Skip to main content

Horsetail Salve ~ A "first" this Year

We purchased some horsetail salve to try last year.  It is said to help with severely dry, cracked skin.  My husband was the first to try it, with very, very dry and cracked hands from work.

He loves it!  He joked I could not have it back.  

I started the infused, horsetail oil the last part of March.

Something I learned:  horsetail is also called shavegrass.



I infused horsetail in oil, and strained it.  I then made horsetail salve.  I remembered to label my jar with what oil(s) I used, so I can journal this all in my "Herbal Remedies" journal.  I often forget to write the oil used.


Now, the one we bought, has more in it than I put in ours, as far as ingredients (the purchased salve had lanolin, and aloe).  We'll see if ours works just as good.  I added the sage essential oil, and vitamin E oil.

A "first" time experience for us this year.  

I bought the larger tins at a seed store in an Amish area last year.  They are 4 oz. tins.  The apothecary, sells this in 2 oz. tins.  The smaller ones I had on hand are 1/2 oz. tins.

The cost to buy all of this from the store would have been $70 or so.  Crazy that one cup of infused oil, and a few additions, can be made so easily myself.

Although, I am thrilled to make this salve myself, I may start cutting our recipe to using a half cup of oil vs. 1 cup of oil.  We'll see how much we do use of this full batch.

Horsetail Salve ~ A "first" this Year  ©  June 2026 by Kristina at Pioneer Woman at Heart 

Comments

Leigh said…
This is good to know. I have very dry skin so I'm always on the lookout for something to help. I know horsetail is an excellent herb for the urinary tract and that it contains silica. I wonder if it's the silica that makes it such a good salve for the skin.
Leigh, my thoughts were the same regarding the silica in it. We do not have horsetail around here, so I have to buy it too. I am glad I made it, as a 2 oz tin sells for $14.00.
Carol said…
I never heard of this, but I bet it is good.
Betsy said…
Wow! That's expensive to buy. I hope your homemade salve works as well. I use a cream called Udderly Smooth for my feet. They get so dry and cracked all year round. It's a side effect of having psoriasis. My siblings all have it too. We just had a water softener installed about a month ago and it has helped my skin so much. We've had to put one in every house we've owned. Our two boys inherited the skin issues from me so we were glad to have something that helped a little.
Blessings and hugs,
Betsy
Betsy, I have already used it, and it soaked in very nicely too. I'm so glad we bought the trial size to try, and then made it myself. I do have plans to explore more salve making, as they work very well.
Carol, we are blessed to have an apothecary to visit, but it is a drive. I'm thankful for the trial size we bought and to be making it myself now.

Popular posts from this blog

Chit Chat

  The pickings are slim right now, but we'll take anything we are blessed with.  I made a salad and cleaned the beans.  The rain will give us more for a meal in a day or so.  The green beans are every so slowly coming on this season. I made a batch of homemade granola, and instead of my homemade vanilla extract, I used my homemade Christmas Spice Extract.  It smelled so good in the oven, and while cooling.   I picked some purslane, and am doing an experiment with it this time.  Update soon.   Chit Chat ©  August 2026 by Kristina at Pioneer Woman at Heart

I've Been MIA and Heat Wave

First day of July.  It's hot.   I'm definitely not entering a stage of boredom any day soon.  Although I've been doing a lot, it's been productive.  We are in the middle of the worst heat wave I can ever remember.  So humid, there is very little to no work being done in the gardens for the last few days.  Heat index has been up to 106 degrees, and nights did not get any cooler than about  77 degrees.  The heat wave will continue for the rest of the week.  No rain yet. I froze water in small bottles to keep the chickens water cold, and froze treats for them. I canned a small batch of reduced sugar peach jam (before the heat  wave).  I have to admit, it's been very nice to can for two people now.   Enjoyed the last of our asparagus harvest.  The last two stalks were harvested June 29th.  The longest asparagus season we've ever had.  They look light colored, but taking them out of the fridge, they quickly...

Organized yet?

  Over the last 20 plus years, my baking utensil drawer and my smaller kitchen drawer were a piled mess, due to the space in the kitchen.  I'm so glad I was limited to indoor work (while my eye regains better sensitivity to light), as I dumped both drawers and purged them.   We allowed kids to move back in, after moving out (something my own Mother would not allow me to do as a young adult), and they brought their belongings with them.  Belongings often included kitchen items, and without my knowledge, they filled the kitchen drawers with extra items. Our local schools are doing a contest for a thrift store.  Each school is collecting donations, and they are weighed for this collection contest.  I have filled two boxes of items to donate, that are extra here, or not used any longer.   I wonder what other stuff I'll discover? 42°F this morning (feels like 40°F).  High of 74°F. Organized yet?   ©  October 2026 by Kristina at Pion...