Find relief from this herbal bug bite salve with ingredients known for their soothing properties.
It’s that time of year when the flowers are budding, the sun is shining, and…all the bugs start making their appearance.
If you spend any time in the outdoors at all, you know how hard it is to contend with mosquitos, ticks and all manner of stinging, crawling things.
Some of these pests can just be aggravating and cause mild discomfort, and some can cause unfortunate health issues.
In this Bug Bite Salve, we use herbs that are known for drawing out toxins from the skin and soothing skin irritation.
Ingredients to Use in Bug Bite Salve
There are many beneficial herbs that you can use in your salve.
Some of the most commonly used ingredients in “draw salves” include:
- Plantain leaves
- Calendula
- Chickweed
- Yarrow
- Lemon balm
- Comfrey
- Eucalyptus oil
- Lavender oil
- Camphor oil
You have several options to choose from, depending on what you already have, or even what you have growing in your yard or garden.
Many of these, like yarrow and lemon balm, are perennials that are easy to grow in the garden and will return each spring.
Plantain is a common “weed” you might have in your yard.
It has recently gained popularity for its inflammation-fighting, wound-healing properties that has been known for centuries.
In this recipe, we’re using plantain leaves, calendula, chickweed, and lavender and eucalyptus essential oils.
Most of these are fairly easy to find on Amazon or health food stores.
(See the recipe card at the end of this post for links to ingredients.)
If you’re using fresh herbs or “weeds”, be sure to dehydrate them before infusing them in oil, to prevent rancidity.
(This is the dehydrator I use for this purpose.)
Methods for making Herbal Bug Bite Balm
There are two ways to make this balm: slow or quick(er)!
Some will say that the “slow” method retains more benefits of the herbs.
This involves simply putting the herbs in oil in a jar and letting it sit for several weeks.
The “fast” method requires heating the herbs in the oil using a double boiler (or a bowl over a saucepan).
As long as you keep the heat very low, you should get the same benefits as the slow method.
Both methods work well, so it’s really up to you which one you use. You just need either heat or time, to extract the goodness from the herbs into the oil.
If you’re like me and tend to think of these DIY recipes right at the time you need them…the quick heat infusion method is probably what you need.
A simple, healing salve for bug bites
After the herbs have infused, you will strain them, add the beeswax and essential oils, and pour them into a 2-ounce tin.
Let them sit overnight until the mixture hardens and you’re all set for some plant-powered relief.
The great thing about making your own bug bite salve is you can use as much of it as you want; it’s completely natural.
The only caution is to only use essential oils you are familiar with and are comfortable with using on your skin.
Avoiding chemicals and costly ointments is a huge advantage of herbal remedies.
They often work better than their chemical counterparts- and you can know exactly what’s in them.
Note: many friends of mine will follow up a drawing salve with a homeopathic remedy such as ledum when dealing with tick bites, for example.
See full instructions for Bug Bite Salve in the printable recipe card below.
DIY Homemade Bug Bite Salve
Herb-infused salve specifically targets and draws out irritation from bug bites. It includes all natural beeswax, carrier oil and essential oils.
Materials
- 2-oz tin
- Dried plantain leaves
- Dried calendula
- Dried chickweed
- Carrier oil such as : olive oil, avocado oil or almond oil
- 1-1/2 Tablespoons beeswax pellets
- 10 drops essential oils such as eucalyptus oil and/or lavender.
Tools
- Double boiler pan, OR glass bowl over sauce pan
Instructions
- FOR SLOW INFUSION METHOD: Fill an 8-ounce (half-pint) jar with plantain leaves, calendula and chickweed. You can use an even amount of each, or more or less of the herbs you might have more of (no need to be exact).
- Pour enough carrier oil over the mixture until leaves are covered and let sit for 4-6 weeks.
- Strain out the herbs and keep the infused oil.
- Melt 1/2 cup of the infused oil and beeswax in a double broiler (or glass bowl over saucepan). Stir and remove from heat once melted.
- Let mixture cool slightly before adding essential oils. Stir and then pour into 2-ounce tins and let sit overnight or until solid.
- FOR QUICK HEAT INFUSION METHOD: Put approximately 1 cup (8 oz) of the herbs into a glass bowl or top part of double broiler. You can use equal amounts of each herb, but it does not need to be exact. Add enough carrier oil to cover the leaves well.
- Add water to bottom part of double broiler or saucepan and heat the water. Add the bowl of herbs & oil on top and let heat slowly for 30 minutes, up to a few hours on LOW heat. Do not let the glass bowl touch the water below. Do not let water get into the oil, and do not let the oil mixture boil.
- After oil has infused in the heat, carefully remove the bowl and let cool for a few minutes.
- Strain herbs from the oil.
- Place 1/2 cup of the infused oil back into the bowl (or top part of boiler pan). Add the beeswax pellets to the oil. Heat the water in the bottom pan and stir until pellets are melted.
- Remove from heat and let cool slightly before adding the essential oils.
- Pour into 2-ounce tins and let cool overnight or until solid.
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