This homemade calendula salve is good to have on hand to treat minor cuts and injuries in your backyard chicken flock, other pets and family members.
This Calendula salve is a soft, easily spreadable ointment that highlights the soothing properties of Calendula, which has a long history of being used as natural first aid for cuts, scrapes and scratches as well as for minor wounds and bug bites.
Calendula also helps to heals skin tissue and hydrate it, and can be helpful to treat cases of frostbite in your flock. Calendula is inexpensive and easy to find commercially, but also pretty easy to grow yourself.
This salve uses coconut oil and Vitamin E which are known to further aid in wound healing and soften skin.
Vitamin E oil is also an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory which will help to prolong the shelf life of of the salve.Calendula First Aid Salve for Chickens, Pets and People
What You'll Need
Handful of fresh or dried Calendula flower petalsPint-sized Mason jar or glass jar with lid1-2 cups of olive oil2 Tablespoons coconut oil2 Tablespoons beeswax (I prefer the pastilles because they melt so much faster)Liquid Vitamin EWhat you Do
To Make Calendula Infused Oil
Add the Calendula petals to the Mason jar and cover completely with olive oil. Stir to be sure all the petals are coated, then add enough olive oil so that the petals are covered by at least an inch of oil.Replace the lid on the jar.
Set the jar in a sunny location, and shake it each time you walk by, to keep the contents will mixed.
After 2-3 weeks, strain out the solids and discard them (or measure out just 1/2 cup of the liquid, add some more olive oil and let the rest of the jar continue to infuse).
To Make the Calendula Salve
- Melt the coconut oil and beeswax until liquified - stir until well mixed.
- Stir in 1/2 cup of the calendula-infused olive oil.
- Add a few drops of Vitamin E.
- Pour into a heat-safe covered tin or container and let sit until the mixture solidifies.
Then it's ready to use. Apply liberally to the site of a wound and store in a cool, dry location.
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Further Reading
If you enjoyed this recipe, you'll love my book
101 Chicken Keeping Hacks which includes the recipes for several more homemade herbal salves.
Available from Amazon.
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