I have a lot of friends with aches and pains due to accidents, injuries, sore/tight muscles or aging. A liniment is similar to a tincture but you are extracting the medcinal properties using rubbing alcohol (as your menstrum) instead of something like vodka. Liniments are for external use only! Liniments feel cooling when there is inflammation and bring blood to the skin where they are applied. They reduce pain and increase circulation (removing heat, stagnation, waste products/toxins). Liniments evaporate quickly without leaving an oily residue, leaving the only the medicine behind to be absorbed by the body. Depending on the herbs chosen they can draw out infection, disinfect, warm, dry, or sooth. Handy to have available for the unexpected sunburn, bruise, sprain, or damaged ligament/tendon. I use 90% rubbing alcohol (not so cheap and easy to get anymore). Select herbs that are resinous (pine, juniper, myrrh) ,have a powerful scent/quality to them (rue, mugwort, rosemary) or are heating (cayenne, mustard). As a folk herbalist I let the plants guide now much I stuff into the jar, then I fill the rest with my menstrum. I let steep 4-6 weeks. A well prepared liniment once strained can last several years. Clear labeling is essential to prevent accidental ingestion. Keep tightly capped for storage in amber bottles.
Juniper grows all over the world. You can find it in the wild and as a common (often unwanted) bush for landscaping. There were two large ones at the end of my driveway during my childhood in the 1970’s. They made excellent forts, a good choice for hide n seek, left an uncomfortable rash, and required “grooming” with hedge clippers on a regular basis. For years my husband and I talked about removing the ones on either side of the back porch. They are not very attractive and provide the ideal place for leaves, spider webs and rodents to collect. Little did I know until I started researching the traditional medicine of Mexico and the Southwest that I had a treasure in my yard.
Historically the berries are used in cooking for flavor. In healing they are considered a digestive to help with gas, cramping, and stimulating the appetite. Under the care of an expert it is diuretic for gout and water retention.
It can be used in steams for bronchitis and lung infections.
In a liniment it may help with rheumatism or problems with the bones and joints.
One of my favorite uses of juniper is as an incense/smudge. It burns fast, hot, and produces lots of fragrant smoke.
I hope this post inspires you to look at that “ugly” juniper bush in a new way. One never knows what beauty and use lied hidden beneath the surface.
Is there a plant which you use that other people dislike?
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