The buds, flowers, and leaves of coltsfoot(Tussilago farfara) have been long used in traditional medicine for dry cough, asthma and throat irritation.Recommended for smoking instead of cigarettes to help give up tobacco or in the presence of bronchial congestion and lung disease. It is usually smoked on it's own but can be combined effectively with other herbs for an individual mix, such as Sage, Marshmallow leaf, Mullein, White Horehound, Skullcap, Lavender, Peppermint, Uva Ursi, Damiana and Thyme. Rose petals and cloves can be added for a pleasantly fragrant smoke.
Warning: The smoke may be irritant to some.
Making Your Own Herbal Tobacco
Ingredients
- Honey 1 teaspoon
- Water 4 teaspoons
- Dried herbs approx 20 grams*
Dried herbs can be rolled as they are, however most dried herbs tend to be rather difficult to roll and smoke as they do not contain any moisture. The most common way to prepare herbs is to add some required moisture for rolling. This often uses honey and since honey is packed full of goodness, an added healthy twist to the tobacco!
Steps
1. Mix the honey and water in a bowl. Rub the herb mix you have chosen together and add the water mix one teaspoon at a time. Rub the water into the leaves until they are slightly damp.
2. Lay the damp herb mix on a dish for a few days to allow the water to evaporate. Stir the mix from time to time. When your herb mix has dried sufficiently to burn place in an airtight jar. Do not allow it to become too dry. It is worth labelling the mix with its name / date made.
3. The tobacco can be used in a pipe, rolled up or may be burnt on a charcoal block and the smoke inhaled.
Tip 1: Rolling the herbs to make them a nice consistency by hand prior to moistening them can be useful to help make for a more sustained smoke.
Tip 2:Rolling your own cigarettes takes practice but is well worth it. The trick is to take your time and not apply too much pressure to the cigarette paper. It's well worth looking for cigarette papers that have not been chlorine bleached - most cigarette papers have been bleached to make them whiter - but most hemp based papers have not been party to this process. If, after a while, you still haven't got the knack of rolling your own then there are empty cigarette 'tubes' which are available from most newsagents and tobacconists. These are cigarette 'shells' - they are cigarettes with filters and without the tobacco.
Tip 3: For a faster herbal tobacco simply soak them in honey (the runny type) overnight and leave the mixture to dry out the next day.
Warning: The smoke may be irritant to some.
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