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Comfrey salve turns the broad green leaves of an old-fashioned permaculture herb into a topical balm for back pain, sore muscles, bruises, and stiff joints. Peer-reviewed studies have shown that topical comfrey works fast, with measurable pain relief setting in within about an hour of application.
Table of Contents
- Notes from My Homestead
- Benefits of Comfrey Salve
- Important: Don’t Ingest Comfrey
- Ingredients for Comfrey Salve
- Equipment for Comfrey Salve
- How to Make Comfrey Salve
- Salve Consistency Notes
- Storage and Shelf Life
- Recipe Tips & Variations
- Ways to Use Comfrey
- Comfrey Salve FAQs
- Natural Pain Relief & Herbal Remedies
- Comfrey Salve Recipe
- Herbal Salve Recipes
Common comfrey (Symphytum officinale) and Russian comfrey (S. uplandicum) are fast-growing leafy plants that spread aggressively in any garden bed they take a liking to. New plants can sprout from even tiny sections of root left in the soil, which is why some homesteaders call comfrey consider comfrey invasive. It’s also one of the most useful plants you can grow, both as a deep-rooted soil amendment for the garden and as a topical herbal medicine for the medicine cabinet.
I keep comfrey growing right alongside the vegetable garden because the bees love the flowers and I can cut it back several times a season for mulch or for salve. If you don’t have comfrey growing nearby, dried comfrey leaf or comfrey root are both easy to buy online, and both work in this recipe. Comfrey isn’t picky.
If you are using homegrown comfrey, make sure you can properly identify comfrey and avoid lookalikes.
Notes from My Homestead
I use comfrey salve for my chronic low back pain, which I’ve been collecting in small installments for years now. Long summer days bent over the vegetable beds, winters hauling a chainsaw around our woodland homestead to cut firewood, hours splitting logs by hand. None of it is glamorous, but it’s all just part of the deal when you’re trying to live close to the land. The back pays the price.
What surprised me about comfrey salve the first time I made it was how quickly it works. I’d assumed homemade herbal remedies were the kind of thing you used because they were nice to have, not because they actually competed with anything off the pharmacy shelf. Comfrey was the first salve that made me change my mind. By the time we’d cleaned up the kitchen after a batch, my husband had rubbed some into his shoulder and was already moving more easily. We keep a tin in the bathroom, a tin in the truck, and one out in the workshop. It’s the most-used herbal salve recipe in my rotation.
Making more, almost out. Family loves it, and yeah, I think it works better than my other salves for my low back pain. It’s awesome!
Benefits of Comfrey Salve
Comfrey has been shown to reduce inflammation, reduce pain, and speed skin healing. It contains allantoin, a substance believed to promote healing by stimulating the growth of new cells. Herbalists commonly recommend comfrey salves for sprains, strains, muscle pain, arthritis, bruises, and recovering from fractures.
Topical use is the standard modern application. Older herbals recommended consuming comfrey internally for everything from broken bones to digestive complaints, but contemporary research has identified pyrrolizidine alkaloids in the plant that can damage the liver when consumed. Topically though, comfrey remains in active use for pain relief and minor wounds, and the clinical evidence is more compelling than for most folk remedies.
Comfrey for Back Pain
The British Journal of Sports Medicine studied topical comfrey creams for acute back pain and found that pain intensity decreased by 95% in the comfrey-treated group, compared to 38% in the placebo group. Most notably, the study found that comfrey is fast-acting, with relief experienced in about an hour. The study concluded that comfrey root extract showed a remarkably potent and clinically relevant effect in reducing acute back pain.
Comfrey for Osteoarthritis
Multiple studies have shown that comfrey salves reduce pain and increase mobility in patients with osteoarthritis. A study on osteoarthritis of the knee found that pain was reduced by more than 50% with comfrey creams, as opposed to 10 to 15% with placebo during a 3-week study period. Another similar study confirms these results, though it also noted a few cases of topical skin reaction to comfrey.
While pain is reduced and mobility increased, yet another study went further and found that though the symptoms are reversed, the actual measurable inflammation and cartilage breakdown within the knee are not improved. Comfrey may reduce osteoarthritis pain and symptoms, but it isn’t healing the underlying condition.
Comfrey for Sprains
Comfrey’s pain-relieving effects extend to joint sprains. One study found that topical applications of comfrey are as effective as synthetic prescription pain-relieving gels for sprain pain. The study only addressed pain symptoms, however, and didn’t investigate whether comfrey creams helped heal the underlying injury.
Important: Don’t Ingest Comfrey
Comfrey is for external use only. Never take it internally in any form, even as tea or tincture.
- The pyrrolizidine alkaloids in comfrey can cause liver damage when consumed, and the doses can build up cumulatively.
- Old herbal manuals that recommend internal comfrey use are out of date. Don’t follow those recipes.
- Topical comfrey salve is the safe and effective way to use this plant. Pyrrolizidine absorption through intact skin is minimal.
- Do a patch test on a small area before using comfrey salve broadly. A small percentage of people develop skin reactions, particularly during longer-term use.
Ingredients for Comfrey Salve
This is a three-ingredient salve. The trickiest part is just deciding which form of comfrey to start with.
- Dried comfrey leaf or root (or fresh, see below): Dried is the default for salve making because dried herbs don’t introduce water into the oil during infusion. Dried comfrey leaf and dried comfrey root are both widely available online, and you can use one or the other or both together. The roots are traditionally considered more potent for pain relief; the leaves are easier to harvest if you’re growing your own. Fresh comfrey works too, with a warm infusion method covered below.
- Olive oil (or another neutral carrier): Olive oil is my default for salves because I always have it on hand. Coconut, sweet almond, grape seed, and jojoba all work too. See the herbal infused oil guide for more on choosing a carrier.
- Beeswax (pellets or grated from a block): Thickens the oil and gives the salve its set. Pellets are easier to measure and melt, but a block of beeswax grated on a cheese grater also works. For a vegan version, substitute candelilla wax and see the vegan herbal salve recipe for ratios.
Equipment for Comfrey Salve
You don’t need much, and most of it is probably already in your kitchen.
- Pint mason jar to hold the herb and oil during infusion
- Fine mesh strainer plus a square of cheesecloth for straining the infused oil
- Small saucepan or double boiler for melting in the beeswax at the end
- Small kitchen scale for weighing beeswax (or use pre-measured 1 oz beeswax bars)
- 2 oz salve tins (or small upcycled glass jars or quarter-pint mason jars) for the finished salve
- For fresh-herb warm infusion only: a dehydrator, Instant Pot, or warm water bath setup (see below)
How to Make Comfrey Salve
Making comfrey salve follows the same basic process as making any herbal salve. The herb infuses into oil, and the oil gets thickened with beeswax.
Choosing Your Comfrey
Dried comfrey is the easier starting point for most people. The herb is shelf-stable, widely available online, and doesn’t introduce water into the oil during infusion. Use it whole or roughly chopped to expose more surface area. If you have access to both dried leaf and dried root, a 50/50 mix gives a well-rounded salve.
Fresh comfrey from your own garden works too, with the caveat that you need to use a warm infusion method to drive off the water content before it can spoil the oil. Harvest the leaves on a dry day, ideally when the plant isn’t in flower, and chop them coarsely to release the medicinal compounds. Roots can be dug, scrubbed, and chopped fresh as well, though they’re easier to work with after at least a quick drying in a dehydrator.
Infusing the Oil
Fill a pint mason jar about two-thirds full with dried comfrey, then cover with oil to within about an inch of the top. For dried herb, the traditional cold infusion method is the simplest approach: cap the jar, set it on a shelf out of direct sunlight, and let it infuse for 4 to 6 weeks before straining.
Shake the jar every few days to keep the herb moving through the oil. Longer infusion gives a more potent salve, so don’t worry if life gets in the way and you leave the jar sitting for two months.
For fresh comfrey, or when you don’t want to wait 4 to 6 weeks, use the warm rapid infusion method instead. The oil needs to be kept warm at around 110 to 120°F for 24 to 48 hours, kind of like homemade yogurt. There are a few different ways to pull this off, depending on what you have in the kitchen.
The simplest method is to set the jar in a bowl of warm (but not hot) water and check the water every few hours, refreshing it as it cools to keep things warm. An Instant Pot on “yogurt mode” works well and is mostly hands-off. A dehydrator set to 115°F is even easier, since it holds temperature automatically and gives you the steadiest warmth of any method I’ve tried.
A slow cooker on its own is too hot. Even the “keep warm” setting runs at least 170°F, which will cook the comfrey and weaken the finished salve. You can use a slow cooker as an insulator by filling it with warm water around the jar, but you’ll need to refresh that water periodically. It works, but it isn’t set-and-forget. Whatever method you use, leave the jar lid loose or off during a fresh-herb warm infusion so excess moisture can evaporate.
Straining and Combining with Beeswax
When the infusion is finished, set a fine mesh strainer over a clean jar or measuring cup, line it with a square of cheesecloth, and pour the oil through. Squeeze the cheesecloth gently to release the last of the oil. Compost the spent comfrey.
The standard ratio for salve is 1 part beeswax to 8 parts oil by weight, which gives you about 4 finished 2-oz tins from a single pint-jar infusion. Return the strained oil to a small saucepan or the top of a double boiler. Add the beeswax and warm gently over low heat, stirring constantly, until the beeswax has melted completely and the mixture looks smooth and uniform. If you don’t have a scale and you’re using pellets, one ounce of beeswax is roughly one heaping tablespoon.
Pour the finished salve into your tins or small jars. Let them sit undisturbed for at least 30 minutes to set up before putting lids on or using.
Salve Consistency Notes
The 1 oz beeswax to 8 oz oil ratio gives you a medium-firm salve that softens on contact with warm skin. Adjust to taste:
- To test before pouring: drop a spoonful onto a cold plate from the freezer. Let it set for 30 seconds, then check the texture.
- Too hard? Gently rewarm the salve and stir in a tablespoon of oil at a time until it’s the consistency you want.
- Too soft? Gently rewarm and stir in a teaspoon of beeswax at a time.
- For a stick or lotion bar: increase the beeswax to about 1 1/4 oz per cup of oil.
- Coconut oil substitution: coconut oil is solid at room temperature, so use slightly less beeswax to compensate (around 3/4 oz per cup of oil).
Storage and Shelf Life
Store finished comfrey salve in a cool, dark, dry place. A pantry shelf, medicine cabinet, or bedside drawer all work. It keeps its potency for 1 to 2 years thanks to the beeswax barrier and the absence of water in the recipe. The main risk to shelf life is the oil eventually going rancid, so use fresh oil when you make a batch and you’ll get the longest life out of it.
If the salve ever smells rancid or shows any sign of mold, toss it. For longer shelf life, you can add a few drops of vitamin E oil when you stir in the beeswax. It acts as a natural antioxidant. If you make more salve than you can use in a year, the small tins make excellent gifts for friends and family who garden or do physical work.
Recipe Tips & Variations
- Leaf vs. root: Root is traditionally considered more potent for deep pain (joints, back). Leaf is easier to harvest and dry. A 50/50 blend gives a well-rounded salve and uses what you have on hand.
- Combination salves: Comfrey pairs beautifully with calendula for skin-soothing or with dandelion for an all-around gardener’s balm. Several readers have written in with a 50/50 comfrey-calendula mix they swear by. The 20+ herbal salve recipes roundup has more pairings worth trying.
- Powdered comfrey: If you’ve ground your dried comfrey to a powder, use 1 to 2 tablespoons per half cup of oil. Powder is harder to strain out cleanly, so double up the cheesecloth and squeeze gently.
- Adding essential oils: Stir in 10 to 15 drops of lavender, peppermint, or another skin-friendly essential oil per cup of finished salve, just before pouring into tins. Peppermint adds a pleasant cooling effect that pairs well with the warming feel of comfrey.
- Vegan version: Substitute candelilla wax for beeswax. See the vegan herbal salve recipe for the right ratio (candelilla is harder than beeswax, so you use less).
Ways to Use Comfrey
The salve is the workhorse, but comfrey has other uses worth knowing about. Fresh leaves can be wilted and applied directly to a bruise or strain as a poultice, wrapped with a clean cloth and left on for an hour or two. The leaves are also one of the most useful soil amendments in the permaculture toolkit, because comfrey is a deep taproot that pulls minerals up from the subsoil where most garden plants can’t reach.
If you’re building out a home apothecary, comfrey salve sits comfortably alongside willow bark for internal pain relief, wild lettuce as another topical pain option, plantain salve for bites and scrapes, and yarrow salve for cuts that need help closing. For a broader look at what to grow or stock, the 100+ medicinal plants guide covers the full apothecary.
Comfrey Salve FAQs
No. Comfrey is one of the herbs that isn’t considered safe during pregnancy or nursing, even applied topically. The pyrrolizidine alkaloids in comfrey can be absorbed through the skin in small amounts, and there’s no clear safety threshold established for pregnancy. Skip comfrey salve in favor of safer options like plantain salve or calendula salve until after you’re done nursing. Check with your doctor or a clinical herbalist if you’re not sure.
Both work, and you can use them together. The roots are traditionally considered more potent for deeper pain like back and joints. The leaves are easier to harvest if you’re growing your own and are more widely available dried online. A 50/50 mix of leaf and root gives a well-rounded salve. Fill a pint jar about two-thirds full with whichever you have, then cover with oil.
Herbalist recommendations vary, but a commonly cited guideline is to limit use to no more than 10 consecutive days, and no more than 4 to 6 weeks of total use in a calendar year. Some sources are more permissive, allowing up to 3 weeks of continuous use. For chronic pain, alternate comfrey with another pain-relieving salve like arnica or wild lettuce to give your system regular breaks while still getting relief.
Salve separation usually means the beeswax and oil weren’t fully combined, or moisture got into the mixture. Melt the beeswax completely into the warm oil over gentle heat while stirring constantly, then pour the mixture into containers while it’s still warm and fluid. If you used fresh comfrey that released water during infusion, that moisture can cause separation, which is why dried herb is the safer default. A separated salve isn’t ruined. You can gently rewarm it, stir until uniform, and re-pour.
A slow cooker on its own runs too hot for fresh-herb infusion. Even the “keep warm” setting is at least 170°F, which will cook the comfrey and weaken the salve. You can use a slow cooker as an insulator by filling it with warm water around the jar, but you’ll need to refresh that water periodically. For a truly hands-off method, a dehydrator set to 115°F or an Instant Pot on yogurt mode both hold the right temperature automatically. The cold infusion method with dried comfrey skips all of this and just needs 4 to 6 weeks on a shelf.
Natural Pain Relief & Herbal Remedies
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Comfrey Salve
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup dried comfrey leaf, root, or a mix, enough to fill a pint jar about 2/3 full; fresh herb works with the warm infusion method, see notes for fresh herbs
- 1 to 1 1/2 cups Olive Oil, to fill the pint jar, or coconut, sweet almond, jojoba, or grapeseed
- 1 ounce beeswax
Instructions
- Fill a pint mason jar about two-thirds full with dried comfrey leaf, root, or a mix of both.
- Cover the herb with olive oil, leaving about an inch of headspace at the top of the jar.
- Cold infusion (dried herb): cap the jar and set it on a shelf out of direct sunlight for 4 to 6 weeks. Shake every few days to keep the herb moving through the oil.
- Warm infusion (fresh herb): leave the jar lid loose and keep the jar at 110 to 120°F for 24 to 48 hours. A dehydrator set to 115°F or an Instant Pot on yogurt mode work best. A warm water bath in a bowl works if you refresh the water every few hours. Avoid a slow cooker as a direct heat source.
- Strain the infused oil through a cheesecloth-lined fine mesh strainer into a clean heat-proof container. Squeeze the cheesecloth gently to release the last of the oil, then compost the spent comfrey.
- Return the strained oil to a small saucepan or double boiler. Add the beeswax (1 oz per cup of oil).
- Warm gently over low heat, stirring constantly, until the beeswax has melted completely and the mixture is smooth.
- Pour the finished salve into 2 oz tins or small glass jars.
- Let cool undisturbed for at least 30 minutes before putting lids on or using.
Notes
A Note from Your Family Herbalist
I’m a family herbalist, trained by more than 20 years of hands-on work with medicinal plants and rounded out with coursework through the Herbal Academy of New England. That means I know my way around the plants in this post, and I’ve personally made and used the remedies I write about, often many times over. But there’s a real difference between knowing what works on my homestead and knowing what’s right for you.
Medicine is a personal affair. Every body is different, every medical history is different, and herbs interact with medications, pregnancy, nursing, and existing health conditions in ways no general blog post can anticipate. Even mild medicinal plants like chamomile cause allergic reactions in some people, so what sits comfortably on my own medicine shelf might not be the right choice for yours.
For guidance tailored to your situation, there are three directions I’d point you:
- See a local clinical herbalist. A practicing clinical herbalist can take your full health picture into account, recommend the right herb and dose for you, and adjust the protocol as you go. Ask around at your nearest food co-op, herb farm, or natural-foods store; most communities have at least one.
- Talk to your doctor before adding any new herb to your routine, especially if you take prescription medications, are pregnant or nursing, or are managing a chronic condition. A good doctor will welcome the conversation.
- Educate yourself, the way I have. The Herbal Academy of New England runs the courses I credit with sharpening my own practice. Their Introduction to Herbal Medicine course is where I’d start. I’ve also taken and recommend their Mushroom Course and their Botany and Wildcrafting Course. All three are well-paced and easy to follow at home.
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This is the recipe I used to make my first salve! Picked my homegrown comfrey leaves and infused for six weeks in olive oil. I kept some oil for using when I don’t want a salve and also made some salve. It’s wonderful and I’ve given to several friends. I use it for various skin issues, wounds and have mixed with dandelion oil 50% of each for a salve which turned out perfect. Thank you so much for posting & sharing!
Lovely! I’m so glad you enjoyed making it =)
I have been using your recipe and it is great! Normally I have done it at 6 week mark for best potency. Recently I have been ill and was unable to make it. It is still in the oil and it is probably 2 months or more. Is OK the make the salve still? Thank you for your reply in advance.
Yes, that’s perfectly fine. I often end up with mine going a bit longer, simply because life gets in the way (illness or otherwise). Salves are really forgiving that way, and extra time isn’t an issue. Hope you’re feeling better!
I made some in my crockpot on low but maybe they overheated? I better find some more…
Great articles on using herbs Ashley.
I would like to share that Comfrey is not a herb to be scared of and I feel quite sad that a fallacy has perpetuated to the degree that it is common for people to feel cautious about it.
The story where that originated has more holes in it than a sieve.
There was a fellow who died in 1983. However… the plant in question was NOT COMFREY. There was no plant identification done.
And even if there was a possibility, it could not be so as it was winter in the highlands in Australia (and as we know comfrey does not grow above ground in winter.. especially not in the snow!).
There was a court case where my teacher in Herbal Medicine Dorothy Hall fronted to defend “A Herbalist’s most potent remedy” and our use of Comfrey in internal medicine, in 1984. This court case was funded and backed by members of the pharmaceutical industry and she relayed their less-than-pleasant comments to her in the corridor about the agenda they had in mind (comfrey was just the first herb they were targeting) to us in class.
As a herbalist, I cannot legally add it to a herbal mixture but I have no qualms about using it myself for improved (3x faster and 3x more accurate) healing.
I just thought I would share as it is a beautiful herb that has so much to give.
That’s fantastic, thx for sharing. I, too, was shaking my head over the ‘not to ingest’ statements – phooey! Comfrey tea is supposedly quite helpful, but apparently doesn’t taste that great. Who cares, if it works. If memory serves, it’s also called knit bone and is remarkably healing for > broken bones.
How was it used, back in the days when herbs where our medicine(s)? (before the evil *ockefeller demonized natural healing and natural physicians) That’s what we need to re-discover.
My mom had a huge comfrey plant in the backyard and the bees were over the moon for it. That alone is reason to plant one!
1 milligram of allantoin per gram of comfrey, potentially slightly less with oil infusion/type of process used for drying/infusing.
Hi I was wondering if you could do the quick crockpot infusion with dried roots or leaves ?? I was given some very small baby comfrey plants so they are not ready to use. Thank you
Yes, you can definitely use dried roots and leaves.
Hi Ashley,
I need your help. I just made my first batch of comfrey infused castor oil using the heat infusion method. I was careful to not heat it over 140° as to not degrade the medicinal properties. I intended on making a salve with it but the recipe I followed recommended a 4:1 ratio for infused oil to beeswax. It turned out more like a balm. It was too firm, I couldn’t even push my finger tip into it and created too much drag on the skin. I read that it could be melted down again to add a thinner oil to it such as grapeseed oil which is what I had on hand. I set my crock pot on high just to spead up the process a bit to get it up to about 125° or so, intending on turning the it back down to the warming setting but I forgot. It did not heat very long, about 45 mins total starting out with the crock being cold but when I checked the oil temp my heat thermometer it read 170°. I feel pretty awful about it as I am afraid that I have ruined it. How would I be able to tell if I wrecked all my hard work?
I wouldn’t worry too much about it. Those temperatures are a guideline and I know lots of herbalists that heat them higher than 140. It may not have as much medicine but it will still be a really good salve.
Thanks but your oil to beeswax ratio is flipped above. You say 8 to 1 oil to wax but your words above say the reverse. Can’t wait for spring comfrey! 🙂
Yes it should be 8 parts oil and 1 part beeswax.
I love making comfrey salve! I started growing the plants from seed many years ago to support my soil so I could grow more nutrient rich food. I then learned of all the other benefits and started making the salve.
That’s great. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you so much for this recipe. Not sure if this will be seen but I have a question regarding the temperature minimum. I infused the oil with leaf matter below 140 degrees as instructed. However, beeswax has a melting point of 144-150 so in order to melt the beeswax into the mixture, the temp must rise higher than the max temp recommended. I can’t see that this was mentioned anywhere
You want to keep the oil under 140 degrees while the herbs are infusing. Once the oil is done, you will strain the herbs out. You can then mix the oil and the beeswax together and then heat it until the beeswax is melted.
Can I mixed some dried lemon verbena leaves in with the dried comfrey? I have both plants in my garden. Do you know if lemon verbena’s properties would enhance or support comfrey’s? I’m thinking it would smell great!
I don’t have any personal experience regarding the benefits of lemon verbena but it’s worth trying.
Wondering how much powder you would use versus leaves to make a salve?
Try 1 to 2 tablespoons for a 1/2 cup of oil.
Great article! I suffer from chronic neck and back pain and am always on the hunt for remedies. I’m new to making salves and body butters, and just bought comfrey essential oil. Can I use that, and if so how much? Thank you!
I’m sure you can use it but unfortunately I don’t have any experience using the essential oil. The manufacturer of the essential oil may have some more information about the safe usage rate for a salve. You could also try eocalc.com and see if they have any information.