Going by long-standing herbal tradition, we use a variety of "menstruums" to extract the herbal principles from the plant. Depending on the intended use and the type of plant, and the part of the plant used, we choose the specific menstruum. Listed below are the liquids we use as well as the reasoning behind it. Vineyard Herbs uses ALL NATURAL extract menstruums--never synthetic or harmful (like petroleum, lard, hydrogenated oils, partially hydrogenated oils, or isopropyl alcohol).

Water   Water is the basis of all life, and as such should be the first remedy of choice if you or someone you are treating is ill. Bathing does wonders; hot-and-cold treatments help; drinking plenty of fresh water nourishes the body and hydrates all those living cells so they can function. In addition, steeping our amazing healing plants in water (for tisanes, infusions and decoctions) is truly the best way to glean the benefit from the plant and promote healing. The first thing I reach for when sick is a tea; herbs steeped in water are readily bioavailable to the body and quick to be distributed to all the body's systems. 

Vegetable Glycerine   We employ this byproduct of soap-making to extract certain plant materials. This is a food-grade liquid, GRAS (generally regarded as safe) by the U.S. Pharmacopoeia that tastes very sweet. It is safe and pleasant-tasting for children, which makes it a good children's syrup ingredient.

Vinegar    We use vinegar (generally organic apple cider vinegar with the 'mother') to extract certain plants. This is an excellent way to pull the iron and other minerals out of dandelion root, burdock root, yellow dock root, among others. It also pulls minerals out of plant leaves, such as nettles, and in such a way that forms a beautiful salad dressing. As Hippocrates said, "Let your food be your medicine and your medicine be your food." Vinegar, however, has a short shelf life and will keep reliably only 6 months or so. Stored in the refrigerator it will keep longer, especially if other menstruums such as alcohol are added. In addition to being a wonderful iron extractor, it pulls calcium out as well. Susun Weed suggests steeping bones in vinegar to release the calcium

Alcohol   Strong plants and tough, fibrous plant parts require something strong to elicit the tannins, enzymes, bitters, herbal alcohols, resins, and other constituents from them. We use brandy and vodka (grain alcohol) for this purpose. Not only do alcohols pull from the plant the essential ingredients, but sometimes it is the only thing that will. Resins, for instance, are not water soluble, but they are soluble in spirits (brandy, for instance).

Oil   For external preparations, use oil for making a salve, or simply by itself. Rubbing oil (such as olive, canola, sunflower, almond or jojoba) oils on the skin is nourishing and healing. Add comfrey, plantain or violet leaf to that oil and you've created a potent Wise Woman medicine. Vineyard Herbs uses canola oil and olive oil in its salves because these are thick enough to stand being made into salves or ointments, and they have a high heat capacity. To learn how to make a salve or tricks to keep them potent and effective, see the Salves page.

Witch Hazel   For EXTERNAL liniments and our bug repellent, we prefer Witch Hazel. It acts virtually the same, drawing out properties from plants for a strong external rub or disinfectant, but it does not have the laboratory's chemical structure that isopropyl alcohol does. Instead, it is a distillate of the bark of the tree Hamamelis virginiana. It is much stronger than a tea, and as such is ONLY FOR EXTERNAL USE.