SALVES and INSTRUCTIONS

Chickweed Salve

2 part Chickweed
2 part Plantain
1 part Comfrey Leaf
Olive oil
Beeswax
Tincture of Benzoin or Vitamin E
Notes - If 1 part equals 1/3 cup then you will need 12 - 14 ounces
of oil and about 1 ounce of beeswax.
Use this salve to soothe itching caused by insect bites
and rashes, and to aid healing of minor skin irritations.

St. John's Wort Salve

1 part St. John's Wort
1 part Calendula
1 part Comfrey leaf
1 part Plantain
Olive Oil
Beeswax
Tincture of Benzoin or Vitamin E

Great all purpose salve. Use for insect bites, itching, wounds, burns and on fungal infections.

Baby Salve

1 part St. John's Wort
2 part Calendula
1 part Comfrey leaf
1 part Comfrey root
1 part Plantain
Olive Oil
Beeswax
Tincture of Benzoin or Vitamin E

Goldenseal Salve

1 part Goldenseal Root
1 part Comfrey Root
1 part Calendula
1 part Echinacea
1 part Myrrh
Olive Oil
Beeswax
Tincture of Benzoin or Vitamin E
Use this salve to prevent infection
and aid in the healing of wounds.

Black Walnut Salve

2 part Black Walnut
2 part Chaparral
1 part Myrrh
1 part Burdock
1 part Echinacea
Olive Oil
Beeswax
Tincture of Benzoin or Vitamin E
Optional - Tea Tree Oil - 10 drops per ounce
This salve is primarily used to fight fungal infections
such as, eczema, ringworm, and athletes foot.

Dreamtime Salve

2 part Mugwort
1 part Rosemary
1/2 part Spearmint
1/2 part Calendula
1/2 part Sage
1/4 part Lavender
Olive Oil
Beeswax
Tincture of Benzoin or Vitamin E
Apply Dreamtime Salve to your temples at bedtime to encourage imaginative dreams.

Eucalyptus Salve / Chest Rub

30 drops Eucalyptus essential oil
40 drops Camphor essential oil
15 drops Wintergreen essential oil
1 ounce Olive Oil
1/2 teaspoon Beeswax
Melt the beeswax in the olive oil.
Remove from heat and add the essential oils.
Stir, pour into salve container and label.
Eucalyptus salve is used to relieve respiratory congestion.

Directions for Making Salve:
These recipes require you to use parts rather than a specific volume of each herb.
This technique allows you to easily adapt the recipe.
If you want a small amount of salve you can choose one tablespoon as your part,
if you want a large amount of salve you might choose 1/2 - 1 cup as your part.
The amount of oil needed is enough to completely cover the herbs,
plus an inch of oil above the level of the herbs.
The tricky part of this is determining exactly how much beeswax is needed to harden the salve.
You can approximate the proportions based on the following equivalents.
One pint of oil will need about 1 1/2 ounces of beeswax,
or one ounce of oil will need about 1/2 teaspoon of beeswax.
There are about 5 teaspoons of beeswax in an ounce.
If you intend to make your salve using freshly collected plants,
you will want to clean them.
Do this by shaking them to remove dirt then spread
the herbs out to allow them to air dry for
several hours ( until wilted ) to reduce the moisture content.
Fresh chickweed, for example, contains a lot of moisture
and this water content could cause your salve to spoil quickly.

To begin your salve,
measure the desired amount of herbs into an enamel or stainless steel pan,
or into a crock pot.
Cover the herbs with oil.
Use enough oil to cover the herbs plus another inch of oil above the level of herbs.
Heat the herbs and oil over a low heat for several hours ( about 3 hours).
If you are using roots you should heat the oil longer( about 5 hours).
I strongly encourage you to use a crock pot
for heating your oil because it operates at a controlled low temperature
which is less likely to be a fire hazard.
If you don't use a crock pot then use a double boiler.
After heating, cool your oil for awhile.
Set up a strainer lined with cheesecloth
then pour the oil through to strain.
When most of the oil has filtered through the cheesecloth,
pick up the cheesecloth, keeping the herbs enclosed,
and squeeze as much oil as possible from the herbs and cloth.
Add beeswax to the oil and heat it until all the wax is melted.
To test to see if your salve is hard enough,
put some on a spoon and set it in a cool place for a few minutes.
If your salve is too soft, add more beeswax.
If you are using essential oils,
Tincture of Benzoin, or Vitamin E.,
you can blend them in now.
Finally, pour your salve into containers and label.

FORMULARY