The Herbal Medicine-Maker's Handbook_ A Home Manual - James Green [69]
It is important to understand the contrast between true aromatic hydrosols and commercial products labeled as “flower waters,” “floral waters,” etc. Whereas hydrosols are a direct product of the distillation process (a process which gives birth to complementary sisters, a gentle aromatic water and a more acute volatile oil), flower waters are generally fragrant liquids made by adding aromatic volatile oil(s) to distilled water. These waters will not contain the same hydrophilic (water fond) compounds as hydrosols, and though often erotically aromatic (if that kind of behavior is allowed on retail shelves), they are less effective as anti-inflammatory, moisturizing agents.
In order to accumulate any appreciable quantity of volatile oil, one must gather and manipulate an enormous amount of plant material. This is one reason most volatile oils (essential oils) are so costly. Volatile oils are a particularly precious component of the plant: the plant manufactures only a diminutive amount of this substance, granting only a small yield to the anticipative distiller. However, with a relatively small amount of plant material, one can readily produce a sufficient quantity of aromatic hydrosol for home use. Once you contrive and assemble a still and get it functioning, you will be able to feed it adequately from humble garden harvests and make an abundance of a variety of hydrosols for yourself and others. I used to grow a few plants of Catnip (Nepeta cataria) in my yard, and by distilling their leaves, make enough Catnip hydrosol to put just about every cat in the neighborhood into deep kitty stupor; they loved it, couldn’t get enough. Alice’s Cheshire Cat is no longer the only feline that can grin and fade away. And likewise, a Lemon Verbena (Aloysia triphylla) hydrosol originating from the same garden was (is) a human olfactory dream come true.
Another joy inherent in distilling hydrosols is that it requires only a small amount of aromatic plant material to produce a sufficient amount of this holy water to annoint one’s home and body throughout the year.
STORAGE AND PRESERVATION
Refrigerate your hydrosols. Store them in sterilized, tightly capped bottles.
METHOD OF PREPARATION
As pointed out previously, hydrosols are a product of steam distillation. Distillation is a process involving the conversion of a liquid into a vapor subsequently condensed back to liquid form (the distillate). This is exemplified at its simplest when steam from a kettle becomes deposited as drops of distilled water on a surface. Distillation is used to separate liquids (for our purposes, water and volatile oils) from non-soluble solids (plant material). It’s apparently an age-old process utilized by the early experimentalist Aristotle (this man must have never slept), who mentioned that pure water is made by evaporation of sea water.
Homemade Still
The apparatus needed to perform this operation is a still or retort in which a liquid is heated, a condenser to cool the vapor, and a receiver to collect the distillate. This simple apparatus is sufficient to separate volatile liquids from non-volatile materials, which is what we will be doing here. The pieces of equipment used for distillation in a lab are commonly made of glass and connected with corks, rubber bungs, or ground glass joints. This equipment can be purchased from a laboratory supply house (for megabucks). However, one can contrive a variety of ingenious homemade contraptions. I am going to share an example of this down-home technology with you forthwith. It may not qualify as “ingenious,” but it is assuredly illustrative and unquestionably