Decoctions

What is a Decoction?

A decoction is a water based extraction where the plant is placed in boiling water and simmered for a decent amount of time. Decoctions use all herbs including roots, seed and bark. Strong decoctions can consist of double the amount of herb or are simmered for longer (reducing the amount of water).

Decoctions extract constituents from tougher plant material, can be used if there’s no concern about cooking volatile oils and letting them escape, and also serve as the basis for syrups. Decoctions are used in Traditional Chinese Medicine as an herbal healing method called “tangs.”

Due to the extractive method- decoctions can be considered “stronger” or more medicinally potent compared to a tea. It is also a “type” of tea preparation. Here, the word tea can refer to many different preparations or ingredients. For more information about a tea, go to my post about making teas.

How to make a decoction

1 oz. dried herb

32 oz. water

Combine water and herbs, slowly bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce to simmer. Slowly simmer for 10-15 minutes or until volume of water is reduced to half (45-50 minutes). Strain out herbs.

Preservation & Storage

Decoctions are best used immediately. More often, this preparation of herbs is supposed to be used in the moment of making. If you do not consume it right away, the decoction can keep for 24-hours. And if cooled in the refrigerator, it can keep up to 72 hours (some TCM tangs are easiest made in one sitting and then stored for use over the course of 1-2 days).

Decomposition of the starches and mucilaginous herbal constituents will begin once extracted into the water. One of the most common ways of “preserving” a decoction is to make a syrup.

Dosage

Drink ½ cup to 1 cup 3 times per day. As with most herbal preparations, dosage depends on age, body type, and constitution of an individual. It also depends on the type of herbs you are brewing up :)

Drying & Storing Herbs

Drying to preserve potency

Once the herb is harvested, the next step (according to James Green) is to “prolong its potency”. So, you can just eat it…getting all of the medicinal constituents, the flavonoids and minerals right there, already heading to the digestive system to be “processed”.  You can “process” the plant by infusing the herbs as a tincture, oil, vinegar, oxymel, elixir, or honey. And you can simply dry the herb.

When drying an herb, how fast or slow is your herb drying? If you dry your herb too fast, most likely using too much heat, your herb will roast and lose its potency. Drying an herb too slow can either lead to molding or self-destruct by enzymatic actions.

 How to dry herbs

Before drying your herbs, make sure to wash off any soil that may have been harvested with it. Shake or pat water off of herb to lessen moisture.

• Dry your plant matter in a warm, shaded, well ventilated area, ideal temperature is 90-110 degrees Fahrenheit

• Do not bruise your leaves

• Minimal to no humidity is IDEAL

• Protect your herbs from direct sunlight (this can wilt or over-heat or take energy from the plant, changing its potency)

Well-dried herbs keep their color– they do not change into a hay brown or brownish green!

Different Drying Methods

Dehydrator: Place herbs in single layer on drying racks and stack on shelves. Turn dehydrator to 95-100°F and leave on until herbs feel dry and crisp. (This could take up to 2-3 days).

Bundling Herbs for Drying: Make small bundles. Wrap with rubber bands. Hang on clothesline and have them well-spaced in shaded location with warm air circulation. To prevent dust, cover with a paper bag, with small holes cut in it for ventilation.

Drying Screens or Baskets: Place herbs in single layer and space somewhat apart so they get good air circulation. I like to place my herbs on clean window screens and then store them on a wooden clothing/drying rack in front of the wood stove. I make sure that there is about 10-12 inches in between my screens. Again, allowing for good air flow.

Drying Different Plant Parts

It takes about 1-3 days for most of my herbs to dry in a dehydrator, and this all depends on the type of plant, what part I am working with and how I prepare it prior to placing it in dehydrator (leaving it whole versus chopping it into smaller pieces).

Aerial parts of plants will dry according to the type of plant. Demulcent/mucilaginous/”wet” plants will take longer due to the amount of moisture inside the plant.

Flowers dry relatively fast and do not need high temperatures.

Barks can take longer time if they are not peeled or stripped into thin pieces.

Roots take the longest to dry and need to either have higher temperatures, longer drying time or by chopped into small pieces to ensure shorter dry time.

STORING YOUR DRIED HERBS:

Dried herbs will be nice and crisp (or crunchy depending on the plant), dry to the touch and bright in color. Roots and bark might feel hard/solid- without ability to make any indentations with your fingernails. It is critical to make sure your herb is dried before storing it. It is also important to know that the herbs are not hot or warm from when you take them out of the dehydrator (I generally let my herbs “cool down” by letting them sit for a few hours after turning the dehydrator OFF).

Dried herbs keep best in glass jars with tight-fitting lids. However, they can also be stored in non-clear, thick plastic sealed bags or even vacuum-sealed bags.

The key is to store your herbs without exposure to air, light, moisture and heat.

Tinctures

What is a tincture?

Tinctures are herbal extractions made and preserved in an alcoholic menstruum. Tinctures are more powerful and last longer than dried herbs. By making your own tincture, you can control the quality of the product you are making by starting with the herbs you collect yourself and ensure the purity of the final product.

Tinctures extract more of the medicinal constituents from plants- destroying most of the phytonutrients in the process. Tinctures are a water base, hence they can be used for both fresh and dried plants.  Different herbs contain different constituents that are best extracted in different ways. Some herbs only extract in water, others in alcohol and some in oils, while others can be extracted in multiple menstruum yet require certain volume: weight ratios. Check your resources to learn about the best extraction method for the plant and part.

How to make a tincture

Folk Method

Dried or fresh herbs in powdered or cut forms (approx. 200 grams dried and 300 grams fresh)

80-100 proof vodka or rum (1 liter alcohol)

Wide mouth glass jar with lid

1.    If using fresh herbs, finely chop your fresh herb (allowing for as much surface area as possible to come in contact with fluid).

2.    Put herbs into clean jar and cover with alcohol about one inch over the surface of the herbs.

3.    Seal the jar tightly so that liquid cannot leak or evaporate.

4.    Label and shake at least once a day for at least two weeks.

5.    When ready to bottle (decant), pour the tincture through a cheesecloth and strainer into another jar or amber colored glass bottle. Make sure to squeeze the saturated herbs, extracting the remaining liquids until no more drips appear.

6.    Cap tightly, label and store in a cool, dark place.

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What goes on a label?

NAME*

LATIN NAME (plant family too?)

DATE (made)*

ORIGIN (place herb came from)*

FRESH or DRIED

% ALCOHOL

RATIO (if measuring)

USES*

ENERGETICS

*most commonly found on labels

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 Measured Method

This method is considered the “persnickety” method. It allows you to extract your herbs according to standard measurements and ratios that ultimately allow you to calculate the amount of herbs you are taking in grams. This is the “calculated” method that is necessary when making herbs to sell in stores or track a client’s herbal intake. This method is the same as a traditional folk method in that we are adding the menstruum to herbs, capping it tightly, labeling and shaking daily. The only difference is that we will be measuring the herbs by weight and alcohol by volume.

Overall, how to:

1.    Measure weight of herbs in grams.

2.    Calculate volume of menstruum in milliliters based on standard ratios.

3.    Determine % alcohol for best extraction by looking at materia medica manual.

4.    Follow Folk Method above using calculated herb/alcohol measurements.

·      Weight of herb (grams) / Volume of menstruum (milliliters)

·      Standard ratios:      

o   1:2 for fresh herbs

o   1:4 for dry herbs with tough cellular structure (roots, seeds, barks)

o   1:5 for dry herbs such as leaves, flowers, stems and soft roots & bark

o   1:10 for toxic, low-dose herbs (eg. Lobelia, Poke Root) and puffy-herbs (eg. Mullein)

·      Alcohol / Water Menstruum Ratio

o   Different herbs contain different constituents that are best extracted in different menstrua– determine % alcohol in Materia Medica manuals

o   50% alcohol = 100 proof alcohol

o   If you are using 190 proof grain alcohol, you can treat it like 100% to make calculations easy– multiply the total amount of menstruum desired by the percentage of alcohol suggested. The number you get is the volume of alcohol you will need. Subtract this number from the total you originally determined to find the volume of water you need (eg. 75% menstruum = 75%alcohol and 25%water. If you have 200 grams of dried herb and want to make a 1:5 ratio, then you’ll need 1,000mL of menstruum that is 75% So, you will need 75% x 1,000mL = 750mL alcohol and 250mL water)

Preservation & Storage

Tinctures do not need to be decanted. Some folks choose to keep herbs in the infusion for as long as they use it. I do not care for any herbal material exposed to air, so I choose to decant mine. I also believe they have a longer shelf life when stored in air-tight amber-glass jar.

The lifetime of a tincture is debatable. Some say they last 1 year, others will argue 5, and research has found tinctures holding up for almost 100 years. I generally keep mine for 5-8 years for personal use. If sealed tightly and stored in an amber glass jar in a cool, dark location, tinctures can have a long-shelf life.

Noteworthy– I used dropper lids on some tinctures that allowed for the tincture to evaporate. Within one year, the tincture had gone down an eye-catching amount. This was proof that a non-solid, secure lid was not effective storage for my tinctures. Make sure you store your tinctures tightly with solid lids (not elastic/latex dropper bulb tops).

Dosage

A standard dosage is 1 teaspoon, 1-3 times daily, diluted in tea, juice or water.

Mild Tonics= 5 dropperfuls 2-3x/day

Strong Herbs= 10-25 drops 3-4x/day