Starting Your Own Homestead Apothecary

If you are like most homesteaders, you have an innate curiosity of learning new ways of being as self sufficient and homemade as possible. One way is in making herbal remedies at home. Then, you might be curious about how and where to store them. You have two main options: you can create an herbal medicine cabinet with everything you are making, or you can build up your own apothecary.

An apothecary is ideal because it provides more spaces for organizing, like shelves and drawers, plus you can store your herbs and the products you make with the herbs.

Here is more information about apothecaries and how you can make one on your homestead.

What is an Herbal Apothecary?

In ancient times, an Apothecary was an individual who kept a wide variety of healing herbs, balms, perfumes, soaps, creams and medicines so they could be available for use. Today, an herbal apothecary generally refers to a place where you keep your medicinal herbs and remedies. Take a look at what an apothecary involves and how having one on your homestead can benefit you.

Herbs and Plants

There are a variety of powerful and versatile plants and herbs from which to choose for your home apothecary. Having a selection of easily grown and maintained plants like basil, lemon grass, parsley, peppermint, and rosemary can be very useful. Some plants such as aloe vera can be used on their own with little or no preparation, while some others like the anti-inflammatory herb mugwort may take a small amount of mashing to make its best attributes more available.

Carriers

A carrier is the base material that is used to deliver the properties of your mixtures. These can include butters, waxes, oils, lotions, and gels. Carrier oils are vegetarian in origin, typically have a neutral odor, and often have a short shelf life. Other carriers such as alcohol or wax can last much longer, and in some cases, they can last indefinitely.

Essential Oils

Essential oils are powerful concentrations of herbal and plant based properties that have been extracted through a process such as steam distillation and cold pressing, then added to an oil carrier. These can be used for aromatherapy, treatments, or combined with other herbs to produce a desired effect. Lavender essential oil is known for its anti-anxiety and burn healing effects.

More posts Related to Essential Oils:

• Smart Ways of Using Aromatherapy Essential Oils in Your Home
• Essential oils ~ Tips on Starting your Essential Oils Collection
• What are Essential Oils and how can I use them around the homestead?
• Simple Gift Ideas Using Essential Oils

Apothecary Supplies

A well stocked apothecary will keep more than just plants and substances. There will be a wide range of tools, jars, bags, and other materials kept for the purpose of extraction, mixing, and creation of other apothecary items. Cheesecloth or fine strainers of different types may be used in the pressing process. Containers of different sizes related to the
needs of each individual project should be available, which can help a skilled person to avoid waste.

Herbs to Put in Your Homestead Apothecary

As you know, an apothecary is a wonderful way to begin to keep herbs on hand for use in home remedies. The best herbs and plants for use are often live when they are processed, so you might ask yourself, Which herbs are the best to grow for my personal use?Here is more information about selecting the easiest and most versatile herbs to grow for your home apothecary.

Peppermint

Peppermint is a great herb to start with when it comes to the herbs you should have in your home apothecary. The main chemical menthol is one of the properties of peppermint herbs, and is associated with a feeling of cooling. When inhaled, peppermint is excellent for opening sinus passageways, and aids in the production of bile by stimulating the gallbladder and the liver.

Rosemary

Rosemary is another fantastic herb to have in your apothecary, or even just in a home herbal medicine cabinet. This herb is widely used for its aromatic effect, but it is also known to increase awareness. It has antimicrobial effects and may have the ability to aid in fighting antibiotic resistant bacteria.

Basil

Beyond its use in cooking, basil has been known for its stomach calming effect, which can be achieved by placing fresh leaves in hot water. You can also add a sufficient quantity to a hot bath to alleviate stress. Basil is also beginner-friendly, so you can grow the herb indoors or outdoors and it won’t be too difficult even for someone who doesn’t consider themselves a green thumb.

Chamomile

Chamomile has long been associated with stress relief, but it also has anti-inflammatory properties as well, and can be great for treating insect bites. It can also be mixed with an essential oil and placed in boiled water to produce steam to treat allergies.

Echinacea

The Echinacea herb is a popular one and for good reason. This herb has a long history of being associated with quick relief from colds and other cold-like symptoms, but it’s origins began with its use in treating respiratory infections.

Thyme

This wonderful aromatic herb has been used in combination with some other herbs for respiratory issues like cough, and even some bronchial infections. Thyme is antimicrobial, and if used topically, can be used as an anti-fungal. It is also another herb you can grow either in your own garden or in containers on your patio or right in your kitchen near a south-facing window.

Parsley

Parsley contains flavonoids, which are antioxidant and anti-inflammatory. It can help reduce gas produced in the digestive tract, and it is a diuretic. This will make a great addition to your apothecary.

Sage

As you start gathering herbs for your apothecary, you might to consider adding sage for the tea. Sage tea has long been used to alleviate redness of the gums, and soothe insect bites and stings. It is currently being studied for its antioxidant properties.

Lemon Balm

This amazing herb is known for its antibacterial uses as well as its calming effect. When made into a tea, lemon balm can have a slight sedative effect as well.

Marigold

An excellent source of Flavonoids, Calendic acid, and plant sterols, which give it some amazing properties that are excellent at fighting candida, it can boost the immune system, and can treat multiple types of fungal infections.

More posts related to herbs:

• Ways of Storing Fresh Herbs from Your Garden
• How To Easily Make Herb Infused Honey at Home
• 4 Easy-to-Grow Culinary Herbs Ideal for Small Spaces

Items and Accessories You Need For Your Homestead Apothecary

Now let’s talk a little more about what you want to put in your apothecary. You already know the basics of what it is, like putting herbs and carrier oils in there, but there are some more items that can be really useful.

Storage Shelf

This one is relatively self explanatory. The shelf will be where you store your items and tools. Preferably a shelf that includes drawers for easy tool storage, and as well as for storing ingredients that should be kept in the dark. Proper organization really does go a long way when you are setting up your apothecary.

Mortar and Pestle

This is the 2 piece tool that can used for grinding or mashing of plant material and other ingredients. You will want to find one that doesn’t leave residue in your mixture for purity reasons. They can be found fairly inexpensively online or you can get them from natural food stores and herbalist stores quite easily as well. Plus, they are fun to use!

Jars of Various Sizes

You will require an assortment of jars for storage in your apothecary as well, though you don’t have to be too picky about what types of jars you use. Mason jars work perfectly well. Different sized jars will be important, as some of the herbs with either not take up the same amount of space, or be distilled into more concentrated forms. This will help to make your storage area much more space efficient.

Droppers

These are needed both for application of oils, and to regulate amounts that you will be adding to carriers when making your own mixtures. Keeping a few extra on hand is always good, as you will want to make sure that some substances don’t come in contact with each other.

Mesh Strainers and Cheesecloth

A large portion of recipes when making natural herbal products call for the extraction of chemicals from plant matter. This is where a type of strainer will come in handy. These items will allow the precious fluids to pass through and leave the plant matter behind to be discarded or repurposed.

Linen Bags

Bags of different sizes can be used to make tea bags, poultices, and compresses. This thin cloth will allow a liquid to pass through and deliver the healing properties of your herb. Making simple tea bag is easy. You simply fill a small bag with your choice of tea leaves and herbs and cinch it shut using a 6 inch piece of linen string.

Tips For Storing and Organizing Your Herbs

One of the integral parts of having an apothecary at home is having one that is well organized. This is really important because you aren’t just going to have drawers with different herbs in them. You will likely have a combination of dried herbs and ground herbs using your mortar and pestle, along with jars of tinctures, salves, lotions, and poultices that you have made. Here are some helpful tips for storing and organizing your herbs.

Decide What Storage You Want Including Shelves

As you probably know already, an apothecary is going to include some shelves or drawers. This will depend on where everything is being stored, such as a cabinet or an actual apothecary that includes drawers just like they used when these first existed. ideal shelf would be one that allows you to see a large portion of your inventory, but also contains drawers. This will allow you to keep a few items out of sight.

Make Sure Everything is Labeled

Since you are dealing mostly with organic material, they are likely to have a shelf life. It’s a good idea to label them so that you are able to know when they were procured. Keep a spot in your cabinet or shelf area where you will always have your pen or pencil ready.

Know the Shelf Life of Your Herbs

When you have complete or whole herbs and plants, they will generally last longer, so if you keep the buds or leaves on the branch or stalk instead of plucking them off, you will add some lifespan to your ingredients. If keeping a whole stock isn’t possible, try to keep as much of the plant together as you can.

Organize Your Dry Herbs

One way to keep your herbs for much longer is to dry them. Dry plant matter will remain nearly impervious to molds and rot. You can get a home dehydrator, make a drying screen, or simply hang them upside down. Well dried herbs crumble between your fingers. If you choose this method, make sure you include a good organization method for them as well, as label what they are and when they were dried.

Have Airtight Containment

Exposing your herbs to the air can lower the potency of your herbs. Airtight containers with a substantial seal can help extend their life well past how long they would normally last. Opt for the lids with a seal around the edge, or go for the flip-top style.

Keep Herbs Out of Sunlight

As you start organizing your apothecary herbs, make sure nothing is left out in the sunlight. While sunlight is great for helping your herbs grow to their full potential, keeping them in direct sunlight can damage or destroy many of the properties that moved you to collect them in the first place. Try using dark coloured glass or storing them in a drawer. If you do decide to keep them in a drawer, be sure it is a cool place. A temperature that is too warm can also weaken your herbs and shorten their shelf life.

I hope you have enjoyed learning more about building your own apothecary, let me know what your favourite apothecary recipes are!