How to Make Essential Oils from Herbs
Step-by-Step – The Distillation of Dill
With the right still, it is very easy to make oils and hydrosols yourself. Learn how to make essential oils from herbs with the following instructions. The extraction of essential oil from dill tips is shown here using the essential oil still LEONARDO® CLASSIC. Because of the low oil content of the dill tips, the LEONARDO® is very well suited for this.
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Preparation of the Plant
Dill (Anethum graveolens) in full bloom.
The entire herb was harvested on a sunny day at around 1:00 p.m., because that is when this plant has the maximum oil content.
The cut herb after removing the stalks.
For the maximum oil yield, crush the herb as well as possible using a food processor.
Quantity: 1.094 kg
Filling the Still
Put 1 liter of water in the LEONARDO® still …
… insert the flavor basket …
… put the kettle together and …
… fill with the herb (1.094 kg).
Oil Distillation
After putting on the cooler and filling it with the cooling water, put the hydrosol bottle underneath and switch on the heater.
After 35 – 40 minutes (at 1500 W heating power), the first two hydrosol bottles (0.2 l) will be full. The essential oil collects in the neck of the bottle and the hydrosol (water enriched with essential oil) beneath.
Essential Oil Yield
Yield of dill tips oil: 1.1 / 1094 * 100 = approx. 0.10%
(estimated value, because density was not taken into account)
Oil Yield for Other Plants:
The herbal oil yield refers to a full Leonardo Classic, i.e. 3.8 litres of plant volume. In our eBook Essential Oils Recipes you will find the description of more than 120 plants regarding harvest, crushing, yield, etc.
- Lavender essential oil of blossoms: 24 ml
- Fennel seeds: 31 ml
- Eucalyptus leaves: 14 ml
- Mint: 7.2 ml
- Bay leaves: 12 ml
- Bergamot (Monarda): 7.5 ml
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