dirt daubers?

[mamaT]

Do any of the forum members know what I'm talking about when I say dirt daubers? I think they are a type of wasp that make a nest out of mud(dirt). I'm not sure if they carry it in their mouths or if they eat it and it comes out the other end for they to make thier nest. When my baby sister was a baby she had diaper rash that nothing would cure, and one of the neighbors said to collect some dirt daubers nest, crush it up into powder and use it on her bottom. This stuff cleared up her diaper rash in a couple of days, even though it made diaper changing a new experience.
My question is this does anyone think it is possible to use this in a salve or in soap?
Yeah I know I'm crazy.

 

[Chay]

We always called them mud daubers. I have not personally heard of any curative effects of mud from their nests but you might be able to find some info under "folk medicine"

 

[Dixie]

yes we called them dirt daubers. I don't know if you could use it in soap or not. I think mud has healing qualities. Whenever my dad would get poison ivy he would make a mud pack. As it dried it would draw out the poison. You would think calamine lotion would do the same since it dries but it doesn't. Interesting.

 

[Stacykins]

I know of dead sea mud, rhassoul clay, bentonite clay, rose clay, etc. being used in soaps. I personally love the feel of my skin the rare times I treat myself to a clay mask. I do think the mud dauber thing falls under folk medicine. But I can see how mud or clay would soothe irritated skin.

I did the mud on poison ivy once too. I was out in the woods and it was a few hours hike to return to civilization and calamine. In the meantime, the itches were driving me mad. So I slapped a bit of cool mud on my hand (where I'd brushed the poison ivy), and it made the itch back off quite a bit.