How to Make Willow Bark Tincture

How to Make Willow Bark Tincture. March 4, 2026.

If you’ve ever made an herbal tincture, there is a good chance you used the folkloric method, which is pretty much eyeballing the ingredients. I’ve used this method plenty of times myself. An example of the folk method is here. However, if you want to get more professional with your tinctures, then there is the weight-to-volume method. This method isn’t difficult; it just uses a scale and a little math. The results are more stable and predictable. Since I needed to make more willow bark tincture, I thought I’d use it as an example of the weight-to-volume method in this post.

An Ancient Medicine

The ancient white willow tree (Salix alba) has a long history in herbalism, with records of its use for pain relief dating back to the Sumerians and Egyptians. In ancient Greece, Hippocrates brewed willow bark tea for women to ease their pain in childbirth. In the 18th century, Reverend Edward Stone began experimenting with willow bark, recognizing its effectiveness as a fever reducer. Eventually, the active ingredient in willow bark was isolated, and from it, aspirin was developed in the 19th century. Both aspirin and willow bark are still used today in many applications, including chronic pain management, which is why I am using willow bark.

A Natural Alternative

Like many other women, joint pain has become a common reality during the menopause season and has had me reaching for the ibuprofen rather often. However, this wasn’t the best choice as ibuprofen can be harsh on the kidneys. Willow bark, however, is gentler on the system and natural, so I decided to give it a try and make a tincture. Since I don’t have the right kind of willow tree (or any willow tree!) I chose to buy dried willow bark from a reputable source to make my tincture.

I was pleasantly surprised by the effectiveness of my tincture, so I now keep it stocked in my herbal medicine cabinet. It does not taste good, though, so maybe hold your nose when taking it! You can also add it to tea or a liquid to take. The tincture is not hard to make, but it will need a few weeks to sit. Please read the notes below on using willow bark first.

Important things to note about willow bark products:

• Do not give willow bark products to children or pregnant/nursing women.
• Do not use willow bark products with blood thinners.
• Consult your doctor or practitioner before taking any willow bark product.

Herbal actions willow bark is known for:

• tonic
• astringent
• antiperiodic
• analgesic
• anti-inflammatory

Willow Bark Tincture

We will use the standard weight-to-volume method to create our willow bark tincture. This method gives us a more predictable and consistent product, which is helpful for dosing. We will be using the standard 1:5 ratio of dried plant parts to alcohol. Please note: the process for fresh herbs is a bit different and uses a stronger alcohol. Please read the instructions carefully.

Print Recipe

Equipment

• a scale that measures both weight and volume (grams and ml) or a scale measuring grams and a graduated cylinder for measuring milliliters.
• coffee grinder *optional, but helpful
• a half-pint-sized glass jar with lid (not plastic)
• small container with pouring spout
• cheesecloth
• sieve
• unbleached coffee filter
• 1 or 2 of 4 oz. amber bottles with droppers *For this recipe, you will likely need only 1 of the 4 oz size and maybe one more bottle to catch any remainder.
• Small funnel *optional, but helpful

Ingredients

• 150 ml 100 proof vodka *50% alcohol
• 30 grams dried willow bark (not fresh) *I'll put a link below for where I buy mine.

Instructions

• Gather your supplies.
• Optional: Use a coffee grinder to grind your dried willow bark. This breaks it down further, exposing more of the herb to the alcohol. It's okay if you don't.
  
• Set your scale to the grams mode and weigh out 30 grams of willow bark.
  
• Add the willow bark to a small jar. A half-pint-sized jar should be good here.
• Take the weight of your willow bark (in grams) and multiply it by 5: 30 x 5= 150. This number is the volume of alcohol you will use in ml. You need 150 ml of alcohol.
• Now set your scale to ml mode or use a graduated cylinder to measure out 150 ml of your 100-proof vodka (or 50% alcohol).
  
• Add the vodka to the jar with the willow bark and seal with a lid.
  
• Put on a lid and shake a few times. Label (see notes for how to label).
  
• Let the jar sit for 4-6 weeks, shaking daily.
  
• Let's harvest the tincture! Line a mesh strainer with cheesecloth and place it over a bowl or container.
  
• Pour the contents of the jar into the lined strainer and allow the tincture to fully drain into the container.
  
• When the liquid is drained, gather up the corners of the cheesecloth and squeeze out any remaining liquid. Your tincture will be the color of rust.
  
• Now we are going to filter the tincture one more time into a clean container using an unbleached coffee filter and a clean sieve of some sort. This process should catch any extra sediment. I am using a pour-over style coffee dripper filter lined with an unbleached coffee filter as shown in the photo. You can also use a bucket-style filter and a regular sieve.
  
• It may take a bit for the tincture to filter this way. If needed, use a spoon to push any sediment away from the bottom or change the filter.
  
• Once the tincture is filtered the second time it is ready to bottle.
  
• Pour the tincture into an amber bottle. It is helpful to have a small funnel for this.
  
• Label your tincture. *Free tincture label template here. It is ready for use!
  

Notes

*Label both your jar and the final tincture product with the following info:

• Name of plant
• Scientific Name of the plant (some plants have similar or same names; this avoids confusion)
• Date Made
• Parts Used (fresh or dried)
• Menstruum Used (what medium was used- we used 50% alcohol today (100 proof vodka)
• Ratio of ingredients (we used a 1:5 ratio of dried herbs to alcohol)
• Recommended usage (there are no official guidelines for this, but suggested dosage for willow bark tinctures ranges from 20-60 drops per use up to three or four times a day)

*Light can compromise the efficacy of your tincture, which is why amber bottles are used. They block UV light.

*I buy my dried willow bark here.

*Free tincture label template here.

*No monies or affiliates. All opinions are my own.

Have a beautiful day!