Tincture for two....

....and two for tincture.

Well, I'm still single, so on second thought, make it a double for one. Nyuk, nyu~k!

My love life may suck, but I've been getting better at making tinctures. When I first started, I would often use course pieces of fresh plant material and didn't care too much about ratios or how long the mixture had macerated. This was mostly due to some of the books I read in the beginning. Many didn't go into enough detail. There'd be a sentence like, "Loosely fill a jar with [some herb] and pour enough alcohol to just cover it. Shake vigorously daily for 2 weeks. Decant, bottle and label."

So, I ended up with several very weak tinctures, partly because of the above simplistic instructions, but also because I wasn't too concerned with factors like harvest time, specific plant parts, alcoholic strength and so on. But that's a thing of the past. Eight or nine books and a semester of microbiology and an Introduction to Herbal Medicine Making class later, I think I've made some progress.


I do tend to prefer tinctures made with fresh plant material to dried, but I have done both and in some cases substantial evidence exists as to why one method is superior to the other depending on the herb. I've also started using a blender or food processor to get the botanical parts cut up as minutely as possible. Now, I actually weigh the herb and decide beforehand what herb-to-menstruum ratio is favorable; usually between 1:2 and 1:4 for the herbs I currently grow. However, there are more poisonous herbs, such as monkshood, the seeds of which I have gestating under mulch as I type this, for which a 1:10 ratio is preferable.

Alcoholic strength is another detail I've been paying more attention to, if only as a mental notation. Truth be told, my budget won't allow me to purchase enough of the 190-proof ethyl alcohol, or even the 151-proof Everclear for that matter. So, most of my tinctures are made with 40% (80-proof) vodka and recently, I've started using gin, thinking the medicinal properties of the juniper berries used to flavor it would combine well with the herbs being steeped in it. I have even found some 90-proof gin that is very reasonably priced. Since the alcoholic strength is not as strong as I ideally would like, I am extra careful with the other steps. In addition, careful attention is paid to the parts of the plants being used and the time at which they are harvested, and notations are made on labels to reflect this. Finally, I've found comfortable and effective, if crude, means of straining the spent plant matter from the medicine-laden menstruum.

The photo above is of several tinctures I've prepared over the last 6 months or so. What amazes me most is how two different plants may go into their respective tincture preparation looking pretty much equally green and leafy, but yield entirely different colors in the finished product. For example, both Bacopa monnieri and Centella asiatica, shown below, are medium green in color and low-growing creeping herbs. Both have long histories of medicinal use in India and both are referred to as "brahmi" in Sanskrit. Yet, when all the chopping, steeping and shaking was done, Centella came out an opaque sort of honey and lemon color with the slightest pale green tinge, while Bacopa has a dark yet clear amber-like color. Milk thistle, on the other hand, was made from seeds that resemble brown rice that had been uniformly roasted to a darker, almost burnt brown. The tincture, as you can see (above pic), came out looking like milky coffee.

Although I still have a lot to learn, it's an art form that I feel has already become second nature for me.

Black Henbane Gives You Wings!

Ever wonder where the idea of witches flying on broomsticks came from? Well, look no further than henbane, Hyoscyamus niger. It's loaded with alkaloids, including the hallucinogenic hyoscyamine/atropine. It is said that witches would spread a salve, or "flying ointment," of henbane on large sticks which they would then straddle and proceed to vaginally self-administer. The ensuing delirium and hallucinations were known to have the women believing they were airborne.

The herb actually belongs to the solanaceae family which makes it a relative of the potato, eggplant and tomato. It is medicinally known as a strong antispasmodic and is used to calm tremors and spasms in early Parkinson’s disease, as well as quell epileptic convulsions. More commonly, it is used as a sedative and pain killer which is specific for the urinary tract, acting to reduce pain from kidney stones.

Henbane is an herb of the "witches'" and one of several that I grow, the others being mandrake and datura, both of which also belong to the solanaceae family. As usual, I started from seed and after a couple of months, was pleasantly surprised at the beautiful and exotically shaped plant it turned out to be. The leaves of the young plant are very soft and covered with down like hairs. Later, they become sticky and start to exude the heady aroma characteristic of many solanaceae plants. The pale yellow flowers are speckled with a deep violet-brownish color. Once the flowers start to bloom, the branches begin to grow outward in a tentacle-like fashion, with new flowers replacing the old ones on the ends of the extending branches. It actually gives the impression of flowers in flight caught in a sequence of snapshots.

Just so there's no misunderstanding, henbane is very poisonous, capable of inducing coma and death. To date I have not ingested or admnistered this legendary herb to myself or anyone else, vaginally, anally or otherwise! As such, I have no anecdotal accounts of its hypnotic nature. I will continue to grow it for the unique touch it adds to the garden and its intriguing character. And who knows if one day a leaf or three might not accidentally flutter their way into my salad bowl...?

Pokeberry wine - a bloody mess!

There was literally blood on my hands - pokeberry blood. This plant, Phytolacca americana, is considered a powerhouse of an herb by many an herbalist. Like most entities of formidable vitality, pokeberry too is a double-edged sword which must be approached with the utmost respect. The root is most potent, but all parts of the plant are potentially poisonous, depending on the method of preparation being employed. That said, with reverence, astute attentiveness, patience and benevolent intentions, you might succeed at harnessing its healing energies for the good of all humankind!!

....Ok, my superhero fantasies aside, I began my relationship with pokeberry, also known as pokeroot, pokeweed, etc., from seeds purchased from a Canadian online herb store. The package arrived and I was psyched as usual. I planted some immediately then hit the books. I learned that it is primarily an herb which benefits the lymphatic system. Lymph is a nearly clear fluid that travels through a body-wide network of vessels, supplying your system with disease fighting cells, including white blood cells. Tied into poke's effects on the lymphatic system is its growing use as an anti-cancer/anti-tumor medicine. The chemical nature of the roots is so strong that it is used to literally burn off superficial tumors. It is also an antiviral and anti-inflammatory with substantiated effectiveness on the immune system, even improving some autoimmune disorders, such as certain forms of arthritis.

Long story short, it's harvest time! I decided to start with the berries, as the ripe ones are the least poisonous part of the plant. I had read accounts of pokeberry wine relieving arthritis and all manner of internal aches and pains, with just a daily tablespoon or two in the morning and evening. But be forewarned! The berries bleed. Even here, however, its "blood" exemplifies the dichotomous nature of this plant, the juice of which offers the most beautiful display of crimson gore I have ever laid eyes on. Simply mesmerizing. But, if you aren't careful, your kitchen may end up resembling the scene of a vicious crime.

As the seeds are poisonous, I squeezed the juice from the berries using a strainer, discarding the seeds, and obtained about 2 cups of juice. I set this aside and in a pot poured 5 cups of water, added 1.5 cups of sugar, 3 slices of ginger, one wedge of lemon, half a cinnamon stick and 5 cloves. I brought this to a boil and let it simmer for 15 minutes. I turned off the fire, removed the ginger, lemon, cinnamon and cloves, strained the remaining liquid and to it added the 2 cups of pokeberry juice. I mixed the contents, sprinkled a quarter packet of brewer's yeast and stirred some more. I put this into an airtight fermentation jar and allowed it to ferment for about 3 weeks, stirring daily until the foaming ceased. I bottled this batch just the other day and will now let it age for about 3 months.

This is as far as I've gotten on this project. But do check back around Valentine's Day for the results of my taste test, and later, self administered medicine trial. Should be filled with lots of drama and suspense!