Friday, June 15, 2012

Making tincture with my Herb Buddy


A lovely Friday evening with besties Rachel and Renee. We spend a wonderful evening make tincture from some beautiful plants growing in our community garden plots. Between the two of us we tinctured borage, lemon balm, lavender, artichoke, and st. johns wart. 
Tincture:
Artichoke (Cynara scolymos)
  • 50% vodka
  • Jovial Garden
  • 16oz leaf
  • dosing: 10-60 drops 3-4 times per day
Lavender (Lavandula augustifolia)
  • 70% vodka
  • Jovial Garden
  • 16oz flowering heads
  • dosing: 10-30 drops 3-4 times per day in some water
Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis)
  • 50% vodka
  • Jovial Garden
  • 16oz leaf
  • dosing: 10-60 drops 3-4 times per day
Artichoke, a member of the aster family, is a bitter with cooling tendencies. Cynara scolymus enjoys supporting the liver.
Lavender, a member of the mint family, is a bitter and aromatic herb with cooling and drying tendencies. Lavandula angustifolia has many uses including, anti-inflammatory carminative, diuretic, stress, antidepressant, insomnia and antimicrobial.
Lemon Balm, a member of the mint family, has a slight lemon smell and taste, it is sweet, sour and aromatic with a slightly warm tendency. Melissa officinalis’ indications include anxiety, restlessness, headache, depression, and hypertension. Uses include, nervine, sedative, mild antidepressant, vasodilation, hypotensive, carminative, diaphoretic, antiviral and antioxidant.