Australian herbalists, following in the steps of their forebears, have historically placed a great deal of importance on the preparation and consumption of traditional herbal extracts, a practice with both a necessity and a traditional basis. For a couple of centuries, there was not enough on other commercial scale stuff, which contributed to knowing and using the natural assets the native Australian countryside had. This need for traditional herbal extracts is not a choice but evidence of the adaptive nature and the resilient spirit of Australian herbalists who have excelled by making use of the natural environment’s rich biodiversity.
The difference in Europe is that the situation has been quite different. Fresh-plant tinctures have been readily available to European herbalists for many years and are quickly becoming the most common method of extraction for herbalists across the continent. This convenience has inspired a culture that actively seeks for instant use of fresh plants in tinctures and this has made such practice a norm. While European herbalists have additional resources, such as connectivity to different plants and a generation-old herbal medicine practice that uses fresh extracts, African herbalists are in a better position. This unique path has been developed, which is aimed at the essentiality and rapidness of fresh plant preparations.
The difference between the practices in Australia and Europe demonstrates a lack of unity in the area of herbal medicine. It puts the spotlight on the powerful influence of local accessibility, cultural inclinations, and historical surroundings in the way herbalists from all over the world practise their trade. The use of traditional extracts among Australian herbalists reveals a bigger story of survival and adaptation where the natural environment is a determining factor in the evolution of medicinal practices. Despite this, European interest in new plant-based tinctures illustrates a deep-rooted tradition of herbal medicine, reinforced by endless raw materials and a tendency to use fresh preparations.
What’s the difference between the two?
Traditional extracts are made from dried plant material. These materials are sourced from all over the world. At PPC Herbs, we have a preference for Australian-grown herbs that are organically certified where possible. Dried herbs work well as a starting material, they are available year-round, and stored and transported easily.
On the other hand, it can be difficult to tell how old the herb is. Suppliers often have trouble telling where it comes from, and there can be significant variations depending on how the grower harvested, dried and processed the plant material.
Fresh tinctures are made from fresh plant material taken straight from the field into processing without drying. The plant material is processed within hours of harvest to avoid any deterioration or loss of actives.
Where do PPC Herbs source their Australian organically grown fresh herbs?
In late 2014, PPC Herbs was approached by Ronald and Marleen Van de Winckel who had established Marleen Herbs of Tasmania. Ronald and Marleen had vast herb-growing experience from years of growing medicinal herbs in the Netherlands. In 2010, they moved to Australia and established their new farm near Sheffield in pristine Northern Tasmania. Although they were exporting many tinctures back to Europe, they wanted to introduce their fresh tinctures to Australian herbalists. PPC Herbs was the perfect partner, due to our well-established preference for Australian Organically Certified herbs.
PPC Herbs launched the new range of fresh tinctures in March 2015 with an initial selection of 60 herbs. In 2017 that has expanded to 110 species. Every one of these is organically grown in Tasmania by Marleen, Ronald and their family.
How do you use fresh herbal tinctures?
Many Australian-trained herbalists are unsure how to use fresh tinctures, largely because they didn’t learn about them in college. They can be used just like traditional extracts, as they’re used for the same actions and indications, and the dosages are similar.
PPC Herbs does express the dosages in drops to differentiate between the two ranges. Therefore, a typical dosage of 20-40 drops three times daily still translates to 20-40 mL per week, matching a typical traditional extract dosage.
Can fresh plant tinctures be used with traditional extracts?
The answer is absolutely YES. Fresh plant tinctures are still prepared in ethanol and water, with a typical final ethanol percentage of 51-66%, depending on the extract ratio (1:1 or 1:2). Fresh plant tinctures and traditional extracts can mix easily and be interchanged at will.