Oooops a Daisy!!

Today I want to share with you a use of a plant that I’m pretty sure you will all know and be able to identify and that is so widespread and commonly found, I have no doubt wherever you live, you wouldn’t have to go far to get your hands on it.  I’m talking about the Daisy, and we are going to use it to make a salve to treat bumps and bruises.  To make it all you will need is a jar of coconut oil (around 250g), some jars, and general kitchen items.

Introducing the Daisy – Bellis Perennis
Just to be sure, because we always should be when using wild plants, here are some pictures of the Daisy as you will most probably find it.  It has quite a distinctive flower head and club shaped leaves.

Some of you may know Arnica.  I had never heard about such a thing until I met my wife who grew up with her Mum covering her and her brother in Arnica cream whenever they had a bump or a bruise. Daisy is in the same family as Arnica and one of the common names for Daisy is bruisewort which gives us a clue to it being worth (wort) using for bruises. 

Collecting the Daisies
Now we are 100% on what are we collecting it’s time to go out.  We want to follow all the best practice we can when we gather.  Collect from a good site where you are legally allowed to do so, which is free of chemicals, not on a busy road etc and collect ethically.  Make sure you leave plenty for the birds, bees, beetles, insects, and animals like rabbits who all rely on these plants.  You may need to collect from several areas to limit your impact in one spot.  It took me about 5 minutes to fill this jar and that’s what you will need, 1 jar of daisies.  You want the flowering head and about 1 inch of the stalk. No leaves are required.

Creating the Salve
Now back home give the collected daisies a rinse just to clear off any grit and small critters, then we want to lightly bruise them.  You can use a pestle and mortar if you have one, but I placed my flowers into a bowl then lightly crushed them with the back of a spoon.  We are looking to bruise the daisies to allow the goodness out, not crush them to mush.

Next, we place 250g of coconut oil into a bain-marie to melt the solid oil into a warm liquid.  Of course, make sure whatever you use for the bain-marie is safe to be heated like a Pyrex bowl for example.

When all the coconut oil is melted and warm, we add the bruised daisies into the oil and leave them to infuse for 30 minutes over the gentle warmth of the bain-marie.  We just want to keep it warm, if it gets too hot the heat can destroy the goodness that we are trying to extract.

The pour
After the 30 minutes of the flowers infusing in the coconut oil it’s time to pour it off.  I took a jug with a spout and emptied the oil from the bain-marie through a sieve into the jug.  After the liquid is no longer coming out press down on the flowers in the sieve with the back of a spoon to squeeze out all the infused oil we can get.  Now simply pour what is in the jug into your chosen container.  I used some small jars for taking out and about with me and a larger jar for at home.  Leave it to set on the side or place it in the fridge to speed up the setting.

The use
Whenever you find yourself with a bump or bruise, rub the salve onto the affected area 3 times a day for around 3 days and it should help your bump and bruises heal and disappear.  I hope you have enjoyed this and give it a try.  If you have an interest in plants for food or medicine then what better place to start than those we probably already know quite well.