St. John's Wort Oil (& Salve)
Simple instructions for making a potent wound-healing oil or salve from freshly picked St. John's wort blossoms.
Equipment
- Jar with lid
- Double Boiler
- Fine mesh sieve OR cheesecloth and funnel
- Small bowl
- Kitchen scale
- Containers for finished salve
Ingredients
- St. John's wort blossoms freshly picked*
- Carrier oil to cover grapeseed, olive oil, and jojoba oil all work well*
- Beeswax pistils preferred
Instructions
- Add fresh St. John's wort blossoms to jar, leaving 2-inch headspace.
- Cover blossoms with carrier oil of your choice, leaving 1-inch headspace. Apply lid.
- Place the jar in a double boiler and keep at roughly 120 degrees F, infusing the oil for 4 to 6 hours (you may have to add more water to the double boiler over the infusing time).
- Remove jar from double boiler and pour oil and flowers through a fine mesh sieve or funnel lined with cheesecloth. Gently press to extract as much liquid as possible.
- To make salve, pour the St. John's wort oil into a small bowl and place back in the double boiler. Add the beeswax in the desired quantity.**
- Stirring frequently, melt the beeswax into the oil. Once fully melted, it can be decanted into small tins. Let cool and use as needed.
Notes
*If fresh St. John's wort blossoms are unavailable, feel free to use a good quality store bought oil in place of a homemade oil.
**I like to use 1 ounce (weighed) per 8 liquid ounces/cup.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!