The quality and efficacy of Traditional Herbal Medicine can be influenced by correct collection of Raw Materials. In this presentation prepared by Dr. Eugene Zampieron, ND, we discuss collection details to assure the best quality and efficacy of traditional herbal remedies made at home. Tinctures, Extracts, Poultices, Salves and other Herbal Preparations are discussed.

1. Collection of
Medicinal Plants
Dr. Eugene R. Zampieron
Naturopathic Physician * Professional
Registered herbalist, AHG
Medical & Ethno botanist

2. Season of Collection
 Different parts of plants are of course
used for differing medicinal purposes
 Since different plants mature at different
seasons. The part used must be
collected at the right time.

3. WHOLE PLANT
 They are collected when they are fully
grown, at he time when the plants and
flowers are blossoming

4. Roots and Rhizomes
 They are collected in late fall, often
during te waning lunar cycle.
 The waning moon in yin in nature,
sinking,conserving,STORING
 Rots are generally collected after the
plant s two years old, with the exception
of the great TONICS, like wild Panax
spp.

5. Bark of the Roots or
Rhizome
 The bark of the roots is collected during Spring
or Summer
 The moisture content is high, which facilitates
stripping of the bark
 Rhizomes, which are really swollen storage
stems, are collected in the Fall,Usually after
the first killing frost, because the plant has
spent all summer storing energy, and the killing
frost represents the end of the agricultural
cycle

6. Leaves
 Leaves are collected before the flowers begin
to blossom, two hours after the dew has dried
 Notice many of the leaves shrink during flower
and seed production, as the plant uses its vital
force to produce seed
 In the case of Ginkgo biloba, leaves are
collected after the first frost has caused the
deciduous leaves to shed

7. Flowers & Pollen
 Flowers are collected during the early
emergence
 Buds are collected to make potent
medicines; these remedies are called
GEMMOTHERAPY
 Pollen is collected when the plant is
pollinating before the bees can get to
them and compete for the pollen

8. FRUITS and DRUPES
 Fruits are picked just before they are ripe
 Collected in the early morning two hours
after the dew has dried

9. Seeds & semens
 These are collected after they have
matured and dried completely, before the
wind has dispersed them(ie. Taraxacum)
 They are collected before they split open

10. DRYING
 Pants contain lots of water, and must be cleaned,
decontaminated, dried (if not making fresh plant
extracts) to facilitate medicine extraction
 Plants are sorted
 Roots dry to ½ weight, while leaves 1/10th
 Sufficient moisture must be removed to prevent
molding,bacterial,enzymatic or chemical changes
 Some changes are desirable, like the aging of cascara
sagrada Rhamnus purshiana)to decrease the
anthroquinone potency

11. SUNLIGHT
 Usually, direct sunlight is deleterious
 It depletes the chemical and physical
properties of the plants, but it is done
commercially and is OK for many roots, berries
etc.
 Circulating air around the harvested plants
(called crude drugs in the literature) is very
desirable
 Best to dehumidify and dry at 25-35C

12. Exceptions: Essential Oils
 Essential or Volatile oils must be not
allowed to escape from the plant in large
quantities
 Lower temperatures must be used to
capture oils
 40-60 C for roots/barks
 30-40C for leaves

13. STORAGE
 All contaminants must be removed before
storage
 Enzymes degrade at 8-10% moisture content
 Starches and mucilagenous draw water
 Air faciliates oxidation, so vacuum pak or store
with cotton filled to the top of container
 Use antimoisture capture systems

14. TEMPERATURE And
Storage conditions
 Store all herbs long term below 15C
 Air tight containers; avoid plastic bags
 Protection from lite s a MUST;
 Amber jars
 Painted jars
 Leaves and flowers are not kept more
than one year
 Roots bark seeds3-5 years

15. PROCESSING The herbs
from crude drugs to phytopharmacy
 COMMUNITION:
 The process of breaking the herbs down into
smaller particles
 Oldest toolConcave & Convex rock
 Evolved into Mortar & Pestle
 All manner of cutters,grinders,millers used in
commercial plants, like Nature‟s Answer, a plant
in Hauppauge,Long Island

16.  Reasons to extract herbs
 Make more palatable, concentrated preparations
 Remove inert constituents and retain
pharmacologically active
 Obtain product of known strength and activity which
can be reproduced
Extraction-
soluble constituents of crude drugs
are separated from inert fibrous matter

17. Adding adjuvants to herbs
 Liquids such as ginger
juice, prickly
ash,capsicum, are
added by many herbal
companies to enhance
the therapeutic effect or
reduce the side effects
 Often time licorice is
added in small amounts
to almost every TCM
formula to help „DRIVE‟
the formula through the
meridians
 Ligusticum is added as
well as wine, to increase
circulation
 Corydalis is procesed
into a vinegar extract to
drive stagnation from a
painful body.
 If there is adrenal
problems and low BP,
salt is added to
synergize with the
formula

18. Processing Methods of herbs
 Calcining:
 Shells and minerals
are placed in strong
fire until roasted
before they are
crushed, enhancing
absorption
 Roasting in ashes:
 Many herbs which are
toxic can be wrapped
and roasted before
making an extract, to
reduce toxicity

19. Processing Methods of herbs
 Baking:
 In TCM, many
insects, carapaces,
and other animal
parts are dried by
baking
 Boiling:
 Aconite, which is one
of the most toxic
plants used, is often
boiled three times
(with water changes)
in order for it to be
safe (called Radix
aconitum preparatum
 Others are boiled in
vinegar

20. Processing Methods of herbs
 Steaming:
 Herbs are steamed in
water or wine
 Rhubarb is steamed
to reduce its purgative
action
 Ho Shou Wu needs to
be processed in this
way to loose its
purgative actions
 QUENCHING:
 Minerals are heated
in a hot fire and
immediately
immersed in cold
water to make it brittle
and easily crushed
 Turtle shell, a yin
tonic, is processed in
this manner

21. Processing Methods of herbs
 Steeping:
 The seeds of many
plants are steeped
briefly in water (like
blanching)
 Sprouting
 Many patent formulas
contain the extracts of
sprouted seeds,
which even experts
like Anne Wigmore of
the Hippocrates
institute (she calls this
REJUVELAC) has
powerful properties to
help digestion and
assimilation

22. Extraction-
 Must choose appropriate liquid to
dissolve active principles
 The solvent used in herbalism is referred
to as the
MENSTRUM

23. MENSTRUUMS
 Common solvents (Menstruum)
 Alcohol
 Water
 Acetic acid
 Ether
 Oil
 Glycerol
 Historically: Milk;wine;beer
 Phytopharmaceutical plants in Europe use other
more toxic solvents (acetone,hexane etc)

24. DEFINITION: THE MARC
 The Marc is the fibrous, insoluble
material left after the menstruum has
done its extraction work…
 The marc is separated from the
menstruum usually by pressing, vacuum
distillation etc.

25. FOUR PROCESSES OF
EXTRACTION
 INFUSION: MenstruumH20
 DecoctionMenstruum water
 MacerationMenstruum usualy ETOH of
various strengths
 PercolationMenstruum usually Etoh of
varying strengths
 Strengths determined by National Formulary or
various Dispensary guideline books

26. INFUSION
 Used for aerial parts (leaves & Flowers)
 Sometimes berries/drupes
 Used for pectinous structures, not lignified
 OFFICIAL: 1:10 (1 gm herb to 10 ml water), but
may be 1:20 as a non-medical tea
 1 tsp per cup is a tea, whereas
 1 tablespoon per cup is medicinal

27. Infusion (continued)
 Can be made cold or hot
 Use cold for mucilage's or to obtain only specific
fractions i.e..
Marshmallow starch
 Best to used a heavy glass or closed teapot (with
cover) for volatile components
 Pour recently boiled (Not boiling) water over plant parts
and let steep, COVERED!!!!
 10-30 minutes is what most prescriptions require. Cold
infusions or sun infusions can take up to 12 hours

28. INFUSIONS (continued)
 Must be used within 12 hours of
preparation, or if refrigerated, within two
days
 Some add 12-15% ETOH to retard
spoiling, then they can last for many
months

29. DECOCTIONS
 From the word coceoto cook
 For plant parts that are lignified (hard or
woody)
 Not for volatile principles
 1:10-1:20
 INSTRUCTIONS: start out with twice the
H20 & reduce by ½ to ¼
 Place roots, bark, seeds in cold water

30. DECOCTIONS
 Place herb in cold water
 Bring slowly to a boil
 Turn down burner & simmer, covered
 May simmer for hours
 Strain lasts 2-3 days in fridge or can
add 12-15% ETOH to stabilize; any less
ETOH won‟t stabilze

31. MACERATION
 For fluid extracts Abbreviated as
F:E
 1:1 is the strength, meaning
each ml of finished product
contains 1 gm of botanical.

32. For TINCTURES
 In general the follow dilution factor is
used
 1:10 for toxic plants
 1:5 for tonic plants
 1:4; 1:8 (lobelia) and 1:20 (Cayenne) for
synergist plants

33. TINCTURES (cont.)
 Menstruum is usually ETOH
 Crude drug is maintained in contact with
the menstruum for many days or weeks
 Process usually conducted at room
temperature
 After straining, the liquid remaining in the
marc is pressed out; then vacuum
distilled

34. Choice of Menstruum
 The choice of menstruum is dependent on the
active constituents
 The menstruum is mixed with a certain % of
water/ETOH before coming into contact with
the tincture
 Many companies have developed proprietary
cold evaporation methods to retrieve the ETOH
after the tincturing process; thus recovering the
ETOH, which is then distilled and reused

35. % ETOH Utilized
 25% ETOH is used for water soluble
constituents, ie Symphytum, Glycyrrhiza,
Ulmus, to make the official medicine.
 45% is needed to extract alkaloids
 60-70% volatile compounds (Laminacea
family)
 90% for gum resins (Commiphora,
Boswellia,Zingiber etc.)

36. Home medicine
methods
 Cover weighed and milled herb
 Use specific menstruum (usually organic
grape ETOH;
 corn ETOH is not favored anymore d/t
allergies; Vodka used often; usually 40-
50% ETOH from potato
 Cover vessel tightly and shake daily
 Keep out of direct light

37. Home medicine
methods
 Strain after 1421days
 Press out marc (old botanical residue)
 Homogenous sample
 Let stand until clear
 Filter
 Send sample to QC for standardization

38. Home medicine
methods
 Homeopathic mother tinctures are 1:10
and made out of the fresh herbs
 Tinctures can be made out of fresh or
dried herbs
 Specific tinctures are the name given to
FRESH HERB TINCTURES

39. Percolation
 Percolation Latin „per colo‟ meaning “I strain”
 Need percolator which resembles a large funnel with a
wide bottom
 Grind herb to specific coarseness;
 Fresh herbs are difficult to grind, so they are not used
in this process
 Moisten ground herb with a predetermined menstruum,
usually 10-20% of weight of powder
 Place in jar for 1-24 hours
 Herb will swell and cell walls become permeable

40. Percolation
 Plug funnel of percolator with fiberglass
 Introduce the moistened drug into the percolator in
small 2-3 cm layers
 Tap until full, leaving room for ETOH
 Place filter paper on top
 Pour the ETOH on top of the drug
 Let sit 24 hours
 Allow the liquid to drip at 10-20 drops per minute
 Continue adding menstruum until the crude drug is
spent (sue phytochemical screen tests)

41. Percolation
 Each successive RE-percolation with the
same marc may produce weaker and
weaker tinctures as the crude drug
becomes „spent‟
 Phytomedicine companies are aware of
this and are able to then mix the various
lots and standardize them

42. Forced EXPRESSION
 Used to separate marc from maceration
product
 Used to obtain fresh plant juice; which is called
succus
 Succus must be used immediately or
preserved
 Measure volume of succus
 Divide by1/3
 Add that volume pure ETOH (remember, vodka
is 40% ETOH, not pure)

43. TRUE Mother Tincture
& Homeopathy
 In homeopathy, the mother tincture was
actually prepared from making a succus
of the plant in it‟s flowering state
 Then ETOH was added
 This is not done in current times
 EXAMPLES:
 Succus CalendulaSkin

44. DISTILLATION
 From the word Destelloreto ‟drip down‟
 Conversion of liquid into its vapor
 Condensation of the vapor back to liquid
 The vessel for heating is called „The still‟
 The vapor is led into a condenser
 The condensed liquid is collected in a receiver
 The condensed product is called the „distillate‟

45. Use of Distillation
 Separate liquid from a solid dissolved in it
 Separate liquids with different boiling points
 Obtain volatile liquids from a less volatile
source
 Make spirits stronger (Grain ETOH;
„Moonshine‟
 Steam distillation carries off essential oils
 In a plant containing 1% Volatile oil, it takes
1000 gms of an herb to make 10 ml of oil

46. DIGESTION
 For making oils, ointments etc
 Herb is ground and placed into a digestant or
extraction fluid (usually oil)
 It is kept warm for days (60C)
 This is a type of maceration process, but heat is
allowed
 Ointments are make this way
 After straining the oil, a hardening agent (usually solid
at room temperature) is mixed
 The oil plus hardening agent, when properly combined,
give the finished product the consistency of
margarines

47. DIGESTION
 For an ointment, combinations of
 Beeswax
 Canuba wax
 Bayberry wax
 Lanolin

48. DIGESTION
 Drugs can be digested in the sun if they are protected
from light
 Only St. John‟s Wort (Hypericum perfoliatum
)medicated oil is made in direct sunlight
 St. John‟s Wort is kept in a clear glass jar for 3-6
weeks in full sun
 For home use, this process works great on a car
dashboard
 For most herbs several days to 1 week is the official
time
 Volatile oils or benzoin is added, with lots of Vit E oil, to
prevent the ointment from going rancid

49. Pharmaceutical Preps
 For home use, always use non-reactive
containers for making medicines: Pyrex,
crockery, etc.
 Liquids for internal Use:
 Review DrZ‟s/Dr.Kamhi‟s book for the
strength of herbal medicines
(Infusion,Decoction,Tincture,Fluid
extract,Solid extract Standardized extracts)

50. Pharmaceutical Preps
 ACETRACTA:
 This is the official term for herbs extracted in
vinegars.
 Official vinegar is 4% dilution (called acetum) of
galacial acetic acid
 Vinegar is excreted via the lungs,kidneys and skin
and is mildly expectorant,diaphoretic and diuretic
 It is used to dissolve insoluble, alkaloid –rich,
tannate-rich herbs
 It is used for lobelia flowers,Squill (expectorant) and
for circulatory tonics with garlic, ginger, Cochlearia,
capsicum etc
 Not as effective as EtOH/H20 in its menstruum

51. Pharmaceutical Preps
 ELIXIRS:
 A clear,medicated liquid prep usually
containing a high proportion of
ETOH/Sucrose
 Basically an botanical alcohol syrup

52. Pharmaceutical Preps
 SYRUPS:
 Concentrated aqueous solution of sucrose and other
sugars
 May be therapeutic or only for flavoring
 Usually contain preservatives or will ferment to stabilize
itself if you use 65% sugar or more
 One way to make is to use a tincture, then add 65%
sugar
 If using honey,use 75% because most money is
hydrated before sale to raise weight,unless you can
trust beekeeper

53. Pharmaceutical Preps
 Examples of herbs used in cough syrups:
 Pinus
 Grindelia
 Tussilago
 Prunus
 Glycyrrhiza
 Astragalus
 Althea
 Elecampane

54. Pharmaceutical Preps
 An unusual cough syrup recipe is made with
Tussilago farfara
 Take non-reactive vessel
 Layer effect coltsfoot flowers; layer of sugar;leaf
layersugar;repeat until lasagna effect is finished
 Sugar will pull water and phytomedicines out of
tussilago without shaking
 Cough medicines are often made as syrups
because they coat the throat and make the
botanicals more palatable

55. Pharmaceutical Preps
 Emulsions:
 A dispersion of an oily liquid (called internal phase)
in an aqueous liquid (called external phase), with
suitable anti-microbial preservatives
 Emulsifiers are used to increase the viscosity,lower
surface tension,create a biploar coating around the
internal phase and thus prevent the phases from
separating
 The „soap or detergent‟ effect

56. Pharmaceutical Preps
 Emulsions:
 Natural substances which are good emulsifiers are
 Mucilages (Gums, Irish moss)
 Proteins
 Lecithinemulsifies mayo;ice cream
 Gelatin
 Casein
 High molecular weight alcohols (used in cosmetics for skin
and cold creams
 Wetting agentsbipolar in nature
 Herbs high in saponins

57. Pharmaceutical Preps
 Preparing emulsions:
 For volatile oils:
VO 2 parts:
gum 1 part:
H20 1 part

58. Pharmaceutical Preps
 Preparing emulsions
 For fixed oils
 Gum 1 part
 Water 2 parts
 Fixed oil 4 parts

59. Pharmaceutical Preps
 Preparing Emulsions:
 For Balsams/Oleo resins (Pine tar,Myrrh)
 Balsam 2 parts
 Gum 1 part
 Water 2 parts

60. Pharmaceutical Preps
WAXES
 Wax 1 part
 Gum: 1 part
 Water 11/2 parts
 Avoid all paraffin's,as
they have been linked to
cancer
 Also avoid petroleum
based as much as
possible
 All above preparations
can be preserved with
benzoin tincture,derived
from Stryrax spp.

61. Pharmaceutical Preps:
Fluid Extracts
 Fluid extracts(FE)mean
one part by volume of
preparation is equivalent
to one part weight of
crude drug
 So, 1 gm of botanical
medicine is delivered to
the patient by taking 1 cc
of the FE
 So, usually 1:1 strength
 SOLID EXTRACT:
 After percolation and
crude drug
exhausted, the
menstruum is
distilled off,resulting
in a semi-
solid,molasses-like
extract
 Can be 4:1100:1

62. Pharmaceutical Preps
Glycerines
 True glycerin's are
extracted with glycerine
 Many companies extract
with ETOH, then vacuum
extract all ETOH, and
reconstitute with
Glycerin to make a non-
ETOH extract
 Good for people allergic
to ETOH, alcoholics,
young kids, etc
 Glycerin has solvent
properties between
water and ETOH
 Useful for materials
containing
PHLOBOTANNINS,
which polymerize with
alkaloids and take them
out of tincture, making
them insoluble an sink to
the bottom of the glass
jar forming globs

63. Pharmaceutical Preps
 This tinctures with
phlobotannins and
many alkaloids
usually contain
GLYCERIN to
prevent precipitation
 50% glycerin is
needed for
preservation of
botanical
 LINCTUSES:
 Liquid preparation of
mucilaginous,syrupy or
viscous nature containing
substances for
demulcent,expectorant or
sedative properties
 Sipped and swallowed
slowly to form a temporary
remedial film over the
membranes of the throat
 IE: Propolis Linctuse
(Balm of Gilead) resinous
and antiseptic

64. Pharmaceutical Preps
 Mucilages
 Insoluble; but absorbs water and swell
 Usually used as thickening agents
 Used as suspending agents
 Used to protect mucous membranes
 Helps remove catarrhal secretions by stimulation of
submucosal plexus, which secrete more water
 This loosens catarrh
 Don‟t use alcohol with tem as they will precipitate
 I.e.: tincture of slippery elm or althea usually
precipitates when mixed with other high alcoholic
preps, like tincture of myrrh (90% ETOH)

65. Pharmaceutical Preps
 Aromatic waters:
 These are saturated solutions of volatile oils
in water
 These contain small amounts of ETOH to
keep the oils in solution
 These are triturated before use

66. Pharmaceutical Preps
 Liquids for External Use
 „Bush‟ bath
 Balneotherapy or balnea
 3 temperatures
 Balnea frigidum start with 35C then lower to 15C
with the inclusion of ice
 Balnea tepidum: 30-50C
 Balnea calidum 37C and hotter

67. Pharmaceutical Preps
 Botanicals are added to the bath
 Can be botanicals mixed with salts
 Can be peat based
 Can put botanicals in some hosiery and run hot
water thru them
 Can add tinctures to the water or essential oils
 Can be administered in a sitz bath, which are
important for pelvic and ano-rectal pathology

68. Pharmaceutical Preps
 Mustard and other topic
packs
 The new range for pain
now (as advertised by
SHAQ) are the application
of plasters which are
heating,cooling stimulating
and dispersing
 Douches
 Aqueous solutions
directed against the body
to into a body cavity
ie:(ear,nasal,colon,
vagina)
 Cleanse
 Irrigate/ debride
 Antiseptic
 Balance flora

69. Pharmaceutical Preps
 Douche (cont)
 Usually use large volumes
of infusions, decoctions
tinctures etc. are used
 Also referred to a a stream
of hot or cold water in
hydrotherapy
 Enemas are douches
 A retention enema is 2-4
ounces of a
concentrated medicine,
for astringent, cleansing,
alterative and antiseptic
purposes
 Also probiotic, SCFA are
used in colitis very
successfully in DrZ‟s
practice

70. Pharmaceutical Preps
 DROPS (abbreviated gtt,
meaning guttae)
 Usually sterile
 Isotonic
 Hydroscopic
 Particle free
 For eyes drops, prepare
in isotonic, sterile solution
(1.4% salt)
 Ear drops
 Suspensions
 Emulsions
 Warm drops in hot water
before placing in ear
 Cold drops can induce
nystagmus and vertigo
 Don‟t touch dropper to
ear, or disinfect dropper
before replacing it
Use cotton to retain fluid

71. Pharmaceutical Preps
 Mouthwashes/Gargles:
 Gargles are aqueous
antiseptic, astringent,
regenerating solutions
acting on the gingiva,
buccal mucosa and
pharynx.
 Not supposed to be
swallowed, but many
holistic ones can be
 Some ingredients may
include Botanicals/oils
(myrrh, propolis, Thymol,
Camellia extract
Eucalyptol, methyl
salicylate, olive leave,
San Qi, oak bark,
Nutrients: Folic acid,
C0Q10
Probiotics

72. Pharmaceutical Preps
 NOTE: Make sure to
add some gum to
prevent a
combination of
myrrh,kava,pinus etc
from precipitating
with sage or other
tinctures
 Also, consider the
same when
preparing myrrh
(High alcohol;low
water) with a
demulcent, like
slippery elm (low
alcohol;high water/
carbohydate
compund

73. Pharmaceutical Preps
 Inhalants:
 Can use essential oils
to a pot of steaming
water
 Form a tent with a
large sheet
 Have patient close
their eyes
 Breath deeply
 Not too much oil
 Common herbal
vapors would
include:
 Peppermint
 Melaleuca
 Cajuput
 Thyme
 Eucalyptus
 lavender

74. Pharmaceutical Preps
 Liniments:
 Liquids or semi-fluids for
application to the skin
 They contain
 Botanodynes
 Sedative
 Stimulating substances
Fatty or volatile (ETOH)
media
 Terebinthum, mustard oils,
belladonna,Eugenol
 Aconite, Boswellia, camphor,
menthol, methyl
salicylate,capsicum
arnica, are applies to
UNBROKEN SKIN
Via embrocation (friction
massage with only a tiny but
of oil)
Can drive in botanicals with
ultrasound or DMSO deep
into the muscles

75. Pharmaceutical Preps
 LOTION
 Similar to liniment but
technically dosen‟t
contain oily
substance
 Not applied with
friction
 Often has alcohols
 Cetyl alcohol
 Cooling effect on
body