbal book with a bunch of general information that doesn't really say anything new or single out a couple of (scientifically-backed or widely used) specific uses for the plants presented. A list of a bunch of general ailments an herb has been traditionally used for can be found in any herbal book you pick up. I wanted to like this book, but didn't really get much out it.

James Wong's Grow Your Own Drugs is a beautifully published collection of recipes and facts behind the making of various concoctions, balms and infusions that you can make yourself. It's full of helpful tips and guidance to cures and remedies.

It doesn't appear to be guide on cost-effectiveness as the time, cost and access to some of the ingredients would be quite high but it's definitely a consideration if the natural approach is what you're after.

I really love this book, and am amazed at the herbs and plants that can be used for all osrts of remedies. I'd certainly be trying a few. Dropped a star because I'm certain some of the ingredients are expensive, and fitting in the time needed to make some of the remedies, is diificult. Stiil - its a fantastic book and I'll be using it.

Yes, 3 cups of vodka probably WILL cure what ails you... Really neat.

Not as radical as it sounded.

Pretty plant pixs. Interesting what you can turn into a tea. Lots of ways to make a cold less uncomfortable.

This is a pretty good book to learn from. I love how he explains all the things for you to learn & remember. Easy basics for starting these things. The rest of the book gives recipes of different ailments to make for all sorts of things, which is helpful. You will have to put some work in prior before you actually need the item most the time but some are easy enough to make.

Loved it

Very interesting book filled with lots and f information. I love the idea of creating natural remedies as apposed to using over the counter stuff that is filled with lots of bad stuff

Anne 2019

WOW WHAT AWESOME TITIE AND BOOK, IAM GETTING THIS BOOK FOR MY FRIEND.THANKS🤙

Grow Your Own Drugs: Easy recipes for natural remedies and beauty treatments by James Wong. (Book Review)

Grow your own drugs is the accompanying book to the BBC Series by James Wong. It is published by Collins and its ISBN is 0007307136. This hardback book is beautifully laid out and gives clear and easy to follow instructions on how to make your own lotions and potions for common ailments and beauty treatments. Wong explains how easy it is to cure yourself and have control over what medicine you put into your body , at a fraction of the high street prices. Mr. Wong is a lecturer at Kent University and a qualified ethnobotanist but confesses he learned a lot of his recipes from his Malaysian grandmother. He selects the top 100 plants to grow and gives their natural healing properties. A must for natural medicine practitioners or for those interested in alternative medicine. I highly recommend this book in conjunction with using conventional medicine. Reviewed by Annette Dunlea author of Always and Forever and The Honey Trap.

I have the most recent edition of this book. Fun, enjoyable introduction to the world of herbs from the PBS TV series host. Simple enough to try out at home without making a major investment in herbal materials. Beautifully photographed. The plant directory at the end of the book contains a short description of the plants used in the book, and general guides on how to find them. A good book for beginners and people interested in trying out some fun and useful recipes.

I picked up this book after seeing the television show that it accompanies. I was hugely impressed when I received it as it bursting with gorgeous photographs and wonderful ideas of things to try making using very easy to source supplies. I would definitely recommend it to anyone and everyone looking for an natural alternative or someone who would love to just have a go at there own beauty products.

Not as many recipes as the Ulitmate Natural Beauty Book, but the ones it does have include those of natural rememdies as well as beauty fixes. It also features an index of 100 medicinal plants, detailing each one's key properties and what they are best used for. This feature is great for helping you to create and experiment with some recipes of your own. Definitely worth having around.

Really liked this book, want my own copy for future reference. Lots of simple recipes to replace or diminish your use of OTC medicines. Won't replace a good doctor or prescription medicine or surgery if needed, but would definitely be useful for first aid of everyday ailments usually treated with OTC medications.

Een erg uitnodigend en inspirerend boek om iets te doen met de planten die in je tuin, balkon of op je vensterbank groeien. Of je het nu wilt gebruiken om je gezondheid op te vijzelen, als eerste hulp bij kleine kwaaltjes, of dat je een apart cadeautje wilt maken voor je vrienden.

De aanvullende informatie over de planten is voldoende en niet overdreven veel waardoor het goed te bevatten is.

Grow Your Own Drugs is quite a useful book, but only if you're willing to stock your pantry with items like beeswax and lots of random spices, herbs, flowers, and leaves. I only wish he went into growing the herbs more.

Amazing. Such simple easy recipes, the ones I have used so far have been amazing. For those of you that love bath bombs, James Wong is the man, his recipe is so easy and the bath bombs are Devine. I have made ointments and healing balms also, very good.

Catchy title, I picked this one up at the library. Many of the author's "recipes" are pretty well known (sleep pillows) but it was very interesting and sometimes enlightening reading. I'm ready to expand my herb garden!

interesting natural remedies, easy to follow directions, looking forward to trying some

I think I need to purchase this book - rare for me since I am a regular visitor to my public library. This looks like a good reference to have handy at home though.

Don't know if it's worth it, but I've got to check this book out. I saw him on Martha Stewart's daily show.

Full of amazing natural remedies for everything under the sun!

Pretty fun book. Gotta try out some of the "recipes" though!

great book. some of the recipies are complex and some items you have trouble buying in shops. very interesting. not sure if i will make many of them. but it great to try!!