I have several lavender plants - had no idea there were so many different types - and this year I would like to try to make some lavender oil. I know essential oil is not easy to make, but has anyone tried? Could I just put some lavender in some jojoba oil?
What is the process (that can be done with typical kitchen equiptment) and is there any type of lavender more suited to using for this?
Right now I have Munstead Lavender and Lavendula augustifolia - of the L augustifolia, one is solid green, the other is called Silver Edge (variegated). Munstead is just solid green.
Lavender Oil - homemade
Bhavana34, putting lavender in jojoba oil is an infused oil. That isn't the same as essential oil. Lavender essential oil is steam distilled. you need a goodly amount to get the oil. We have some tabletop glass lab equipment that can do small amounts. Basically, the plant material is put into a large glass flask with boiling water on a flame in the flask below. The steam passes through the plant material and through a chilled condenser and collects. You get the water portion (hydrosol) and the oil portion (essential oil). You will end up with just a few drops of the EO. Copper alembics are used for large amounts of distillation.
If you search on eBay for steam distillation essential oil equipment, you might find the set up we purchased. But, that was 2 years ago or so. I think the seller is still on there. It's fun to see which plants give up what amounts of hydrosols and EOs. Good luck!
Hmmmm, I'm putting in a Grosso & Provence lavender hedge here, Herbalbetty, as I live in a fairly mediterannean climate. How many pounds of lavender buds rendered you a few drops of lavender EO, Herbalbetty? Just wondered.
I'd much rather harvest my lavender hedge for dried bouquets and purchase essential oil to refresh their fragrance as needed! :-)
I once bought a little kit for distilling flower essence,just as Betty describes,using lard and 90 proof vodka. I was a miserable failure.Its been tinctures and tea sanes for me since then. I have so many bushels of scented flowers im sure I could eek out a tiny quarter vile of oil.Hydrasol would be a nice by product I want to take a class in flower distillation,or at least make friends with someonewho could talk me thru :-)
a
This has piqued my interest. What do you look for in a distillation system? I was considering using my lavender for an oil or something to put in my bath :)
redhead...im checking out this :
http://www.floragenics.com/
A.
Thanks berkeleyannie!
There is a simple set-up for a still to make Rose EO, using kitchen equipment. It goes something like this, if anyone wishes to try it:
You'll need a large, SS stock pot, a brick, a ceramic or pyrex bowl, and a convex, not flat, lid.
You put your brick in the pot on a stove burner, and the bowl on the brick. You add water up to the level of the brick, and your plant material up to the edge of the bowl. Invert the lid on the pot, so the steam from your pot runs down the lid and drips into the bowl, when the pot is heated. You'd need a pipette to suction the essential oil (EO) off the water in bowl after a completed batch. Your rem. liquid would be your hydrosol, and you'd probably have to repeat the process often, by straining out and replacing your spent plant material. I don't see why this set-up wouldn't work w. lavender, if you have a lot of lavender.
Berkeley Annie, flower essences don't involve lard?!? Were you making salve? And distillation as I was speaking about has no alcohol. Steam distillation of the plant product results in an essential oil and a hydrosol. If you infuse your plant material in alcohol, it's a tincture. A flower essence (not essential oil) is when flowers have been floating on water and then is preserved with 25% alcohol (usually). That's a vibrational essence that is being sought.
You are close to Jeanne Rose, the mother of aromatherapy. Google her and you should find her schedule for distillation and such.
Oops?
Regarding the very basic kitchen distillery method I mentioned in my earlier post here,-I did forget to mention to put ice in the lid of the stainless steel pot, to condense the steam on the inside of the lid.
As Herbalbetty mentions, most essential oils are extracted through steam distillation, some through cold-pressing, (mainly citrus oils) and others through the use of solvents, such as C02. Most absolutes, which aren't truly essential oils, are created through the solvent process, where they are processed from perfume concretes.
Methods using oils and fats (lard, too) are called maceration and enfleurage, which are used to obtain a perfume pomade, which is further processed through the use of solvents. Here's a page w. info:
http://www.essentialoils.co.za/extraction-methods.htm#Expression
Here's a page that lists copper alembic stills:
http://www.essentialoil.com/copperdistillers.html
I thought about purchasing a table top version, but I don't have the amounts of fresh material I'd require, to make home distillation worthwhile.
I found this EO site because it was one of the few places I was able to purchase mugwort (artemisia vulgaris) EO from, that EO was hard to find!
distillation with vodka and lard
Extraction by liquid fats method.The extraction process begins with the harvesting of mature chartreuse/yellow flower petals, rinsed to remove debris and/or insects, sun dried to remove moisture. These petals are packed into a glass container/flask in which 3-4 tablespoons of melted lard or animal fat are added. A rubber stopper is used to seal the flask. The viscous lard is allowed to percolate through the petals and thus impregnate the lard with its fragrance. The container/flask is turned over to further saturate the lard. This is done several times in direct sunlight to ensure the fragrance is totally removed from the petals. The question now - is how to remove the fragrance from the lard although at this point you can use it as pomade.
The distillation process begins with the addition of one fluid ounce of 100% proof rum or vodka to the saturated melted lard. Then shake the mixture vigorously for about three minutes. Replace the rubber stopper with one that has a coiled copper tubing condenser. The short end of the coil goes through the stopper extending about an inch into the container. The other end of the coil is placed into a vial/container. Place the container unit in a small pan with about a ½" of water which is set on a stove burner. Heat the water in the pan to simmer (low flame). In a few minutes you will notice drops of clear liquid dripping into the vial. This is the concentrated finished perfume. Continue the process until the vial/container is filled. You will only extract the same amount that was added to the mixture
thanks for the Jeanne rose suggestion. Will do
Awesome, Berkleyannie, you've found a combination of extraction methods that produces perfume extractives, through a process of maceration, (the hot oil), and steam distillation:! It's end product would be a perfume rather than an essential oil, but it does sound like another kitchen method that could be used to create personal fragrances at home...I like that possibility. (Thanks for listing this info.) I wonder how many pounds of Jasmine or Lavender flowers it would take to create a few ml of Jasmine or lavender perfume oil? And how much time it'd take to process the plant matter using this process...?
I'll file this one away to try after I retire, but I suspect I'll still have to purchase my fragrance ingredients...sigh.
BerkleyAnnie? What type of flowers are being used in this combination method? Is there a list of the supplies needed to create the setup? Could you post the link? (Thank you.)
that was the project i failed miserable at with a cheap kit.
http://scientificsonline.com/product.asp?pn=3071684&bhcd2=1214147884
DONT buy it .
those brass babies are lovely but i'd have to earn one with knowledge.
Takes loads of petals to make a drop..but hey i have loads of petals
This message was edited Jun 22, 2008 8:22 AM
(Oooh....loads of petals? Lucky you...! Wish I had access to more growing room, no community garden in my town, and no time to start one, myself...)
Anyway, I'm not sure I understand your post correctly, are you saying that the combination method of extracting plant fragrance that you described above, doesn't work well? Or is it the kit that doesn't work? (That would make sense to me, it's containers look way too small to hold a decent amt. of plant matter, but then so do some copper alembic setups I've seen)
I am saying BOTH :-)
(Rats!) Oh well, back to the cook pot still idea, soon as I've grown enough source material, or talked someone else out of theirs....:)
Berkeley Annie, that is very interesting! Too bad it was a bust. I wonder if I would smell of Eau de Cochon or Jasmine? That would be fun to mess around with that technique. I can see why you tried it.
lol lol betty
chochon avec Smirnoff!
Drunken Pig!! That's a scent I'm going for. :-) With just a soupcon of roses.