The Four Ages of a Medica Plant's Tinctures
03-10-2019
We most often just think of making one kind of Plant Extract for Materia Medica.
Perhaps using different Menstruums (extraction fluids), mixes and ratios.
(Polar or Non-Polar: The exact composition of an herbal product is influenced by the method of extraction. A tea will be rich in polar components because water is a polar solvent. Oil, on the other hand, is a non-polar solvent and it will absorb non-polar compounds. Alcohol lies somewhere in between.)
But here I am proposing, based on common sense and common know art and researches, that we should consider making four temporal extracts from each of plant materia medica we choose in many cases. Yes, a bit like the Phases of the Moon or the Faces of the Crone.
While it is beyond the efforts I am willing to put into this blog to list very many references that can be found of testing two of the less common plant tincture ages, yet many are in the market place in only one phase. I may later try and expand this blog. For now, I will just list the four major temporal phases as I see them and a few links.
I also expect that often a combining of these four tinctures would be most effective and beneficial, while if one only wanted the vitamin values using just the first two perhaps would be best. Caveat emptor, you need to do your own research.
1) Tincture of Pre-Birth: or Seed. Here you may wish to dehusk (or decorticate) but I recommend you keep the husk or shell in as part of the marc (what you are extracting from) in most cases.
2) Tincture of Birth: Sprouted Seed: These will, of course, have the cast off shell casings.
>>In recent years, studies have shown that the sprouts of mung beans after germination have more obvious biological activities and more plentiful secondary metabolites since relevant biosynthetic enzymes are activated during the initial stages of germination. Thus, germination is thought to improve the nutritional and medicinal qualities of mung beans<<
3) Tincture of Full Bloom (Green Leafed): Our normal flowering phase tincture. Here we should be getting all the plants Chlorophyllic compounds, etc into our tincture.
4) Tincture of Death: Does your herb need Decarboxylation (see Ref.), most do not. Clearly, while some form drying is our most common form of preserving the plant beside (Green) tincturing. The drying process (time/temperature) can affect very much the end
chemical components left for the marc.
Phase three and phase four will yield a different tincture effect and components. Will it be subtle or dramatic, most likely depends on the plant and the application or results you are striving for.
>>The yield and chemical composition of essential oils from medicinal plants are related to a variety of internal and external factors, for example, the drying process. Drying is the most common way to preserve quality of aromatic and medicinal plants. The choice of the optimal drying air temperature is a central economic and ecological criterion. Most experimental studies focus on species with essential oils, revealing increasing essential oil losses with increasing temperature. However, there are differences in temperature sensitivity between species. Objective of this work was to develop a review of drying process, focusing in assisting research on aromatic and medicinal plants. This review compiles experimental studies in terms of effect of drying air temperature on active ingredients at different drying conditions<<
References:
Decarboxylation is a chemical reaction that removes a carboxyl group and releases carbon dioxide (CO2). Usually, decarboxylation refers to a reaction of carboxylic acids, removing a carbon atom from a carbon chain. The reverse process, which is the first chemical step in photosynthesis, is called carboxylation, the addition of CO2 to a compound. Enzymes that catalyze decarboxylations are called decarboxylases or, the more formal term, carboxy-lyases
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