Your,Own,Herbal,Expert,your,fi health Be Your Own Herbal Expert - Pt 4

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In your first lessons, you learnedhow to "listen" to the messages of plant's tastes, how to makeeffective water-based herbal remedies, and how to distinguish safe nourishingand tonifying herbs from the more dangerous stimulating and sedating herbs.In this lesson, you will learn howto how make herbal tinctures. You will make tinctures from fresh and driedroots as well as from fresh flowers and leaves. Then you will collect yourtinctures into an Herbal Medicine Chest and begin to use them. Shall we begin? Tinctures Act FastTinctures are alcohol-based plantmedicines. Alcohol extracts and concentrates many properties from plants,including their poisons. Alcohol does not extract significant amounts ofnutrients, so tinctures are used when we want to stimulate, sedate, or make useof a poison. (Remember that nourishing herbs are best used in water bases suchas infusions and vinegars.) The concentrated nature oftinctures allows them to act quickly. It also makes them perfect for afirst-aid kit or herbal medicine chest: a little goes a long way.I have dozens of tinctures in mycabinet. But these are the ones I carry with me when I travel; they are theones I don't leave home without. This is my traveling herbal medicinechest.   EchinaceatinctureMotherworttinctureSkullcap tinctureGinsengtinctureDandelionroot tinctureWormwoodtinctureSt Joan'sWort tincturePoke root tincture (danger)Yarrow tinctureMaking Dried Root TincturesI strongly prefer to maketinctures from fresh plants. But many people have a hard time getting freshplants. Most books therefore ignore fresh plant tinctures and focus on makingtinctures only from dried plants. Theonly dried plant parts I use to make tinctures are roots and seeds. Allother plant parts I use fresh when making a tincture. And I actually prefer touse fresh roots too.To make a tincture from driedroots:Buy an ounce of dried Echinacea augustifolia or Panaxginseng root.Put the whole ounce in a pint jar.The dried root should fill the jar about a thirdfull. If not, use a smaller jar. Fill the jar to the top with the alcohol. Cap tightlyand label.Almost any alcohol can be used tomake a tincture. My preference is 100 proof vodka. A lower proof, such as 80proof, does not work nearly as well. Higher proofs, such as 198 proof orEverclear, can damage the liver and kidneys, so I don't use them to makemedicine.The tincture is ready in sixweeks, but gets stronger the longer it sits. I like to wait about six monthsbefore using my ginseng tincture and a year before using my echinacea tincture. Making Fresh Root TincturesRoots generally hold theirproperties even when dried. But two of my favorite root tinctures must be madefrom fresh roots are the dried ones have lost much of their effect.Making a tincture with a fresh root is similar to makingone with a dried root. With great respect for the plant, dig up its root. Gently rinse mud away. (For more about diggingdandelion root, see Healing Wise.)Chop root into small pieces and fill a jar to the topwith the chopped root.Fill jar to the top with alcohol. Cap tightly. Label.Fresh root tinctures are ready to use in six weeks. Making Fresh Leaf and Flower TincturesI use only fresh flowers andleaves in my tinctures. These delicate plant parts lose aroma and medicinalqualities when dried. Tinctures can be made from dried herbs, but I find them inferior in botheffect (how well they work) and energetics (how many fairies are in it), not tomention taste (how many volatile substances remain) and somatics (how somethingmakes you "feel").What if the plants you need tomake all the tinctures in your medicine chest don't grow where you live or youcan't find them? Try one or more of these solutions.Take a vacation to a place where the plant you needdoes grow. And make sure to go at the best time to gather it. Find an herbal pen-pal who lives in the area wherethe plant you want to tincture grows. Have your pen-pal make a tincture of thefresh plant for you. You could make a tincture of something you have lots of togive to her too. Even if the plants do grow whereyou live, it may take a year or longer for you to find them, harvest them andmake tinctures. While you are "in limbo," it's fine to buy tincturesto use in your herbal medicine chest. When you finally find the plantsyou want, don't be afraid to make several quarts of tincture. Tinctures lastfor hundreds of years if protected from heat and light.St. Joan's wort tincture: Eases muscles spasms, anti-viral,pain-relieving.Pick yellow Hypericumperforatum flowers in the summer's heat. Fill - don't stuff - a jar with the blossoms andleaves.Fill jar to the top with alcohol. Cap tightly. Label.(It will turn bright red.)Your fresh St. Joan's wort tincture is ready to usein six weeks.  Motherwort tincture: Eases menstrual cramps, mood swings,stress.Pick Leonuruscardiaca flowering tops (leaves and flowers) in early fall or late summer.Fill - don't stuff - a jar with coarsely choppedblossoms and leaves.Fill jar to the top with alcohol. Cap tightly. Label.Your fresh motherwort tincture is ready to use in sixweeks.Skullcap tincture: Pain-relief, headache remedy.Pick Scutellarialateriflora flowering tops when there are seeds as well as flowers.Fill - don't stuff - a jar with the blossoms andleaves.Fill jar to the top with alcohol. Cap tightly. Label.Your fresh skullcap tincture is ready to use in sixweeks.      Wormwood tincture: Counters food poisoning and parasites.Pick Artemisiaabsinthemum leaves in the late summer or early fall, when mature.Fill - don't stuff - a jar, with the coarsely choppedleaves.Fill jar to the top with alcohol. Cap tightly. Label.Your fresh wormwood tincture is ready to use in sixweeks.Yarrow tincture: Counters all bacteria internally and externally,repels insects.Pick Achilleamillefolium flowering tops, white ones only, when in bloom.Fill - don't stuff - a jar, with the coarsely choppedherb.Fill jar to the top with alcohol. Cap tightly. Label.Your fresh yarrow tincture is ready to use in sixweeks. Double and Triple TincturesAn herbalist in Austin Texasshared her special way of preparing a tincture that helps her keep her cool instressful situations. She tinctures fresh lemon balm, gathered before itflowers, for six weeks, in 100 proof vodka. She pours that tincture over a newjar of fresh lemon balm leaves. After that sits for six more weeks, it's adouble tincture. She then pours the double tincture over another new jarful offresh lemon balm and lets that sit for six weeks. After which she has a tripletincture. She uses: "A dropperful sublingually - works absolute wondersfor me when I'm stressed out and ready to scream."Plant PoisonsYou remember that there are fourtypes of poisons in plants: alkaloids, glycosides, essential oils, and resins.The first three are fairly easy to move from plants to a tincture. Resins, because they"fear" water (hydrophobic) are difficult to tincture. When I want to tincture a resin I do usehigh proof alcohol. Some examples would be: pine resin tincture, balsam budtincture, calendula flower tincture. Taking TincturesI see many people put herbaltinctures under their tongues. I prefer to protect my oral tissues from theharsh, possibly cancer-causing, effects of the alcohol. I dilute my tinctures in a little water or juice or even herbal infusionand drink them. Using Your TincturesHere are a few of the ways I usethe tinctures in my herbal medicine chest. For more information on using thesetincture, see my books and my website.Acid indigestion:  5-10 drops of Dandelion root or Wormwoodtincture every ten minutes until relieved. I use a dose of Dandelion beforemeals to prevent heartburn.Bacterial infections (includingboils, carbuncles, insect bites, snake bite, spider bite, staph): 3050 dropsEchinacea or Yarrow tincture up to 5 times daily. For severe infections, addone drop of Poke tincture to each dose.Colds: toprevent them I use Yarrow tincture 5-10 drops daily; to treat them, I rely onYarrow, but in larger quantity, say a dropperful every 3-4 hours at the worstof the cold and tapering off. Cramps during menstruation: 10 dropsMotherwort every 20 minutes or as needed. Used also as a tonic, 10 drops daily,for the week before. Cramps in muscle: 25 dropsSt Joan's every 2530 minutes for as long as needed.Cramps in gut: 510drops Wormwood, once.Diarrhea: 3 dropsWormwood hourly for up to four hours.Energy, lack of: 10 dropsof Dandelion or Ginseng tincture in the morning.Fever: 1 dropEchinacea for every 2 pounds of body weight; taken every two hours to begin,decreasing as symptoms remiss. Or a dropperful of Yarrow tincture every fourhours.Headache: 25 dropsSt Joan's plus 3-5 drops Skullcap every 1015 minutes for up to two hours. 5drops of Skullcap may prevent some headaches.High blood pressure: 25 dropsof Motherwort or Ginseng tincture 2-4 times a day.Hot Flashes: 2030drops Motherwort as flash begins and/or 1020 drops once or twice daily.Insect: preventbites from black flies, mosquitoes, and ticks with a spray of Yarrow tincture;treat bites you do get with Yarrow tincture to prevent infection.Nervousness, hysteria, hyperbehavior: 15 drops Motherwort every 1520 minutes.Premenstrual distress: 10 dropsMotherwort twice a day for 710 days preceding menstruation or 10 drops dailyall month.Sore throat: Garglewith Yarrow tincture.Swollen glands: 1 dropPoke root tincture each 12 hours for 2-5 days. Viral infections(including colds and the flu): 25 drops of St. Joan's wort tincture every twohours. Add one drop of poke root tincture 2-4 times a day for severe cases.Wounds: I washwith Yarrow tincture, then wet the dressing with Yarrow tincture, too. In the next installment of BeYour Own Herbal Expert, you will learn about herbal oils, including infusedand essential oils. Future lessons will explore the difference between fixingdisease and promoting health, applications of the three traditions of healing,and using the six steps of healing to take charge of your own health and makesense of medicine.  Experiment Number OneChoose one plant and make severalsmall tinctures of it using different types of alcohol. Taste and smell eachtincture every week or so for 6-8 weeks.Experiment Number TwoBuy or make different tinctures ofthe same plant: dried herb, fresh herb, timed with the moon, in differentmenstrums, made by different people, harvested in different places. Can youtaste differences? Are the effects different? What else do you notice?Experiment Number ThreeMake a double or triple tinctureof motherwort, skullcap, or lemon balm. See if it relieves anxiety,hyperactivity, emotional distress, headaches. I use a dose of 5-30 drops.Remember skullcap can induce sleepiness.Experiment Number FourTincture four plants that arecommon to your area. Learn at least three things they can each be used for andif at all possible, use them.         Further Study1.            What is osmosis? Why does 100 proof vodka makestronger tinctures than 80 proof?2.            What is a menstrum? What other menstrums are used tomake tinctures?  3.            Of the four plant poisons, which are present in eachof plants used in the medicine chest?4.            Why don't I consider vinegars tinctures?5.            How is a glyceride different from a tincture? Advanced workMake a tincture from a resinous plant.Make a glyceride.How is a standardized tincture made? Study with Susun Weed in the convenience of your home!Choose from three Correspondence Courses: Green Allies, Spirit &Practice of the Wise Woman Tradition, and Green Witch - includesaudio/video tapes, books, assignments, special mailings, plus personaltime.  Learn more at http://www.susunweed.com or write to:  Susun WeedPO Box 64Woodstock, NY 12498Fax:  1-845-246-8081