Herbs are truly gifts from Earth. Plants that grow in our gardens or in the wild are full of beauty and vitality and their own unique healing energy. My love affair with herbs began over thirty years ago. But it wasn’t until I moved to Fryeburg, Maine (I moved from ME to NY in 2018, leaving that large garden behind, but I still garden and grow most of the herbs I use in my creams and salve), that I was able to use fresh herbs that I grow or wild-harvest myself. Over the years that garden has expanded to include over fifty different herbs that I use in various ways, including herbal skin care. This article focuses on a few skin-loving herbs that are simple to grow or find in the wild. I will also share with you how to make a basic herbal oil that can be used as is or as the basis for healing salves.
Calendula officinalis (second picture) is the best skin care herb ever! It’s easy to grow and blooms prolifically from summer to frost in sunny yellows, oranges, even reds and maroons. Though Calendula is an annual it will often reseed itself year after year. Calendula is anti-viral, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, antiseptic, and anti-inflammatory. It promotes skin regeneration and heals rashes, burns, skin problems associated with radiation therapy, sores and ulcers, minimizes scar tissue, and is an excellent skin moisturizer. You can add the fresh or dried flowers to a bath, or make a compress to ease burns and rashes. My favorite way to use calendula is to infuse the flowers in oil which can then be used for whatever you like. It makes an excellent massage oil and is even gentle enough for healing and preventing diaper and heat rashes on baby’s tender skin. If you have a skin issue and are in doubt about what to use, start with Calendula. You may not have to seek further.
Though not generally considered an herb, the beautiful, fragrant rose will love your skin. There are many varieties but I love Rosa Rugosa for medicine and skin care. Growing up I called them wild roses or, near the ocean, beach roses. Flowers range from pale pink to deep magenta, and are wonderfully fragrant. Rose infused oil is suitable for all skin types especially dry, sensitive, irritated, and mature skin. And over time Rose’s astringent effect will greatly diminish those tiny red capillaries close to the skin’s surface. It takes a lot of Rose petals to make Rose infused oil, so if you’re not blessed with a large hedge nearby, you can use dried organic Roses. Or you can add Rose essential oil to a carrier oil like almond, coconut, olive, or jojoba. Pure Rose essential oil is costly but worth it, and there are two kinds. Rose otto, extracted through steam distillation, is lighter in color with a softer fragrance, and is most therapeutic – and more costly. Rose absolute is obtained through solvent extraction, is thick, reddish, and very fragrant. It is often available diluted in a carrier oil like jojoba (10% dilution is common). Bear in mind that if you buy over-the-counter cosmetics scented “rose” they are most likely not made with real essential oil, but rather fragrance oil that has no therapeutic qualities and is often a petroleum product.
Many people are familiar with St. John’s wort’s (hypericum perforatum) (third picture)anti-depressant qualities when taken internally, but the sunny, yellow flowers infused in oil can speed the healing of burns, wounds, cold sores, herpes and shingles. The oil can also ease muscle aches, nerve pain, and heal bruises. Considered a “noxious” weed by many, St. John’s wort is a powerhouse of healing: anti-inflammatory, astringent, anti-viral, antioxidant. Only the flowers are used, picked when newly opened, staining your fingers maroon. When ready, the oil will be deep red. St. John’s wort grows in “waste” places and on roadsides, though gathering there isn’t recommended due to possible contamination. It usually begins flowering in late June in New England, and flowers for a month or more.
Comfrey (Symphytum officinale Boraginaceae) (first picture) is another excellent skin-loving herb. Comfrey is easy to grow and attracts lots of bees and butterflies when in bloom. Herbalist Adele Dawson (author of Health, Happiness and the Pursuit of Herbs), regarded it as “a one-herb pharmacy”. Today Comfrey is not recommended for internal use due to compounds known as Pyrrolizidine Alkaloids, toxic to the liver. However, for external use comfrey is still, and justly, highly regarded. One of its constituents, allantoin, protects and heals injured tissues. Comfrey has been called knitbone for its ability to aid in the healing of sprains, torn cartilage, and broken bones. The whole plant is useful, and when I make Comfrey oil I use flowers, leaves, and roots. As an oil or salve, alone or in combination with other herbs Comfrey aids in the healing of wounds, sores, sprains, swollen joints, scrapes, bruises, skin irritations, and rashes. The leaves, dried or fresh, can be made into a poultice and applied to injuries. The only caveat when using Comfrey for healing – don’t apply right away on deep wounds that need to heal from the inside first; you don’t want the skin to heal over before internal healing has taken place.
Plantain (Plantago major Plantaginaceae), generally regarded as a weed is far from useless! Internally it benefits the urinary system and lungs, and the seeds have uses similar to psyllium and flax. Externally Plantain aids in the healing of eczema, psoriasis, burns, wounds, cuts, and rashes, as well as hemorrhoids. A bit of the leaf, chewed or crushed, relieves the itching and stinging of insect bites and nettle rash. Like Comfrey, Plantain can be made into a compress or infused in oil for external use. It’s an excellent addition to an all purpose healing salve.
To make infused oils: Pick fresh unsprayed herbs or flowers. Wilt in a single layer on screen/paper to evaporate excess moisture. Two to three days for “juicy” Calendula or Comfrey, hours only for Plantain or St. John’s wort, not at all for delicate rose petals. Fill clean jar 2/3 to 3/4 full with herbs (cut into small pieces if large), add oil to the top (extra virgin olive is excellent), remove air bubbles, cap tightly, place jar in a sunny window, and let steep for three to four weeks. Strain through cheesecloth, gently squeezing out the oil. If cloudiness settles on bottom, carefully pour clear oil into another jar. Store in a cool, dark place. The oil can be used as is or made into healing salves and creams. I prefer sun-infusing my oils, but this isn’t always possible. You can also use a crock pot. Put jar in crock pot with water up about 1/3 to 1/2 of the jar’s height, lid loosely screwed on, temp on low for 2-3 hours, then turn heat off 2-3 hours, repeat until herbs are “spent”. This usually takes a few hours to a day. Don’t leave crock pot on overnight!
When growing, harvesting, preparing, and using herbs I feel it is important to keep in mind the spiritual, energetic qualities these plants offer us. Use only the most vibrant plants and when wild-harvesting, do so with care and respect and leave more than you take. Honor the plants with gratitude, however resonates with you: prayer, an offering, a heartfelt “thank you”. When I make oils or tinctures, after the jar is filled, the liquid is poured, and the jar sealed, I close my eyes and while shaking the jar I envision the herb surrounded by the tiny dancing lights that to me represent the plant devas. I offer them my sincere gratitude and love. For healing with herbs is medicine – and magic.
Susan Meeker-Lowry is an herbalist, organic gardener, writer, and owner of Gaia’s Garden Herbals, a small, home-based business offering high quality herbal creams, salves, oils, and other herbal products, many made with herbs she grows or wild-harvests. Her products are made in small batches using only pure, mostly organic ingredients, and can be purchased at: www.etsy.com/shop/GaiasGardenHerbals