Often the best active ingredients come from nature. We present 10 plants with healing properties that are suitable for making natural cosmetics.
Medicinal plants with a particularly positive effect on the skin are often used in "green cosmetics" or natural cosmetics. But which plants are best suited for your own creams and ointments?
Natural cosmetics from our own garden
Making natural cosmetics at home is right in line with the trend towards conscious consumption and growing he alth awareness. With just a few materials such as beeswax, oils and the respective medicinal plants, you can quickly make your own hand cream. Gone are the days when you tried to decipher the chemical additives on the cosmetic packaging and had to ask yourself whether there weren't any undesirable effects. Many of our garden plants are ideal for processing in our own cosmetics because they have a healing and nourishing effect on our skin. We present the 10 best plants for this below.
1. Witch Hazel
The elegant witch hazel (Hamamelis) is one of the first flowering shrubs to unfold its delicate yellow to deep red thread-like flowers as early as January. Their sweet scent and the wonderful red-gold foliage color in autumn make them a popular and long-lasting garden dweller. Used for centuries as a medicinal plant by the Cherokee Indians in their homeland of North America, its positive properties are unfortunately still hardly known to us. The leaves and bark of the witch hazel can be used in extracts and ointments. Its plant substances act against itching and burning or weeping skin. They also stop minor bleeding and promote wound healing. Witch hazel also unfolds its effect as so-called "Aqua hamamelidis", i.e. as a watery extract in the form of shaving lotion and facial tonic.
The well-known houseplant is undemanding and hardy, coming from the tropics and subtropics. The true aloe (Aloe Vera) possessesthickened leaves filled with aquatic tissue and small bleached teeth at regular intervals on the leaf margin. With its own water supply, it is perfectly adapted to longer periods of drought. The slimy gel that comes out when you cut it contains valuable ingredients and can therefore also be used for natural cosmetics. For all skin injuries, especially burns, the gel has a cooling and pain-relieving effect and at the same time promotes the healing of the wound. Its anti-inflammatory and antiseptic effect is also used for neurodermatitis, psoriasis and eczema. To make a cooling gel, older leaves are cut off and placed upright in a glass for some time to separate the unwanted yellow sap from the gel. The leaves are then peeled and the water tissue contained is pureed into a homogeneous mass. Vitamin C powder is added for preservation so that the gel can be kept for up to four weeks.
3. Pansies
The little pansies (Viola) can be found in many home gardens. In all possible color combinations, they appear again and again in the bed and not only inspire hobby gardeners. In star cuisine, the edible flowers of the Viola are processed or candied as a whole and used as an ornament for many dishes. However, it is often unknown that the pansy also has a healing effect. Creams and ointments made from viola have proven their worth for neurodermatitis, internal and external eczema, as well as light acne and scars. Since the plant is particularly gentle, it is also suitable for babies and small children, for cradle cap or diaper rash. For external and internal use, a tea can also be made from whole, dried plants. In this form, the viola also has an anti-inflammatory effect in gout and rheumatic diseases. During the flowering period in May and June, the whole plant is harvested and gently air-dried.
The orange to lemon-yellow marigold (Calendula officinalis) belongs to the daisy family (Asteraceae) and is an annual ornamental plant in many gardens. The pretty flowers can be found as a splash of color in herbal and blossom tea blends. However, the skin-healing effect of this plant is well-known, which is why many lotions and oils containing marigold extracts can also be found in commercial natural cosmetics.Marigold oil is used especially for poorly healing wounds or for massage. You fill a screw-top jar with fresh or, even better, dried flowers and cover them with high-quality vegetable oil. Leave the oil in the sun for a few weeks before straining it and either using it directly or processing it.
5. Chili
A salve made from chili (Capsicum sp.) can provide relief for sore muscles or tension. The hot little fruits from the nightshade family (Solanaceae) are known as a spice in the kitchen or as a loyal companion in the pot. The alkaloid capsaicin is responsible for the warming and sometimes fiery effect. It is found in different concentrations in the various types of chili, which are measured using the so-called Scoville scale. If you put finely chopped chillies in high-quality vegetable oil and leave the closed vessel to steep for a few weeks, you have produced an effective chilli oil with little effort. This can be used directly for warming massages or further processed into balm and ointment. You can find tips and tricks on how to get your chillies really hot for natural cosmetics or in the kitchen here.
St. John's wort (Hypericum perforatum) is a perennial herbaceous plant with sun-yellow, five-petaled flowers that begins to bloom around St. John's Day, i.e. at the end of June. If you hold the oval leaves up to the light, you can see many small translucent oil glands, which also gave the plant its botanical nickname perforatum ("perforated"). If you rub the young buds and flowers between your fingers, the dark red active ingredient hypericin appears. We also owe this substance its healing effect, on the one hand on the skin and on the other hand in depressive moods. The oil from the flowers is also colored deep red and is therefore also called red oil. St. John's wort ointments work very well for tension, inflammation and cracked skin as well as shingles and neurodermatitis. However, the hypericin causes some drug interactions and should therefore only be used in consultation with a doctor.
7. Plantain
The inconspicuous buckhorn (Plantago lanceolata) appears to someas a weed, it prefers to inhabit stony, barren soils, meadows and also crevices between stone slabs. It is a perennial perennial that produces small inconspicuous but graceful flowers on long stalks between May and September. But the small plant with the long pointed leaves has it all. Plantain is an emergency first responder for insect bites and burns. Chewing its leaves into a pulp and rubbing it on the wound relieves itching and pain. Plantain reduces swelling, bruises and bruises. An ointment made from the freshly harvested leaves lasts for a few months and gets you safely through the mosquito and wasp-ridden times in midsummer.
8. Lavender
One of our most popular garden plants is lavender (Lavandula angustifolia), which attracts numerous insects with its intense fragrance and deep purple to white flowers. The perennial, herbaceous plant loves well-drained, sandy-rocky soil and sunny locations. The aromatic scent has been proven to have a calming and relaxing effect as well as against nervousness. The anti-inflammatory and antiseptic effect relieves insect bites and abrasions as well as eczema and rashes. The scent of lavender keeps annoying mosquitoes, aphids and moths away. Exactly these healing effects are best captured in a lavender ointment. Ideally, you should use gently dried buds that are allowed to steep in an oil-wax mixture for a few days before heating and straining the whole thing again. A hydrolat, i.e. a water extract with essential oil, can be used as a spray for insomnia and skin problems as a gentle remedy. For the hydrolat, fresh flowers are placed in a pot on a vegetable insert; put a small glass bowl in the middle of the sieve. As with cooking vegetables, there should be enough water to evaporate. Place a large, rounded bowl of ice water on top of the pot instead of a lid. The water evaporates and absorbs the active ingredients and scent of the lavender, rises to the top and condenses on the cold bowl. The hydrolat drips into the middle of the small bowl and can be filled later.
9. Evening Primrose
The evening primrose (Oenothera) lives up to its name and only opens its white, lemon yellow or pink to purple colored buds within a few minutes shortly after sunsetpetals. Therefore, it is an interesting food source for many moths. It originally comes from America, but has been spreading to us as a neophyte for some time. In dry and warm locations, the evening primrose reaches a height of up to two meters. The seeds of this biennial plant have a special healing effect. They contain a lot of valuable oil with gamma-linolenic acid, which has a very positive effect on eczema, neurodermatitis, skin problems in general and rheumatic diseases. Using an oil extract from the ground seeds, you can make self-care day creams, body lotions or ointments. Other dried plant parts can also be used in natural cosmetics.
10. Sea Buckthorn
Prickly sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides) is considered a pioneer plant because it is one of the first to grow when free space is available. This extremely undemanding plant even thrives on scree slopes and gravelly or barren soils. In autumn, the light-orange, round fruits adorn the branches en masse and are only ready to be eaten with the frost. The pseudo drupe has an extremely high vitamin C content, which makes sea buckthorn a popular addition to juice, smoothies and dietary supplements. But sea buckthorn is also good for our skin: sea buckthorn relieves neurodermatitis, improves skin he alth and accelerates the healing of wounds. An oil extract is made from the pureed fruits, which can later be used for ointments and creams. The vitamin A from the orange dye also protects against solar radiation and reduces the formation of wrinkles.
If you are also interested in other medicinal plants in our gardens and their uses, why not also visit our article on the top 10 medicinal plants.