Herbal Teas and Extracts: How Much Should I Use?

Determining how much of an herb to use is fairly straightforward, especially for acute and first aid uses.

  

Most of the time, herbs are measured in drops for liquid extracts and cups for teas.Capsules are another popular choice, but I don't cover them here because, although empty capsules can be filled at home, they have to be manufactured elsewhere. Extracts, on the other hand, can be made at home from start to finish with homemade fruit-based alcohol or apple cider vinegar. Herbal teas can also be grown at home from seed to harvest, so we will look at those as well. 

To determine how much of an herb to give, first determine whether or not it is considered safe for normal use or if it is a low dose botanical. A low dose botanical is an herb that has a traditional record of use in small quantities, but may or may not be considered safe according to modern research. Lobelia is one example. It is potentially toxic and can induce vomiting in large doses, but in small doses was traditionally used as an effective lung support herb for asthma. Normal herbs are given in 15-30 drop quantities, while the dose for lobelia was traditionally started at 5 drops. This is where it is important to have several good books on hand when you are becoming acquainted with a new herb, and it also pays to look up the herb in a more historical work as well. At least one of your reference books should be written by a fairly technical herbalist who likes to go into nitty gritty details such as dosage rather than simply leaving it to be implied. One excellent resource for this is Michael Tierra's book, Planetary Herbology, which briefly covers hundreds of herbs from several traditions around the world.

  

As stated above, most herbal extracts are given in 15-30 drop quantities. This is usually assuming a body weight of 150 lbs, or one to two drops per ten lbs of body weight. One drop per ten lbs is a good place to start for children, and it can be increased to two if needed.

It's been my experience that homemade extracts can have higher levels of sediment than store bought ones, so I'm not really a fan of storing my extracts with dropper top bottles. I use screw on caps but keep clean droppers stored separately- the droppers are convenient, just not when they clog repeatedly. Which they will do, especially on extracts you don't use everyday.

 

So, either store the dropper separately, or learn to use a quarter teaspoon measuring spoon. 1/4 teaspoon of extract equals roughly 30 drops. By adding the extract to a small amount of water and dividing the water in half, you will have approximately 15 drops, and in half again will yield about seven.

Teas are just as straightforward as extracts. One cup (8oz) of tea is enough for one serving for a person weighing approximately 150 pounds. Since there are 16 tablespoons in a cup, estimate one tablespoon of tea for every ten pounds of body weight, and adjust upward as needed

Frequency of use is another consideration. If you know that the herb you are planning to use falls under the category of normal use, next consider what type of problem you are addressing.

If it is an acute imbalance, such as a cold or something else that comes on suddenly, herbs can be taken every hour as needed for a few days. If the imbalance is chronic- something that has been around for months or years, it is generally best to use the herbs two or three times a day, and expect that they will need to be continued for one month to every year the imbalance has been experienced.

Violet Oxymel

Sweet violets are in full swing here on the farm! So far, I have made sweet violet tea, attempted to make sweet violet syrup, and have made two types of violet blossom vinegar. The success with the projects has varied somewhat; the sweet violet tea was surprisingly beautiful, and the vinegars are flavorful and visually stunning, but the syrup accidentally crystalized so I will have to revisit that project later.

The blossoms of purple violets do wonderful things when added to water or vinegar. Here's what they look like in hot water (on the left) and white vinegar (on the right):




I think that the violet infusion would be a lovely menu item for a brunch or tea party (everyone should have tea parties, don't laugh!), and the white vinegar would be very nice for salad dressings or maybe even pickled eggs. Pink like beets, but floral instead of earthy? Yes, please.





But I think the real gem of my violet experiments thus far is Violet Oxymel.

Oxymel is a complicated word for a simple concept: vinegar + honey = oxymel. As a general rule, oxymels are soothing for coughs and sore throats, and a lovely digestive tonic before or after a meal.  They can either be enjoyed by the spoonful without dilution (deliciously sweet and sour), or stirred into a glass of warm or cold water. By infusing the vinegar with different herbs, a rather lively assortment of oxymels can be created. In this case, I used apple cider vinegar, violet blossoms, and local honey.

To make the infused vinegar, use a 1:1 ratio of violets and vinegar. In this case, I used a cup of each. After allowing the blossoms to steep in the vinegar for a week, strain the vinegar through a fine mesh sieve to remove the flowers. The apple cider vinegar won't display as much of a shocking color change, but it definitely takes on a reddish hue.

The ratio of honey to infused vinegar is up to you, but a quarter cup of honey for every cup of vinegar is a good place to start. More honey can always be added if you would prefer that it be sweeter.

Stir the honey into the vinegar. It will usually take a minute or two for the ingredients to mix, so don't worry if the honey seems to clump together at the bottom.

Once the honey has dissolved completely into the vinegar, the oxymel is ready to use!  As a beverage, violet oxymel is especially refreshing  over ice, but tt makes a nice flavored water at room temperature, too. 
  

Other Tips for making Violet Oxymel:

• Use a layer of parchment paper under the lid if you are infusing the violets and vinegar in a canning jar. The vinegar will have a reaction with the metal in the lids and could drip nasty black oxidation into the infusing vinegar. Not tasty! Glass containers with non-reactive lids are definitely better if you have them. 
• Pick violets around noon on a dry, sunny day. The fragrance of the flowers will be at its strongest under these conditions.
• Don't feel bad about picking all the blossoms you need. The purple flowers are just for show- they almost never set seeds! Violets grow a second set of tiny, green flowers in the fall that set seed prolifically. The violets will usually respond to harvesting by producing a second crop of purple flowers, so there will be plenty more in a few days anyway.   
• Use just the blossoms- you don't need the stems. 

Historical Background of Viola odorata

Sweet Violet, Viola odorata, is native to Europe but is very common through out much of the united states. It often grows in lawns and along woodland edges, although it can be hard to spot at first because of its small size. Violet has several properties that merit consideration for household use, especially because it is found so widely in backyards and vacant lots.

There are several culinary uses for Viola odorata. First, the above ground parts are edible. The young leaves can be used as a salad green or lightly steamed much like spinach, while the flowers can be candied, enjoyed as a fragrant tea, or used as a beautiful addition to salads. Violet syrup, also made from the blossoms, is a unique flavoring for desserts and beverages. 

Beyond culinary uses, violet has a historical reputation for being expectorant, ant-inflammatory, diuretic, and alterative.The underground portions of violet should be used with caution if at all, as they have a reputation for being a a very strong purgative and emetic. The leaves and flowers, however, are gentle and mild enough that they were commonly given to children. As a children's herb, Violet was often used to encourage regular bowel movements or to soothe fevers.

Quick and Easy Elderberry Syrup

Elderberry is a great syrup to have on hand. It has a pleasant taste, and is traditionally used to support the immune system during cold and flu season. July isn't exactly cold and flu season, but fresh elderberries will be ripening soon, so this is the time of year to start thinking about making syrup.

If you have access to fresh elderberries, you can usually boil them down with only a little extra water and the end result will be a very strong juice that makes an excellent syrup. If you only have dried berries, though, the process is a little different. I chose to use dried berries because they are very inexpensive and easily available, and they still make a very nice syrup. 

Elderberry syrup can be enjoyed by the spoonful or stirred into a glass of sparkling water, or as a flavored syrup on pancakes, ice cream or whatever strikes your fancy. 

Ingredients:
1/4 cup dried elderberries
1 cup distilled water
1 cup honey (preferably raw)

Supplies:
Non reactive saucepan with lid
Fine mesh strainer
Large glass measuring cup
Glass Jar
Metal Spoon

Place elderberries and water into a saucepan and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat, cover with lid and let stand for ten minutes.

Place mesh stainer over the large glass measuring cup and pour berries and juice into the strainer. Use the back of the spoon to press berries against the strainer until most of the juice has been removed and the berries are mostly dry. Discard the mashed berries, and return the juice to the saucepan.

Add the honey to the juice and return the pan to low heat. Stir constantly until the honey and juice are completely mixed. This doesn't take long, only about 30 seconds or so.

Pour into the glass jar and cap tightly, label and date. Store in the refrigerator.

According to Richo Cech in his book Making Plant Medicine, an herbal syrup made with these proportions (1 part by volume of strong herbal decoction or infusion to 2 parts by volume of Honey) can have an expected shelf life of one year if sterilized glass jars are used.

My syrup yielded about 10 oz for less than $5.00. I found twelve ounces of local honey for around four dollars at a farmer's market, and found four ounces of dried elderberries online for $3.50. The bag of elderberries I bought had about two cups worth of dried berries to play with, so I still have enough berries for three more batches of syrup.

To compare, leading brands of elderberry syrup at my neighborhood health food store can cost as much as $20 for 3oz! 

So Many Herbs. . .

Hundreds of plants fill the pages of herbal books and supply catalogs, and the amount of information can be exciting and overwhelming. It is better to know a lot about a few herbs than to know a little about many, but how does an aspiring home herbalist choose which herbs to learn about first?  How should a home herbalist decide which herbs to grow or purchase for personal and family use? Making a single list for both purposes works surprisingly well.

A list of herbs should be based around the interest of the herbalist, but it is helpful to decide on a general topic. Considering herbs by geographic location or tradition can be easy ways to come up with a list. Geography can be general (rainforest herbs, desert herbs, forest herbs) or related to country, or the list could be focused on herbs that are native to the area in which the herbalist lives. Herbal traditions to consider include Ayurveda, Traditional Chinese, Unani, or Native American. 

Then again, the list could be based on clustering the herbs around traditional uses. To use this approach, select herbs which were used traditionally to support the heart, the lungs, the digestive tract, or other organ systems. An aspiring herbalist could also focus on herbs which have traditionally been used as support for any health challenges they might be facing personally.

 After a guiding topic for the list is decided upon, the list itself can be made from the herbs discovered in the initial research. The list doesn’t have to be long or complicated. For example, focusing on one to three herbs at a time from a longer list of twelve keeps all the information from running together, but also gives the herbalist a long term study goal.  

Once some time has been devoted to studying the herbs on the list, it will be easier to decide which ones to grow or purchase for personal and family use. Research information related to safety when studying each herb, such as potential toxicity, interactions with medications or health conditions, and how to correctly identify the herb. If an herb doesn’t seem like a good fit based on safety data, consider excluding it from purchase. Also, find out if the herb is commonly cultivated or is facing pressure from over harvesting. Make sure the herb is available from sources that cultivate the herb themselves, or work closely with their growers to guarantee that herbs are ethically harvested. If it isn’t available from reputable sources, seek out an alternative herb.

Remember, knowing a few herbs really well (including how to identify them by sight, what they taste and smell like, any interactions they could have with prescription or over the counter medication) and being able to turn to them with confidence is much better than having a vague idea or an inkling about dozens of herbs, for practical as well as safety reasons. Developing a single list of herbs to study and purchase can help aspiring herbalists focus on using herbs safely at home. So, do some reading, make a list, and have fun!

Eight Tips for Herbal Living on a Budget

A few well chosen herbs, tools, and resources can be surprisingly versatile. Here are eight things that I do around the house that keep us happily in herbs, without needing to invest a lot of money into supplies. But be warned: I have found an herbal lifestyle to be habit forming! It's hard not to get hooked when you can feel great for so little. . .

1.    Focus on a few herbs. Make an herbal wish list of ten or fifteen herbs that you want to learn about and/or keep on hand. 

2.    Shop at discount stores or thrift stores for any tools and kitchenware you need for dedicated herbal purposes.  

3.    Drink herbal teas. Herbal teas come in so many wonderful varieties, and they are surprisingly economical. 

4.    Use bulk quantity herbs to make your own teas and extracts- bulk quantities are usually cheaper, and making your own teas and extracts is much less expensive than store bought.

5.    Dedicate a shelf or cabinet for your herbs, and keep an inventory list so you don’t make duplicate purchases.

6.    Use the public library and/or be selective about which books you purchase. At the very least, look for a book that gives detailed information on many different herbs as your main reference book. Then, add to your personal collection over time. Detailed guides to making herbal preparations, books about traditional herbal theory, and even gardening handbooks are other examples of useful reference books that can be added as you go along. 

7.    Grow your own herbs. Some herbs even do well in extra small spaces like patio containers.

8.   Use the plants around you. Learn to identify wild plants (and weeds!) and how to care for and harvest them responsibly. 

 I will probably be revisiting each tip in a post of its own, but I hope that gives you some useful ideas to play with in the meantime. Happy Simpling! Agatha