WELCOME TO HERB CAMP 2020!
In this first of three weeks of herb camp the theme is “In the Margins”. In the next 7 days, your challenge is to spend 15 minutes a day touching, tasting, smelling, and learning about the herbs in your own environment.
Today’s challenge assignment:
Make an salve for summer skin rashes, sunburn, bites, scrapes, etc. using one or more of the following ASTERACEAE family plants: calendula, arnica, yarrow, or chamomile (tea is fine to use).
Infuse sunflower oil or sweet almond oil with calendula, chamomile, yarrow, or arnica flowers.
Do it the slow way over the next 3 weeks or do it the fast way using heat this afternoon. Then make a skin salve for your first aid kit for burns, scrapes, and insect stings.
The slow way:
Place 1/2 cup of dried herb in a glass 8 ounce jar. Cover with 1 cup of carrier oil. Cap tightly and shake once a day for 3 to 4 weeks. Strain. Retain infused oil. Discard flowers.
The fast way:
Place 1/2 cup dried flowers, and 1 cup of carrier oil in a glass measuring cup. Place measuring cup in a Saucepan with water that goes halfway up the side of the cup. Simmer over low heat for 1 hour. Turn off heat and allow to cool naturally.
Strain the flowers, retain the oil.
Skin salve
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7 tablespoons herb infused oil
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1 tablespoon beeswax
Make a double boiler using a glass measuring cup. Place infused oil and beeswax in the measuring cup. Simmer the water in the saucepan until the beeswax melts. About 10 minutes over medium heat.
Stir briefly. Add essential oils if desired. (50 drops of essential oil is 2%) Pour into jar or tin. Cool completely before completing lid, to prevent mold.
Share a photo in the comments or in the Facebook group of your finished salve.
Note: Click the small arrow on the LEFT to go to the previous day’s Herb Camp Challenge. Click the small arrow on the RIGHT to go to the next day’s Herb Camp Challenge.
I have a mix of arnica, chamomile, yarrow and calendula infusing in sunflower oil. No salve to take a photo of yet. I started it a couple of weeks ago with the very first 4 calendula flowers of the season, and have added a few as they were available.
Making Yarrow infused oil. Yarrow is from the plants I gathered and dried this spring.
Using the fast oil infused method.
Making Yarrow infused oil. Yarrow is from the plants I gathered and dried this spring.
Using the fast oil infused method. Which essential oil would I use with Yarrow?
You could use sunflower, EVO, sweet almond oil. Do you want a salve that will absorb quickly or one that will keep a wound moist? Sunflower is the quick absorption oil, olive oil will keep the wound moist, while sweet almond oil is between the two.
I used Sweet Almond Oil in the salve I made for this project and added a little bit of Tea Tree Essential oil and Lavender Oil. My husband likes the smell of it.
I’m going to use my calendula and chamomile flowers I dried in 2019 since I don’t have any fresh flowers blooming yet. Too early here. I’ve made calendula infused oil before and it’s lovely for skin.
None of my plants of this family currently have enough plant material to do this. However, I am making dandelion infused oil for muscle aches.