Please supply remedy recipe for nettle ointment, as seen on Autumn Watch tonight.
Thank you
Ray

Hi Ray,

Unfortunately I didn't see the programme, so I don't know what it was, one of the herbalist ladies may be able to help. I can try and contact Tina Stapely and ask her for the recipe, may take a few days though.

For anyone else that didn't see the programme, here's a link to more info about the herbal section

http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/autumnwatch/2009/10/learning_about_herbalism.html#more 

Linda they link to your Herbs In history page and also our Herbs In Medicine main page. Wish I'd seen it now, wonder if its on iPlayer... It is but tonight's episode isn't yet, does say its repeated tomorrow at 7pm on BBC2 http://feeds.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00npj8y  The iPlayer page for Autumnwatch is here http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00nhsv2/Autumnwatch_2009_Episode_4/

Debs

Hi, l too was very interested in the item regarding Nettle ointment, if anyone finds out if it can be bought and where, l would be very interested.

Many thanks

I saw the repeat of Autumn Watch this evening and caught the section with Christina Stapley. Again it was a series of bits of information sewn together to give the story the BBC were wanting rather than anything totally coherent. Every time Christena Stapely started to say something they let her get one sentence out then faded the rest so the guy with her could do a voiceover - very frustrating.

My take on the story was BBC bod goes on a herb walk with Christina. He gets to nettles and says, "Nettle is good for 101 things, isn't it?" Christena, "Yes". BBC bod says, "It's good for arthritis isn't it?" Christena says, "Yes,it can be used for painful joints" but the rest of what she says is faded. "So it would help with my climbing over-exertions?" "Yes" says Christena, fade to next scene with bit of voiceover. BBC bod and Christena are about to pick nettle seed. Long bit about whether they sting or not if you hold them properly, general laughter from both of them while BBC bod pulls nettle seed strings off with his fingers. Then you see BBC bod pouring olive oil over half a glass jar full of nettle seed. He caps the jar and holds it up and repeats that she has told him to heat it and apply it to joints which are hurting. Cut back to the studio, incredulous presenters say, "And did you cover yourself with the oil and did it work?" BBC bod says,"Well, as it happens, Christena reduced it down for me and put it in this tiny jar as an ointment. And do you know what, I went rock climbing at the weekend and over-exerted myself on this muscle here (points to forearm) so I rubbed on the ointment and the pain disappeared." Dutiful surprised faces and general laughter from presenters.

Now I know it's wonderful to have any BBC programme showing the use of herbal medicine. I love Christina Stapeley and all her works and it's fantastic that she was used as the medical herbalist on the programme.

OK, rant coming.

It is such a shame that the BBC perpetuated the myth that if you put one herb on something painful it will take the pain away. There are so many variables. It might be rheumatoid arthritis or inflammatation of the joints arising from the wear and tear of old age or over useage. Yes, nettles are fantastic and you do take them to help purify the blood to help the breakdown of crystals which built up in the joints from insufficient action of the liver. You also help the liver at the same time with other herbs. Many arthritis sufferers do find relief from their pain by applying nettle stings externally, known as urtication and Jenny has written about how this works before.

I'd really like to know if Christina is advocating using a double infused oil of nettle seeds externally on joint pain, because it's a totally new usage for me. I always use them internally, either fresh in tincture for kidney support or dried in porridge, salt or yoghurt for adrenal support. I've always thought of leaves in soups, tonics, teas, vinegars or macerations for arthritis and associated conditions where you need to extract the mineral content to help rebuild bones etc.

When the BBC bod said, "Christina reduced it down for me," he was making a very confusing statement. You can't reduce an infused oil. You reduce water based products by boiling off the water or alcohol, but I've never heard of a reduced oil.

What I really want to know is whether she just made a salve for him with the nettle seed oil and beeswax or whether she made an actual ointment, which is the mixing of an infused oil and a water soluble componant like a tea or tincture. If so, what was in the water soluble bit?

I spent over an hour today gathering a huge basket full of nettle seed and it's now happily rolled up in newspaper drying in my hot cupboard. This batch is to give away, but I have already dried at least 5 1lb honey jars full of seed for the use of whoever needs it over the coming year. I still have several jars left from 12 months ago. I'm not going to experiment with a double infused oil of seed because I've already got over a pint of double infused nettle leaf oil from last year which I haven't used. (I was going to try it on allergic skin reactions but haven't had anyone to experiment with!)

What I have made, which was very well received by one arthritis sufferer, was a salve made from double infused ginger oil (warming), meadowsweet oil (anti-inflammatory), SJW oil (specific for nerve pain) and plantain oil (helps rebuild bones etc). I've made sure I made extra meadowsweet oil this summer and I'll probably make some more ginger when I use up the last lot.

So, it would be really helpful if Debs could contact Christina and find out exactly what was in the small pot the BBC bod was waving around. I'm really glad he found it helpful.

Sarah

Hi,

I saw the program and as a chronic tennis elbow and radial tunnel sufferer for over three years, with all conventional medical treatment failing I would really like to know if this would help???

I take mineral supplements - Glucosomine and Chondoitin.

So can anyone point me in the right direction for a real and serious problem

Hi Everyone

I contacted Christina Stapley re the Autumnwatch Nettle Ointment recipe etc and she sent me the response below.

Debs

 

"In reply to comments on the herb society forum I would like to explain about the nettle scene on Autumnwatch. In choosing a herb to make into a medicine I needed it to be one easily recognisable to all, a herb that no-one minds you picking and one that is effective for a simple condition. Since Martin, who is genuinely interested in herbs asked me to make something to ease muscular strain and the nettle seeds were ready, it was indeed the herb to answer all needs.

 

In my opening comment about nettles being good for rheumatism, arthritis etc I was referring to the use of the plant internally. With the inevitable editing sometimes parts of a conversation can give the wrong idea. However they could hardly include almost a day of filming in a programme primarily about animals, birds etc rather than plants.

 

Yes, I have used nettle-seed ointment for rheumatism alongside other medicine and people like it, but it is not sufficient for full-blown arthritis on its own. That needs so much more. I have received many calls and emails from people hoping it will help serious conditions and I have repeatedly explained that firstly, herbalists cannot give out medicines without seeing the patient face to face to determine what is wrong and whether the medicine will help, and secondly that I gave it to Martin for muscular strain not arthritis.

 

Having cleared that up, on to the recipe. You will have noticed if you watched the episode that the seeds I was gathering were still green. You can include some brown, but not too many. Fill the extra virgin olive oil with the seeds.

For Martin's ointment I used first sun extraction and then heated the oil in a bowl over a pan of boiling water. It is too late in the year now for sun extraction and so a water bath will have to do. The source of the recipe was Roman, this recipe is at least two thousand years old but continued in use for over a thousand years. My first experiment with it was during a Roman herb workshop I was tutoring at Butser Ancient Farm several years ago. We heated the oil in a pot over the fire (that is hung above a fire - not set amongst the flames!) having rubbed on the infused oil we found it "re-ignited" any earlier nettle stings on our hands from the gathering, confirming that it gives a low dose of nettle sting. Something which has long been credited in folklore with helping rheumatism. I therefore continued to experiment with the oil thickened with beeswax into an ointment.

 

The modern way then is to heat the seeds in the oil over a pan of hot water until the oil changes colour and the herb is slightly crisped - some 3-4 hours.

Having strained the nettle seeds out using muslin I then add finely chopped beeswax - about 50g to 500ml of oil. With it melted in pour into prepared jars and add 1 drop of essential oil of tea-tree or lavender to each small pot as a preservative. In reply to the comment about not being able to reduce an oil, that is perfectly correct. I did not reduce anything, Martin simply presumed the whole of the large jar of oil was contained in his pot of ointment - not so.

 

I am continually researching historical recipes in order to rescue the helpful ones from being lost, also to enrich a history of herbal use I am writing.

Historical herb workshops are a great way to share this exploration, there will be more in 2010. Look out also for a piece on the nettle and all its uses coming soon on the Herb Society website.

All good wishes,

Christina Stapley"   

 

Please pass on my thanks to Christina for her comprehensive reply!

Interestingly, dried nettle seed has very little sting and I usually rub it bare handed when I'm putting it through a seive. So, another new concoction to try! The only problem, will the nettle seeds still hanging on the plants still be there on Sunday after all the rain and low temperatures or will I have to wait until next summer to try the recipe?

Sarah

I have a feeling Christina reads the forum Sarah so she'll see your thanks, but next time I talk to her I'll pass them on just in case. I hope the people who posted the original questions see the answer.

Debs

As a result of this thread, Christina has written a brilliant 2 part article on the nettle for us. Members can read it over in the members area. Non members can find an extract from it here http://www.herbsociety.org.uk/sample-articles.htm

Debs