Earlier this year I learned about Calendula, an amazing flower that can be infused in an oil and used in lotions, salves, etc. A few friends of mine have pretty bad eczema and they say that Calendula oil has been the only treatment that's worked! (For more on the healing properties of Calendula, click on the post title to visit a Mountain Rose Herb Blog post). This spring I found some plants at the local co-op and put them in my flower bed - wow, what a prolific flower! Every day, around noon, I pick 3 or 4 flowers and add them to my drying rack.
I keep them in my basement where there's a dehumidifier running all summer. I've been drying for several weeks and finally have enough to start an infusion. Here's the dried flowers ready to add oil.
Several recipes call for EVOO but I chose sunflower oil that I buy in bulk at the co-op.
Now it's just a matter of 4-6 weeks in a sunny window, then I'll strain the flowers out and use the oil for my lotions. It's been a great DIY summer, made steam distilled rose water too, but that will be another post...
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