Episode Details

Learn more about the Plant Cunning Conference at:Plant Cunning Conference – In-Person in New York – July 24-26, 2026On this episode, Isaac and AC welcome community herbalist, author, and teacher Mary Blue to talk about the "hot tincture method" and why applying a hot water extraction can dramatically improve tincture color, aroma, taste, and effectiveness while saving plant material, storage space, and time. Mary shares her path from environmental and protest activism into herbalism, her day-to-day running an herb shop and farm, and the mentors and experiences that shaped her teaching focus on herbal actions and solvency. They discuss safety lessons learned from heating alcohol, plant-specific considerations (including mushrooms, marshmallow, comfrey, and milk thistle), glycerins and oils, and how herbalism functions as a form of activism through accessibility, community support, and sustainable practice.

02:23 Meet Mary Blue

02:55 Activism To Herbalism

04:46 Running Farmacy Herbs

06:14 Mentors And Training

08:01 Teaching Solvency Basics

09:55 Common Solvency Confusions

11:26 Accessible Teaching Methods

13:53 The "Hot Tincture Method" Explained

16:19 Why It Works Better

23:09 How Mary Blue almost burned down her apothecary

28:01 Tincture Ratios

31:24 When Not to Tincture

31:50 Comfrey Safety Debate

33:12 Liniments and Compresses

34:43 Glycerins and Pre Extraction

36:01 Heating Oils for Extraction

36:29 Classes and Farm Intensives

37:46 Hosting Herbal Events

39:25 Herbalism as Activism

40:55 Burnout to Micro Activism

47:02 Fulfillment Through Service

47:58 The Future of Herbalism

s52:55 Creativity and Community Play