25/10/2024
WINTER SUPPLEMENTS 🐎❄️
Now is a great time to prepare for winter with some home-made supplements and tonics to capture essential vitamins and minerals, as well as phytonutrients that fight off disease and illness. By the depths of winter, diversity of forage is limited meaning nutrient range and quantity are also limited, particularly if your horse is on a predominantly hay diet.
Would you like to make some very cheaply, for your horse (or yourself if you fancy), then read on...
To tincture these supplements, you need a liquid to draw the nutrients into, and some herbs to draw them from. Easy right? Usually, tinctures are made with alcohol, and they are wonderful, but not so much if you're a horse, because of this we are going to use variants that are more equine friendly. Vinegar (apple cider vinegar) or vegetable glycerin are perfect.
You’ll need a clean glass jar with a metal lid (sterilize by steaming, soaking in boiling water for a few minutes or by using baby sterilizing tablets)
A small piece of baking paper to cover the top of the jar
An elastic band to secure the baking paper
Enough liquid to ¾ fill your jar
Dried or fresh herbs and seeds
A fine straining mesh or muslin cloth
A jug
A little bit of patience – that's why we’re starting now
If you take my upcoming water-buffet class on the Equine Academy, you’ll receive a huge list of wild and culinary herbs you could use for this, but I'll include a few ideas for some basic winter supplements further on.
Proportions: Fresh herbs, use 1 part plant : 2 parts liquid
Dried herbs, use 1 part plant : 15 parts liquid
Ready? Lets go
🌱Roughly, chop any plant matter and put into the jar
🌱Pour on enough liquid to almost fill the jar, leave a couple of centimeters gap at the top
🌱Wipe the rim clean, and place the baking paper over, secure with the elastic band (you don’t need the lid yet)
🌱Write the date on the jar so you'll know when it's finished
🌱Gently swirl the contents around the jar every couple of days by picking it up and making circular movements, this will keep all the material soaked
🌱Wait 2 weeks, or 4 if you can
🌱Strain the liquid through your strainer or cloth into a clean jug. You can really wring it out with your hands if you want to
🌱Wash and sterilize the same jar and lid again
🌱Pour the infused liquid into the jar and put the lid on
🌱Label with the contents and the date
🌱Dont waste the herbs you’ve soaked, add them to a feed instead of throwing them away!
Storage: An infused vinegar – technically an aceta (look at you being a herbalist and all) will keep for 6 months to a year
An infused glycerin – a glycerite will keep for up to 3 years
Best in a cool, dark place
To use: Pour a glug into drinking water (always offer plain water separately) or over a feed. If you’re not comfortable with a glug, aim for 2 tablespoons
