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People everywhere are hungry for clear, practical, scientifically-validated information about how to make safe and simple use of herbs in their day to day lives. I too was once hungry for this kind of information. I discovered that working (and playing) with herbs did not need to be complex and confusing. It could be sheer pleasure. For me it was like walking down a path where a wonderful surprise is revealed at every turn. |
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For ease of reference here is my beginner’s guide to herbal remedies. You can refer back to it whenever you want to make a tincture, infusion, decoction or what-have-you and you don’t have a specific recipe for it.
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USING HERBS A beginner's guide to herbal remedies for ease of reference...
INFUSIONSA herbal infusion is nothing more than a herb tea. It is usually made from the fresh or dried ‘soft’ parts of the plant - leaves, stems and flowers – to bring out the vitamins and volatile oils. Teas are sometimes also made from seeds or roots. A general rule is to put 1-2 teaspoons of dried herb in a cup or tea pot and pour a cup of just boiled water over them. You will need to use more of the fresh herb – 2 to 3 times the dried quantity. Leave your tea to stand (steep) for 5 to 20 minutes, depending on the herb. Strain and drink. Whatever your good intentions you won’t drink a herb tea that tastes nasty. Adding pleasant tasting herbs to your brew such as mint, fennel, lavender and licorice will help. Infusions will keep if refrigerated, but only for a day or two.
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Peppermint Tea
Put 1-2 teaspoons of the dried herb or 3-4 teaspoons of fresh leaves in a tea pot and pour a cup of boiling water over them. Allow to steep for 10 minutes, strain and drink. Or dunk a teabag in a cup of hot water and leave in until it tastes just right. Don't be afraid to play around with peppermint tea - or any herb tea. Try throwing in a couple of cloves, or using a cinnamon stick as a stirrer. Sprinkle with nutmeg, drop in a little honey, or add a drop or two of pure vanilla essence. Delicious! Caution! do not drink too much peppermint tea if breastfeeding as it can reduce the flow of milk. |
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Nettle Tea
Put 1-3 teaspoons of dried nettle leaves in a tea pot and pour a cup of boiling water over them. Allow to steep for 10 minutes, strain and drink. If you are going to pick and dry your own nettle leaves pick them when young and tender and their stinging hairs are not yet fully formed. |
DECOCTIONSA decoction mostly uses the woody parts of the plant - bark, seeds, roots, and nuts –to get at the mineral salts and bitter principles and instead of being steeped the plants are simmered. You drink it like a tea. You need to break open seeds, nuts and crush the roots and barks (a pestle and mortar is good for this) then bring them to the boil in a pan of water. Pouring boiling water over them isn’t enough to extract their goodness. You can use the same proportions of herb to water as for an infusion. Cover the pan and simmer your herbs for ten minutes before straining. You will need to use slightly more water in a decoction than in an infusion to allow for some of the water boiling away.
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TINCTURES Tinctures take a little more time but they are not hard to make. Tinctures will keep for a year or two. You use them in small quantities. Professionally prepared tinctures use specific ratios of water to alcohol for each plant. These are calculated by assessing the plant’s water content. For home use a general rule of thumb is sufficient: You can use brandy, vodka or rum as your solvent. They already have water mixed with the alcohol. Use 4 oz of dried herb or 8 oz of fresh plant to 1 pint of your chosen alcohol. Put your herbs into a glass jar with a well fitting lid. Pour the alcohol over them. Close the lid tightly and keep the jar in a warm place for two weeks, giving it a good shake twice a day. Strain your mixture through muslin until you have just a herb mash left in your cloth. Squeeze this out well. Pour the liquid into a clean – preferably sterilized - bottle with a lid and keep it refrigerated. You don’t really have to refrigerate tinctures unless you live in a very hot climate but I prefer to store them this way since it keeps them fresh even longer and preserves the plant activity. Tinctures will last longer in brown glass bottles which protect them from the light. |
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SYRUPS Syrups are good for coughs and colds, and for people who can’t take the taste of herbs in the raw. But store them in the refrigerator in bottles with corks as they can ferment and have been known to explode. The basic formula for a syrup is 8 ounces of honey to which you add 8 fluid ounces of infusion or 4 fluid ounces of tincture mixed with 4 fluid ounces of water. You may have to warm the honey first to make sure the herb infusion or tincture can be thoroughly mixed in. Because honey is naturally antibacterial it makes much better syrups than sugar which is the old fashioned way of making them. Use 1-3 teaspoons of syrup as you need it several times a day.
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The classic definition of a herb is a non-woody plant which dies down to its roots each winter. This definition is far too limiting. It was probably made up by 19th Century European botanists who had never seen the rainforest in which, of course there is no winter to die back in. Neither had they ever heard of woody trees and shrubs such as hawthorn and ginko and elder which are some of the best selling herbs on the market these days. I define a herb as a medicinal plant. It can come from any climate and be a leaf, a bark, a flower or a root. It can be home-grown or wild, a weed, a spice, a plant which is used for its healing or culinary or beautifying properties. Once you discover the power of herbs it is easy to become so enthusiastic about them you go overboard trying to use them for everything. It is not wise to take lots of different plants all at the same time. Or you might start to think that since a small amount of something is good for you, taking twice or three times that amount will be even better. It isn’t. If you want safe and sane herbal help here are a few guidelines to follow:
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