Keeping it simple – maybe not

I keep all my tinctures simple, meaning each tincture bottle contains one and only one herb. Most of the time that is all one needs. But sometimes several herbs need to work together for a specific condition. Any one herb is just not enough. Why would that be?

Some conditions need to have many actions (examples of actions are: anti-inflammatory, diuretic) in order to treat a specific condition. Sometimes a combination of herbs can provide more herbal actions that are needed than one single herb can to treat these conditions. Another reason for combining herbs would be because some herbs enhance the qualities of other herbs. Cayenne is a good example of this. For these conditions simples need to be combined by a recipe (some people call this a formula) using parts.

What are parts? Think of parts like ratios. If the recipe for the remedy is one part of one herbal tincture and 2 parts of another herbal tincture, then whatever amount given in a measurement (whether fluid ounces, milliliters, teaspoons, cups, etc) that is being used for one tincture, the other tincture will be twice that amount in the same type of measurement. In other words, one tincture is twice the amount of the other tincture.

Gout is an example of a condition where just one single herb is not always effective by itself for treating gout. So here is one gout remedy (from David Hoffmann’s book Medical Herbalism) that lists the following herbs:

2 parts Gravel Root (Eupatorium purpureum)
2 parts Couch Grass (Elymus repens)
2 parts Celery Seed (Apium graveolens)
1 part   Guaiacum     (Guaiacum officanale)

So why not make the Gout Remedy tincture by combining all the herbs needed before adding the menstruum (water and alcohol), instead of making all the simples first? Since I use the w/v method instead of the folk method for making tinctures (to better insure favorable and consistent results), I use the tincture formulas that provide strength and percentage of alcohol. The percentage of alcohol in  herb tincture formulas can be different from each other. In the case of this gout remedy from David Hoffmann, for instance, Gravel Root and Couch Grass have the formula 1:5 in 40%, whereas the formula for Celery Seed is 1:5 in 60% and the formula for Guaiacum is 1:5 in 90%.  That means there are three different percentages of alcohol in this remedy. So which percentage would you use for extracting the constituents if you combined all the herbs first? If one herb has only alcohol soluble constituents (which definitely  is the case with Guaiacum with its formula having 90% alcohol) and the other herbs have both alcohol and water soluble constituents, but at different percentages of alcohol, how do you know what the percentage of alcohol should be for the combination of herbs? The answer is, you don’t.

Another reason for using simples is a matter of efficiency. Making simples that can be combined with other simples as needed  in order to create different remedies is much like having various ingredients on hand – flour, butter, eggs, vanilla extract – available for making different types of baked goods at different times.

So in the case of this Gout Remedy tincture, the simples of the herbs are combined so that  Gravel Root, Couch Grass, Celery Seed are all the same amount and each has an amount that is twice the amount of Guaiacum.

Here is an example of using that recipe:

2 fl oz Gravel Root
2 fl oz Couch Grass
2 fl oz Celery Seed
1 fl oz Guaiacum

Here is another example:

1 fl oz Gravel Root
1 fl oz Couch Grass
1 fl oz Celery Seed
1/2 fl oz Guaiacum

And now you know what parts are and how to use them.