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Tincture

General description of the method; for a specific herb always check suitability, plant part and safety on its card.

Alcoholic or alcohol–water maceration extract.

Safety in brief: Contains alcohol; use caution with children, pregnancy, and drug interactions.
Difficulty:
Medium
Preparation time (rough guide):
Weeks of maceration plus straining; label with the date.
Equipment:
Clean jar with lid, strainer or cloth, measuring tools; ethanol of appropriate strength per source and law.
General preparation safety

Alcohol increases the risk of extracting unwanted compounds. Do not dilute without knowing the strength; unsuitable for some conditions, medicines, and children. Follow local law and expert references.

More detail

A tincture is usually a long maceration of plant material in ethanol (sometimes with water). Alcohol and time release different compound groups than hot water alone; concentration and stability depend on the herb-to-solvent ratio and procedure.

Home production involves legal and safety limits that vary by country; this site gives a general overview, not a recipe. For each herb, read the card for interactions and warnings before preparing anything yourself.

Related methods

Methods are often compared — links below go to the detail page with short context.

Recipes in the catalogue

These herbs have a published step-by-step procedure for this method — full instructions are on the herb card under processing.

Herbs in the catalogue

Published herbs that list this method on the card.

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