Plantain salve for your herbal first aid kit

Plantain is a first aid hero worth getting to know, particularly as it’s so widely available across the globe. This is a recipe for a simple plantain salve – to heal and sooth minor cuts and scrapes, insect bites, bee stings and splinters. A must-have for your home apothecary.

There’s a little pocket of wild around home, despite us living in the city. A paved cycle way weaves for kilometers around the shores of an estuary, the coast on one side, a reserve on the other. It’s quiet – no cars, but rich with bird sounds – the gargling Tui and purring Barberry dove.

If you know what to look for, you’ll see an abundance of medicinal herbs and weeds like hawthorn, chamomile, dandelion, nasturtium, red clover, yarrow, cleavers… and our friend plantain.

The plantain is easy to spot – lance-like stalks dancing in the breeze with soft heads wrapped in a tiny flower tutu.

Often overlooked, it’s a medicinal weed worth becoming acquainted with, deserving of a place in your home apothecary.

Today I’ll show you how to prepare it as a first aid salve, a deeply therapeutic topical remedy for:

• Minor cuts and scrapes (must be clean - a salve will form a protective layer and trap in dirt)
• Minor burns (once cooled adequately under running water, otherwise you will trap the heat in and worsen the burn)
• Insect bites
• Mosquito bites
• Bee stings
• Slivers/splinters
• Hot, dry, irritated skin conditions

Jump to:

• 👩‍🌾How to identify
• 🐝Topical benefits
• 🧪Other uses
• 🍃Plantain infused oil
• ⚗️Making plantain salve
• 🌿FAQ's

👩‍🌾How to identify

There are two main varieties of plantain, P. lanceolata (commonly known as narrow-leaf plantain) and P. major (commonly known as broad-leaf plantain).

Narrow-leafed plantain is more abundant in my neck of the woods, it has long and slender leaves with a tall flowering stem, which is bare but for a ring of tiny flowers that remind me of a ballerina’s tutu.

The leaves of the broadleaf variety form basal rosettes, with a tall but flowerless stalk.

As with any wild harvesting of medicinal herbs, ensure the area is free from sprays and chemicals, and, if you’re not 100% confident with your identification, opt to source the dried herb from a reputable source instead.

🐝Topical benefits

Plantain is first and foremost a first aid hero. Topically, it really is an all-in-one:

• An effective drawing agent, pulling out splinters, stingers, venom, pus, infection and inflammation from the skin. This really is plantain’s superpower. I’ve heard some herbalists liken its drawing effect to that of charcoal, its reputation as a drawing herb is like none other. This quality sets it apart from other wound-healing herbs like calendula and comfrey

• Exerts an immune stimulant effect by recruiting white blood cells to the area [1, 2]

• Cleans the wound of infection via its antibacterial properties [3, 4]

• Reduces inflammation and relieves pain – for example due to bee venom, nettle sting or poison ivy rash [5, 6], largely thanks to the iridoid glycosides aucubin and catapol. These constituents also have an antiseptic effect

• Pulls the tissue together, staunches bleeding and promotes wound healing due to its tannins, iridoids (specifically, aucubin) and polysaccharide content, and their corresponding astringent, vulnerary and mucilage properties [7, 8].

Though a salve is always handy to have on hand, if you’re out in the garden and get stung by a bee or graze your skin, you can make a spit poultice by chewing a few of the leaves up, applying topically for fast relief.

The water content of your saliva mixes with a substance in the plantain leaf called mucilage, creating a gel. The gel will dry with a slight adhesive quality, which is why it makes for such an effective impromptu bandage [9].

Plantain’s mucilage content is also a wonderful demulcent and emollient, which is why you will see the herb featured in creams to moisten and soften dry and inflamed skin conditions like eczema, psoriasis and dermatitis [10].

A medicated clay is another application – particularly indicated if a drawing action is required. This bentonite clay poultice looks well worth a try if you’d like to experiment.

🧪Other uses

Plantain is also used medicinally, internally, in tea or tincture form to support the health of the mucous membranes in the mouth, throat, lungs, gut and bladder.

Some of its indications therefore include mouth ulcers, sore throats, tonsilitis, cough, respiratory infections, leaky gut, diarrhea and bladder infections [11]. In these instances, it is best to use the herb under the guidance of a qualified Herbalist.

Finally, plantain is an edible weed! Rich in vitamin C and carotenoids [12], you can harvest a bunch and add liberally to your cooking.

Here's a great recipe for a plantain soup:

Fry leek, onion, garlic and ginger, add plantain – lots and lots and lots – add turmeric powder, vegetable stock, a little quinoa and lentils, seaweed, and a splash of vinegar to help pull the minerals out into the soup, sometimes a little coconut milk or cream to finish.

Herby deliciousness!

🍃Plantain infused oil

As always, making a medicinal salve starts with a quality herbal infused oil.

Cover the dried leaf with oil, and heat over low temperature using a double boiler. You can use a thermometer to check the heat, which should fall around 40˚C (104˚F) if the water it is resting in is just barely simmering.

Stir occasionally, and after a good three hours, you’ll be ready to strain the herbs out using a muslin cloth or nut milk bag, composting the herbs once finished.

There will always be some wastage preparing infused oils – so best to make a larger quantity than you need for a recipe, storing leftovers in an amber jar out of the sun for later use. I recommend using a scant two cups’ worth of dried herb to 500ml / ½ quart of oil.

⚗️Making plantain salve

Take your infused oil and measure out one cups’ worth (250ml). To this, add 28g (1oz) of beeswax.

Rest this mixture over a saucepan gently simmering with water, or use a double boiler. Over low heat, we want to melt the wax entirely.

Once this is done, remove from the stove top and add essential oils to your liking. I love pairing tea tree or manuka with plantain for their additional healing, antiseptic, antimicrobial effects.

Be sure to stir the essentials oils in well, a good utensil to use here is a glass stirring wand like this one.

From here, work quickly to pour the liquid salve into pre-sterilised glass jars, then allow to cool before capping, labelling and dating.

🌿FAQ's

Lastly, remember that this a home remedy for minor cuts and abrasions only, seek medical attention for anything deeper.

Enjoy herbies – this is a great staple for your home apothecary! For my Kiwi readers, you might also like to experiment with Kawakawa Balm, a gorgeous all-rounder.

Enjoyed this recipe? Leave a comment below, better yet - share a snap with me on instagram @ascensionkitchen. If you're after personalised health and nutrition advice, contact my clinic, I'd be happy to work with you.