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While we typically turn to our herb gardens to embellish a salad or a savory sauce, these delightful herbs can also do wonders for hair. Herbs contain chemical compounds that can help restore hair’s natural balance and shine. Try these recipes at home and see your locks glow!

Ginger Hair Oil

1 tsp (5 mL) fresh ginger root, grated
1/4 cup (60 mL) light sesame oil

This treatment stimulates hair growth while alleviating dandruff and boosting the scalp’s circulation. It will leave your hair smelling faintly of ginger, a very pleasing scent.

Place the grated ginger inside a piece of cheesecloth and gently squeeze 1/4 teaspoon of the juice into the sesame oil. Mix the oil and juice together with a fork until blended thoroughly. Massage the resulting mixture into your scalp and leave on for 10 minutes before shampooing.

Herbal Rinse for Dry Hair and Dandruff

1/2 cup (125 mL) apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup (125 mL) fresh mint, chopped
1 Tbsp (30 mL) fresh lavender leaves and flowers, chopped
1 cup (250 mL) water

Combine all of the above ingredients and let the resulting mixture sit overnight. When you are ready to use it, strain the mixture. Pour the mixture over wet, clean hair, massaging into the scalp for a few minutes. Rinse with cool water.

Herbal Rinse for Oily Hair

2 cups (500 mL) boiling water
1 tsp (5 mL) each burdock root, calendula flowers, camomile flowers, lavender flowers, lemongrass, and sage leaves
1 Tbsp (30 mL) vinegar

Pour boiling water over herbs andlet steep for 30 minutes. Strain and add vinegar. Pour over scalp and hair as final rinse after shampooing. Leave on without rinsing out.

Herbal Spritz

Take a handful of your favourite herbs and rub them together briskly between your hands. Add them to a pot filled with water and bring to a boil. Simmer for 5 minutes. Let the herbal concoction steep while covered in the pot for 2 to 3 hours. Strain the herbs and pour the leftover liquid into a spray bottle. Spritz hair whenever you like for a herbal pick-me-up!

Herbals for Your Hair

• Sage is excellent for weak hair.
• Rosemary enhances dark hair.
• Camomile and catnip promote healthy hair growth.
• Lavender, rose, and sandalwood combat dry hair.
• Cedarwood, cypress, lemon, and patchouli discourage excess oil production.
• Quince, flaxseed, gelatin, agar, and Irish moss give thin hair more body.
• Neem is a powerful disinfectant and also cures dandruff.
• Honey keeps hair soft and shiny.
• Horsetail is a source of silica, which helps keep hair strong.
• Burdock root, arnica, marigold, and southern woods may prevent hair loss.
• Aloe, nettles, stinging nettle, birch leaves, and watercress are excellent skin cleansers.

Aimee Christine Hughes, ND, writes about natural health, sustainable living, and travel. She currently resides in Kansas City.

Source: alive #304, February 2008