I'm not a gardener and tend to only keep the yard in a mowed down state. I allow whatever grows naturally to have at it and the winners are the plants that can thrive in the provided sun, shade and soil conditions. In addition, my house is located on an ecologically sensitive peninsula on the Charles River so i don't use chemicals or pesticides. That means my lawn is a wonderful green mixture of grasses, clover, dandelions and this unidentified "weed".
Plantain growing in my backyard
It was during a Medicinal Plant Walk at Lands Sakes farm that I learned about a plant that's been growing in my yard for 30 years and I thought was just a weed. The plant is plantago major or more commonly, broadleaf plantain (not the same as, and not to be confused with, the fruit that is part of the banana family.) Broadleaf plantain is an entirely edible plant with both internal and external healing properties.
My DIY spirit was inspired when I discovered that you can make a salve with plantain to treat cuts, burns, rashes and insect bites. I had to give it go and here are my notes and thoughts on what I did.
1. Make an oil infusion.
- I washed the plantain leaves and pat dried them. Some bloggers stated that if the leaves aren't dehydrated then there may be a problem with mold, other bloggers just washed and dried them like I did. I'm not sure which way is best so I'll wait and see.
- I packed two 4 oz. canning jars with chopped plantain. One was filled with jojoba oil and the other with extra virgin olive oil. I put them on my kitchen window to start a month long cold infusion but after a week I got impatient and switched to a hot infusion by putting both jars in a slow cooker filled with enough water to reach the cap rings and setting it on low for 8 hours.
2. Separate the plantain from the infused oil
- I started with a strainer to do this but noticed that there was still a lot of oil on the leaves so I put the leaves in a scrap of muslin and squeezed out the remaining oil. Nylon hose would probably work even better.
3. Add beeswax to make salve or lotion bars.
- The infused oil can be used as is but adding beeswax will thicken the oil to either a salve or lotion bar consistency and make it easier to apply. For the infused jojobo oil I added about 10% beeswax (the rest oil) and got a salve consistency. For the infused olive oil I added about 25% beeswax (the rest oil) and got a lotion bar consistency.
- I microwaved the beeswax and oil mixture in 20 second spurts until melted. This is where an essential oil can be added if desired. I didn't have any on hand but I would like to try lavender or peppermint.
Melted beeswax and plantain infused oil before cooling4. Pour into tins
- I keep finding ways to use these tins and they have become one of the handiest crafting things that I've ever purchased.
- Each 4 oz. jar of infused oil produced two 2 oz. tins of plantain salve. I love when the math works out.
Plantain Salve- Now things go into the testing stage. The questions to be answered are: How well will the salve actually work? How long will it keep? My three year old nephew would be the perfect test subject but I don't know if he'll allow me to put this on his scrapes and mosquito bites!
- Other things to try are making tea with the plantain leaves and harvesting the blooms for psyllium.
- Try infusing other liquids - water, vinegar, vodka.
- Try infusing other oils - coconut, almond, avocado.
I love how my lawn is becoming a natural garden. Nothing is pulled out as a "weed" anymore. The clover is for the rabbits and bees. The dandelions are for salads and green soups and now the plantain is for salves, tea and whatever else I discover can be made from it.
