I've not been posting a lot for a while. I've reacted negatively to anything to do with the US of late, especially things the value of are tied to the USD. But a person, much wiser than I, who lives in that part of the world, told me that sources of news and inspiration from the real world are getting few and far between, especially for Poor, Migrant, Latinx, Black, Indigenous and LGBTQ++ communities (read 'anyone whos not a straight, white christian'). They helped me realise that we need to keep pumping out the positive, healing vibrancy that comes with gardening and herbalism. So I bit the bullet and am back, starting with a post about creating your own Flower Essences to help us all heal in these crazy times.
Many people have heard of or even used, Flower Essences. From the inestimable Bach Flower Remedies, California Flower Essences, to Australian Bush Flower Essences, they are all wonderful healers with subtle, yet deep reaching effects when used well. Of course, when not used correctly, they are a waste of money and that’s precisely where most folks leave them, saying ‘they don’t work’!
If you’re haven’t done your research and given it some thought, they can be little more than expensive bottles of water but with a bit of effort and meditation, you can access this powerful healing modality. Over a series of posts, I’ll share with you what I have learned over the years, mostly by personal use of the Bach Flower Remedies.
To give you a little insight as to what is in those cute little bottles, I’ll teach you the basics of making a flower essence using basic kitchen equipment and a bit of sunlight. We’ll start with one that I often recommend to folks when we’re not sure which remedy is best for them – good old Olive. Dr Bach was quite clear in his intent to create a system of healing that was usable by everyone,even the process of creating the remedies. He never hid anything nor patented the techniques of which there are two – the Sun method, which I’ll cover here and the boiling method, which I’ll cover on another page
I chose Olive because, at the right time of year, you get a LOT of flowers to experiment with, they’re very easy to find and the Olive Bach Flower Remedy is useful for people who are in an exhausted physical and mental state. As that applies to most of us under the yoke of capitalism, it’s a good one to start with.
Essences are made from the freshest, cleanest flowers you can find, pure water, a glass bowl and lots of sunlight. Not much for such a powerful type of remedy!
To make your remedy, choose a day when there is lots of direct Sun and not a cloud in the sky – sorry tropical folks, I know that can be hard in your neck of the woods! I’ve noticed that even in sunny Gawler, cloud free days are getting rares, even in the height of Summer. Maybe it’s all that extra water vapour being held in a warming atmosphere making clouds for us?
If you pick your day right, you will be rewarded with at least 4 hours of cloud free sky. That’s the most essential part as it is the Sun’s energy that helps the flower’s essence infuse into your water. Even standing in the wrong place and casting your shadow over the water will reduce the potency of the essence. I’m not sure about birds flying overhead? I’ve never experienced it except for one batch in which a cheeky bird managed to drop a poo into my bowl while overhead! Of course, that batch was added to the garden.
First of all, clear your mind. Take a walk, turn off your phone, ask that neighbour with the leaf blower tro take a break…you get the idea. Then, when you’re all very Zen, start thinking about the purpose of your upcoming flower essence. Intent and clarity are important during the whole process. I find that spending a few minutes thinking of the character and nature of the plant – how and where it grows, what it likes and how can you uncover that in a person.
I made a joke once to someone I was showing how to make flower essences about needing long white or saffron robes while making flower essences but I didn’t realise that they took it to heart and they later sent me a pic of the new white robe they’d bought!
So you have a spotless mind, lots of good intent and a lot of Sun. Next, you will need a clean glass bowl without any decorations. Crystal is perfect but many crystal bowls are adorned with facets which can distort the sunlight. I’m not sure if that has a great effect but a plain one is best. Don’t use glass with lead in it though for reasons that I hope are clear.
After that comes the wonderful liquid into which the flower essence will infuse – goold old water. The purest water possible is best, natural spring water too if you can get it and ideally not stored in plastic. Fussy aren’t I? Purity is the key.
If you plan to make a lot of essence and want to store it, have a little brandy on hand. I’ve found that grappa or grape brandy is best but use what you’ve got and can afford. You’ll only need a little so one of those cute, tiny bottles is often enough unless you’d like a drink to celebrate making your own flower essence! Dr. Bach chose brandy as his favoured preservative because it has its own, gentle, healing properties and it has become the default. Brandy in his day was undoubtedly a lot more ‘organic’ than nowadays, which is why I reach out to friends who make their own grappa at home.
Don’t worry if this all sounds a bit fiddly, you’ll get the hang of the process after running through it a few times.
Clean your bowl again and place your bowl somewhere where it will get full Sun for the required time and you or your partner, neighbour or even your dog won’t cast a shadow over it. Dogs and cats seem to be drawn by the energy of the essence while it is infusing and can’t resist taking a drink!
Wash your hands too, leaving no residue of soap or, nowadays, hand sanitizer. I like to give my hands a final rinse in a little of the same water that I’ll be using to make the essence with.
Add the amount of water you want to use. I line to make 100-200 ml at a time. It’s potent stuff and that will last a long time. Keep some more water nearby (I’ll tell you why later).
Now comes the first of the fun bits. Collect as many flowers as you think will lightly cover the surface of your water without piling up on top of each other. Collect them fresh and don’t handle them too much. I like to try and break a flower filled branch or stem off of the plant and only handle then remove them from the branch with a pair of snips so that they fall directly onto the bowl of water. It’s easy to do with Olive flowers, which is why I recommend practicing on this tree first Olive is pretty robust and can tolerate a few mishandlings that some of the rarer, more delicate flowers won’t. Another option is to have another glass bowl to collect your flowers in.
Here’s the second of the fun bits. Grab yourself a small twig from the plant you’ve got your flowers from. Now you have to distribute your flowers evenly over the surface of the water without them overlapping or you touching the water! That’s easy to do with big flowers but a little trickier with small flowers such as Olive. This is where the twig comes in. Use it to move the flowers around on the surface of the water so that you doný have to touch anything with your fingers throughout the rest of the process.
There’s no fixed rule to how many flowers you need to use. Some experts use only a single flower. I think they’re much more spiritual and in-tune than I am. Maybe I’m just a bit more materialistic and physical!
As this may be your first essence, I recommend covering at least half to three quarters of the surface of the water with your flowers. It is a case of quality, not quantity. Make sure that if they are touching, it is only at the edges and they’re not on top of each other. The reason for this is to give each flower the maximum sunlight and the maximum contact with the water so that its energy can infuse.
Now, carefully, walk away, still keeping your intent in mind. For Olive, remember that Olive trees are hardy, tough as hell and resilient. You want to bring that strength to your flower essence so that you can share it yourself or give it to someone who needs it.
Remember to keep your intent in mind throughout the whole process
Once the time has passed or the flowers seem to have lost their colour and vibrancy, your remedy is ready for the next stage.
Filter it through some clean cheesecloth or a stainless steel sieve fine enough to remove the flowers. Measure the amount of water that they have at this stage because some will have been lost to evaporation. They then top up the amount of water to the original amount. That’s why I wrote earlier about keeping some water nearby.
Now your water goes into a very clean, amber glass bottle for storage. Use a clean glass funnel if you have one (I keep breaking mine) or a clean stainless steel one. Some folks think that steel can reduce the effectiveness of plant based remedies but in this case, the flower essence will only be in contact with the funnel for a second or two.
If you’re going to store your essence for a long time, especially if you have made a lot, now is the time to add the brandy that you haven’t drunk. You are only adding it as a preservative, so 25% by volume will be enough. If you want to be really super fussy, you can use the dilution formula on our learning about alcohol page. I just eyeball it. If you have 100 ml of flower essence, just add 25 ml of brandy.
Store your finished flower essence as you would any other herbal remedy – out of direct sunlight, in a cool place and away from any electrical equipment. It will last forever!
Even though store bought remedies have a use by date on them, that’s more a law of the land that is the same as for any food or medicinal product. Personally, I think it’s more to keep the sales rolling than anything. I’ve used Bach Flower Remedies to great success that are years out of date. The only thing you will need to watch out for is that, if you store your remedy in dropper bottles, the little rubber bulbs eventually perish. I prefer decanting it from a larger bottle, one small bottle at a time as refills are required.
It might seem very pedantic but flower essences are some of the most powerful remedies I’ve ever used. Making one well will reward you greatly!
Congratulations! You’ve made your first flower essence. This is called the Mother Essence (or tincture) and I’ll explain how to use it in the next post on the topic.
Now, go say thank you to the plant that you got your flowers from and maybe share a sip of brandy with it. Personally, I like to share a few drops of the essence with it, to let it know what’s going on – but that’s just me
Some new readers may not know that,if you look back over this blog, you can see heaps of info on the topic of gardening and herbalism, plus loads and loads of posts on herbs and using Australian bushfoods from a white perspective. If you haven't been around on in the @hivegarden and @naturalmedicine communities for long, you may be interested in looking back. There's w-a-a-a-a-y too much there for me to repost and the Hive system doesn't let you vote on old posts so, if you're happy with what you find, I believe that there is now a tip option...
