Herbal Pharmacy

This thorough guide will be the go-to for clinical herbalists, alternative medicine practitioners, and herb enthusiasts—providing detailed step-by-step instructions, how-to information, and “why-to” explanations so readers can confidently move from following recipes to designing and preparing their own herbal remedies.

More and more people are turning to herbal remedies for healing, whether they are purchasing the remedies or making them on their own. Herbalists want their clients to have good experiences with these remedies, both to help them heal and to foster a positive regard for herbs and, by extension, the healing power of nature. This in-depth guide teaches readers respect, care, and understanding for all aspects of preparing herbal medicines, to ensure what they make is safe and efficacious.

Individual chapters address making herbal extractions in water, oils and fats, alcohol, vinegar, honey, glycerin, and other media, supplemented with easy-to-follow tables and charts. Herbal Pharmacy also covers the practical aspects of administering herbal remedies: figuring dosage, duration of care, and the specifics of deciding how to apply a remedy to produce the best outcome.

Throughout, Bancroft—a professional member of the American Herbalists Guild who has been educating for over three decades—provides detailed instructions to help even inexperienced or anxious medicine makers successfully design and prepare their own recipes for effective remedies.

Praise

“In this excellent new book, Betzy Bancroft offers a clear, organized, and tested roadmap that you can use to elevate your herbal pharmacy skills—without losing any of the joy that comes from engaging in this ancient art. You will find detailed answers that are hard to come by anywhere else: What alcohol strength should I use, and why? How can I troubleshoot a spoiled remedy? How can I make the equipment I need at home? What should be the dose of my custom-made formula? These pro tips alone make this an indispensable text. Betzy gently teaches us what many have come to know: that slowly, through daily practice, herbs remind us how to connect, relate, and engage in alchemical transformation. If you work through its pages, Herbal Pharmacy will take you there.”
—Guido Masé, chief formulator, Traditional Medicinals; cofounder, Vermont Center for Integrative Herbalism; author of The Wild Medicine Solution

“Herbal Pharmacy is a rare achievement in the world of plant medicine: a book that speaks with equal clarity to the novice herbalist and the seasoned practitioner. Betzy Bancroft lays down the scientific underpinnings of herbalism with precision—from plant chemistry and pharmacology to formulation strategies and clinical reasoning. Yet she never allows the science to overshadow the deeper traditions that have shaped herbal practice for centuries. Her voice is patient, generous, and deeply informed. This book represents the culmination of her life’s work.”
—Dr. Jody E. Noé, MS, ND, author of Textbook of Natural Integrative Oncology

“Betzy Bancroft’s Herbal Pharmacy is as enchanting as it is informative. This book brings you everything you need to prepare and administer plant medicine, from solubility charts to formulation points to the magic and energetics of plants. Betzy reminds us of the inherent love inside our relationship to plants and all living beings, and how to be in right relationship with the medicine we make. This book is the best kind of herbal teacher: one that infuses its student with practical information, reverence, and delight in the healing properties of plants. Each time you open it, you will find new inspiration and deeper wisdom to keep the medicine flowing and keep it delicious! I will keep this book open in my apothecary as my primary reference, from one of my most beloved teachers.”
—Tessa Landreau-Grasmuck, certified professional midwife and clinical herbalist