Hypericum perforatum 1:1 extract: St. John's wort from midsummer
St. John's wort is native to temperate Europe and Asia, where it favours sunny, dry ground: verges, railway embankments, old fields. Its common name comes from its timing, since the plant starts flowering around 24 June, the feast of St. John, which falls close to midsummer. Flowering carries on into August. The golden yellow blooms have slightly asymmetrical petals with dark dots scattered along their edges.
The species name perforatum points to a trick you can try yourself: hold a leaf up to the light and you will see it peppered with small pale spots, as though someone had pricked it with a needle. Those are oil glands. Crush a flower bud between your fingers and they stain reddish purple, thanks to hypericin, the pigment stored in the dark glands. This bottle holds the plant in liquid, concentrated form. The 1:1 label refers to the ratio the tincture was made at: one part plant material per part of finished product. The bottle contains 10 ml and has a dropper for measuring out small amounts.
Use and storage
Follow the instructions on the label and shake the bottle before use. St. John's wort is well documented as an interactor: it can change how many medicines work, including the contraceptive pill, blood thinners and antidepressants. If you take medication, are pregnant or breastfeeding, speak to your doctor or pharmacist first. The plant can also make skin more sensitive to sunlight. Store the tincture cool, dry and dark, out of reach of young children.
About the Avalon herbal tinctures
The 1:1 extracts form a long list of single herbs, each in the same 10 ml bottle, which makes them easy to compare side by side. Alongside St. John's wort, Avalon Magic Plants stocks Valeriana officinalis (valerian), Matricaria chamomilla (chamomile), Passiflora incarnata (passionflower), Echinacea purpurea (purple coneflower) and Ginkgo biloba. Everything leaves our warehouse in discreet packaging.
