I’ve been meaning to make some plantain salve for about 3 years now. But every year I get distracted with other projects, camping trips, and outdoor fun. Then I get into the garden, and my hands are in need of some TLC, and I remember how I didn’t make any plantain salve- again. So this year, I’m posting about the process so I’m held accountable for finally finishing this project!
This will be a series in my blog; first we’ll talk about plantain, what it is, and its benefits and uses. The next few posts will chronicle harvesting, processing, and making the salve (I do all of my processing the old fashioned way, so it takes a while).
First off: what is plantain? The plantain I’m talking about is not the banana looking fruit in the grocery store’s produce section. The plantain I’m using is Plantago major; for most people, a common weed. It grows everywhere- in sidewalk cracks, driveway cracks, lawns… you’ve definitely seen it around.
The easiest way to identify this is by its leaves. The are ovoid, and the veins are all parallel along the leaf (another common name for this is “ribwort” because of these veins). The leaves grow flat on the ground. These leaves can be eaten raw in salads when young, but they quickly become tough and bitter as they mature. The seeds are also edible; traditionally they have been harvested, ground up, and used like flour. Seems WAY too laborious for me!! The more common way to use them is to wait until those long seed stalks got older and bigger, then pull them off and “shoot” them at your friends.
The most common herbal use is as a poultice. Fresh plantain leaves are Nature’s band aid! Crush the leaf and apply it directly to wounds, scrapes, bug bites, stings, and allergic reactions like poison ivy. The leaves contain proteolytic enzymes that help to soothe and heal all kinds of skin stuff.
I’m going to harvest my plantain to make a soothing salve. Not so great for open wounds, but amazing for the rough, chapped hands that I develop after too much time in the garden, or, lately, too much hand washing and sanitizing that is stripping all of the moisture from my hands.
Up next: harvesting and preparing my plantain leaves.
