Propolis tincture and salve, step by step
Interactive lesson: from raw propolis to a bottle of tincture and a pot of salve — origin, cleaning, 70 % alcohol, the 1 : 5 ratio, straining, a skin patch test and salve.
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The whole lesson as text
1. Raw propolis
Propolis is the bees' glue, and it soaks up everything in the hive.
- Healthy hive — Propolis only from healthy hives with no treatments. The cleanest comes from a propolis mat.
- Not from painted parts — Don't scrape painted or treated parts, and don't collect during varroa treatment. Wear gloves when you scrape and break propolis.
- Colour and smell — Good propolis is brown, greenish, reddish or dark yellow. The smell is strong and resinous, like poplar buds.
- Hard and brittle — When cold, good propolis is hard and cracks when bent. Soft, greasy propolis has a lot of wax.
Why: Residues of varroa treatments, lead from old paint and the smell of smoke all end up in propolis. That's why origin matters more than quantity: not even the best alcohol can fix poor propolis.
- If you buy propolis, buy it from a beekeeper you know and ask how it was collected.
- Don't use propolis with no smell, or with a smell of smoke, mould or chemicals.
2. Cleaning
Every ratio in this module is based on cleaned propolis.
- Freeze and grind — Put the propolis in the freezer for 2–3 hours. Break it in a bag or grind it in a mill.
- Cold water — Soak it in cold water and stir. Wax, bees and wood float, while clean propolis sinks.
- Drain the sediment — Throw away the water and whatever floats, and drain the sediment through a sieve.
- Dry and weigh — Dry it on paper, in the shade, for 1–2 days. Never in the sun or on a stove. Weigh the dry propolis.
Why: Warm propolis sticks to everything, while frozen propolis is as brittle as glass. The finer the pieces, the better they dissolve in alcohol.
- Scraped raw propolis leaves roughly 50–70 %, and propolis from a mat 80–90 %.
- From then on the coffee grinder is used only for propolis, because it can never be cleaned completely.
3. Tincture 1 : 5 · Locked
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4. Straining and bottles · Locked
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5. Patch test and use · Locked
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6. Propolis salve · Locked
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