Salves on Sunday

Too sick to go to the April Barter at Seattle Farm Co-op. It would be rude of me to show up with healing herbal teas while emitting cold germs. Kind of funny too, but I'm not going to do it. The clouds broke around noon today. Instead I am making a couple kinds of salves - 1) motherwort / lavender, 2) calendula. I just emptied a handful of baby jars that I was storing old herbal supplements in to store the salves. For some reason that just seems like the perfect little container.

The process involves steeping oil, beeswax and the herb, then pouring that mixture into containers. Really simple. But is it worth it? <By the way when I googled "do salves work?" it brought up a bunch of information regarding slavery. Something I've never actually researched on the internet, although I should have by now> Herbal salves are useful for cold sores, dry skin, bee stings, etc. Depending on the herb base they may be produced for topical application for various internal complaints, like muscle soreness. They are basically the same thing as a balm - and who doesn't carry lip balm around with them?

There is a really interesting article about the use of herbal salves to heal skin cancer in the 19th century here. Called "Black Salve", a paste of bloodroot, zinc chloride, flour, and water applied to tumors was said to destroy them within 2-4 weeks. This process is actually the application of an "eschar" that removes dead skin cells, so is different than the affect I'm going for.

When I give these to friends I will tell them it's natural skin care that's safe and gentle - because they aren't made with petroleum or other harmful chemicals. The power is in the herb. Calendula is widely accepted within complementary medicine as useful for healing wounds. It contains antioxidants and reduces inflammation, nourishing burns, bruises and cuts. There are no known side affects! Motherwort and Lavender are both relaxant/sedatives. All of these plants can be grown here!