The art of healing comes from nature. Not only can you feel the positive benefits on all of your senses when spending time in nature, but also by processing plants as one of elements of nature. To meet the call of your tummy for fresh and locally sourced food is just one benefit of foraging, however if you explore more, you will find out the benefits of wild plants in folk medicine, for clothing or shelter, and their aesthetic values. Previously, I have talked about the uses of broadleaf plantain (Plantago major) in Broadleaf Plantain (Plantago major), The Healer Plant and Egg Substitute article, and here I will tell you how to make the multipurpose salve from the plant.
I was inspired to make the multipurpose plantain salve after returning back to the big city of Tangerang. The fierce instinct of mosquitoes to survive there triggered itchy and inflamed bumps on my skin. Fortunately, I had brought a small jar of broadleaf plantain infused oil with me there. The leaves of broadleaf plantain were foraged from a mountain in Magelang, where the plant was found very easily among its beautiful scenery.
Ingredients you need to prepare for this multipurpose salve:
Sunflower seed oil: as much as you need in your glass jar
Dried broadleaf plantain leaves: 4 gr
Candelilla wax: 4 gr
Shea butter: 3 gr of measuring spoon
Lavender essential oil: 2 drops
Lavender buds: As much as you need (optional)
*This recipe is vegan friendly and made to fit a 15 ml tin can.
PROCESSING THE INGREDIENTS
Infusing Broadleaf Plantain Leaves in Oil
Before making this salve, you need to make broadleaf plantain infused oil first, and the method I usually use is the solar infusion method.
For this, you need carrier oil which has benefits for your skin such as coconut oil, olive oil, sunflower seed oil, etc. In this occasion I used sunflower seed oil that is beneficial to hydrate skin, suitable for different types of skin, and is odorless, so it can maximize the aroma of the herbs extracted in the oil. For the leaves, I harvested them from area that were not near highways, dumpsters, or sprayed with pesticides, basically free of environmental contamination. Then I dried the leaves by hanging them on my herb rack for a few days until crispy dry, to remove any moisture that could cause mold.
Put the dried leaves in a small, clean glass jar and leave about 1-3 cm space on the top. Add the oil in, up to the neck of the jar. Make sure the leaves do not stick to the surface of the oil, put the lid on tightly on the jar, and place it in a warm or sunny area for at least 2 weeks. OH YES, your patience is part of the recipe too. Once a day, you can mildly shake the jar to help extracting the beneficial compounds from the plant.
After 2 weeks or more, strain the infused oil, and you can use it for your salve making directly or store until ready to use.
Melting the Solid Ingredients
To melt the solid ingredients (candelilla wax and shea butter), do it like when you melt chocolate on stove. First, bring about 2-3 cm of water to a simmer with gentle heat in a cooking pot. Stack another stainless steel bowl on top of the pot to melt 4 gr of candelilla wax, and mix with 3 gr of shea butter. Stir with a spoon as they melt.
Combining Other Ingredients
After all the wax and butter melted, add 8 ml broadleaf plantain infused oil in and stir. Turn off the stove, add 2 drops of lavender essential oil, and stir again. Before the mixture solidifies due to the decrease in temperature, pour it into your salve container immediately and sprinkle a pinch of lavender buds on top to add the anti-inflammatory benefits to your salve. Wait about 5 minutes for your salve to solidify and it’s ready to use.
The broadleaf plantain salve can be directly applied to the skin for insect bites or scar recovery, as a lip balm, and moisturizer for dry skin. Based on the shelf life of the ingredients used in this recipe, this salve can last up to 1 year.
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