I would strongly recommend you find The Herbal Medicine-Maker's Handbook by James Green. It is full of information as well as "recipes" for making infused oils. It is well-written and very friendly to the starting out herbalist as well as the experienced one.

This book suggests that plantain be infused dry. It does have a method for using fresh plant materials. That method uses a constant heat in making the infusion. If you get some more plantain, you may wish to dry the leaves first. Plantain dries very easily. It is often easier to avoid spoilage and related issues when starting with dry materials, especially for beginning herbalists.

Good Luck!

FataMorgana

While using dried materials will lessen the risk of your oil going bad, I would use plantain fresh as well. (Comfrey, I would give 24 hours of drying time.) You just won't get that nice fresh green color otherwise. Adding a few drops of vitamin E will lessen the risk of spoilage as well. While I don't believe it is absolutely crucial to get every single bubble of air out, I would make an effort to get them out if you see them. Good luck - you've made an excellent choice for your first medicinal oil :)

Becki, as you have already infused your plantain fresh, take the top off the jar and replace it with a double layer of cheesecloth. This will help some of the water evaporate from the fresh plant material. Make sure ALL the plant is submerged or you risk mold anyway. And, you will find out, if your jar is too close to full, as the oil heats with the warmth of the day, you will get overflow. So, put a plate under your jar to catch it.

I let my plantain wilt for a day or two before I infuse it. So, it hasn't dried yet, but a lot of the water will evaporate before pouring the oil on. It's referred to as freshly wilted herb.

Thank you, everyone! I will definitley try making it with at least semi-dried leaves next time (which will be soon, as it seems to just keep growing up there!) I was following Susun Weed's instructions for making an infused oil in "Healing Wise", which was why I opted for using them fresh.

I got out all the air bubbles I could see. And I did take the lids off. I am using canning jars, so I put 2 layers of cheesecloth on top, and then screwed it on with a ring. Yes, everything is submerged, and the oil is right up to the top of the jars. The jars are now sitting on a plate, and hopefully are ready to sit for 6 weeks!

I have pretty bad eczema on my hands, and once in a while on my arms. I read a suggestion on the herbalism forum - equal parts of honey, olive oil, and bees wax. I am wondering about using an infused oil for that as well. What would be a recommended herb to use for that? There are so many that I've read are good for eczema - burdock, dandelion, nettle, comfrey, kelp, slippery elm, thyme, chickweed, golden seal, marigold, pansy, and others. Maybe red clover too (though I think was taken internally.) Does anyone have a good suggestion, or do I just need to try differnt ones, and see what works? (BTW, I can't use anything right now that is not safe in pregnancy.)

I really appreciate everyone's help!

Becki

I used to have spots of eczema, then I changed my diet drastically and it just went away. I no longer eat anything with food dyes, preservatives, msg, etc. I'm going to take a guess that it is nitrates or phosphates that is causing the problem for you (hidden in luncheon and cured meats). Most anything in a box or prepared in a can should be suspect.

Creams are fine for the discomfort, but you need to work from the inside to fix the outside. You can make a tea with dandelion root, burdock root, and/or yellow dock root to help flush the liver. Since you are pregnant, you may also want to add red raspberry leaf which is a great uterine tonic. Throw in some nettles or oatstraw for nutritional value and some peppermint or ginger root if you are having issues any nausea/heartburn issues.

Check out Herbal Healing for Women by Rosemary Gladstar.

Here is a link that might be useful: Herbal Healing for Women

Thank you! I will definitly see if I can get my hands on that book, as well as the James Green one mentioned earlier.

I eat VERY little prepared foods, from cans or boxes. I don't eat luncheon meats, but we do eat our own bacon about once a week - that's pretty much the only cured meat I eat.

I did read that perhaps an allergy to cow's milk can cause eczema, but I'm not quite ready to give that up yet. I might try it for a while though and see. I do know that a couple of my children, when I was nursing them, would get colic when I drank cow's milk - I had to switch then, so I suppose I can try swithing again now. I will definitely see what else I can do to change from the inside out!

I am hoping to get started with raspberry leaf tea very soon. We are hoping to order some herbs next week, and that is definitely one of them. I am also getting some nettle and oatstraw and burdock. I can harvest dandelion and peppermint outside, and can get some ginger root at the grocer. Boy - this will be quite the tea! Thank you for the great suggestions!

Becki

Calendula is great for eczema. I make an infused oil for my grandson with it and it seems to help. It is also good for poison ivy rash.

I have to second the calendula salve. It is what I use for some winter skin issues and it works like a champ. You make the salve by infusing olive oil with dried calendula petals. After the oil is ready, add your beeswax. Simple, easy, and so very useful.

BTW, calendula is a great garden plant. Grow a some next year. Harvest your blooms and dry the petals. It takes a while to get any appreciable amount (unless you plant ALOT of it). If you are diligent, by the end of the season you have enough to make some salve from a dozen or so plants. It starts from direct-sown seed very well.

FataMorgana

Thank you for the calendula suggestions! I will definitely grow many next year! I wish I had this year. I will plant lots! : )

Becki

So, I'm thinking I don't really want to wait a year to make a calendula salve. I am going to order some dried petals. About how many ounces do you think it will take to make a quart of oil? The petals are not as cheap as I was hoping, so I don't want to order WAY more than I need.

Becki

The formula Richo Cech gives in his book Making Plant Medicine is 1:5 (dry herb weight in g:oil volume in ml). So his calendula oil recipe calls for 100g dried calendula blossoms and 500 ml olive oil. This is another very excellent book that I can't recommend strong enough. Buy it from the author through the link below. Enjoy!

FataMorgana

Here is a link that might be useful: Horizon Herbs

Something that always helps is to heat the olive oil in the sun for the day (or crock-pot for a couple of hours) and then add only a little more than half the jar with the plant/herb and then fill with the olive oil. after a day you can even remove the plant