Transition Culture

An Evolving Exploration into the Head, Heart and Hands of Energy Descent

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8 Mar 2006

Top Five Things to Do With Oil Barrels When There’s No More Oil To Fill Them – #2. Make Comfrey Liquor.

comfreyComfrey is the superhero of plants. It is truly wonderful, so multifunctional as to almost be outrageous. Comfrey is what is known as a dynamic accumulator, that is it is incredibly good at mining nutrients from deep in the soil and bringing them to the surface. The combination of comfrey and oil drum can be a win/win for any gardener. Many types of comfrey grow in Europe. The native comfrey to the UK is wild comfrey (Symphytum officinale). This is a tall stout perennial with broad hairy leaves. Some of the names it was known by in England include knitbone, boneset, blackwort, gumplant, Nip bone and Ass Ear. The flowers are bell like, white or mauve, and are found from May to June. Comfrey makes a very deep (up to 3m deep) taproot which draws up potassium, calcium, iron and phosphorous from deep in the soil.

comfreyNew plants grow easily from even the tiniest piece of root. You can read more about what a wonderful plant it is here. Comfrey is one of the most useful medicinal plants. It is used to make healing poultices for sprains, bruises and abrasions. It contains a substance called allantoin, which promotes healing in connective tissue. Medieval herbalists called it ‘bone-set’ and the root was lifted in Spring, grated and used like plaster of Paris is today.

comfreyAt Ragman’s Lane Farm, one of the UK’s leading permaculture demonstration sites, they have a quarter acre plot of comfrey (see right), into which the main nutrient flows from the farm are directed, including the effluents from composting cattle manure and the septic tank which would otherwise create pollution problems. The comfrey devours all this and grows prolifically, and is harvested a couple of times a year and placed in huge barrels (see below left), allowed to rot and make comfrey liquor which is then pasteurised, bottled and sold. It forms a key part of the farm’s income.

barrelsOn a domestic scale, an old oil drum, (cleaned out) can be placed, raised up off the ground, with a hole drilled a couple of inches from the bottom and a tap fitted. Place it near your comfrey patch (always use Bocking 14, the only variety which won’t spread, available as root cuttings here) and just as it starts to flower, cut it and throw it into the barrel. Leave it a couple of months and then start to tap it off. The resultant liquid is dark brown and doesn’t smell much. It can be mixed 10 to 1 with water and used as a plant feed. The alternative way of making comfrey liquor is to add leaves to water, but it does end up producing the most unholy stench you ever encountered, one which if you get it on your hands, a week later, despite frequent soapy washing, will still be there! Your plants will love you for it. You can plant the comfrey around your compost heap to take up all the nutrients that would otherwise be leached out. You can also use your barrel to throw in noxious weeds like creeping buttercup and couch grass in such a way that they rot down, their nutrients are made use of and they are no longer a danger of re-rooting. Using an oil drum in this way can add a lot to your garden, increase your crops and create a nutrient cycle. Comfrey liquor, nectar of the Gods!

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4 Comments

Marie
8 Mar 8:50pm

Hi I just found your site through the wonderful folks at Path to Freedom journal page (www.pathtofreedom.com)

Great article and site.

Peace be with you,
Marie

Joseph Feely
14 Mar 5:12pm

Did a course last year on herbs and Comfey used to be used as a cure for coughs but nowadays it is not recomended to be injested. Don’t know why that is but thta’s what we were told

Peace and Love

Joey

[…] using it as a rain barrel, humanure composter and there are probably others. Can you think of any? Make Comfrey Liquor – Comfrey is the superhero of plants. It is truly wonderful, so multifunctional as to almost be […]

james holmes
11 Jun 9:50pm

Comfrey is indeed magic a gift from God and under attach from human scientist. It heals humans and plants. I have used it not only as a feed but in the stinky water technique. Comfrey is one of the few plants that contain a high amount of vit.B12 good for us and can help roots to increase on newly transplanted plants. This must be a weak solution used over a month, remember its organic and can not really burn roots but we must take care. soaking the root ball over night in a solution really helps. Look up comfrey on google an develop your own opinion on human use. Just don’t believe scientist that feed rats and say its poi-sinus. the compleat plant is always the best .