Before pressing on with the many uses of all parts of the Neem tree and its cultivation, I need to expand on ways to extract the active principles. These methods are suitable for all plants which contain beneficial substances in their leaves, bark, twigs, flowers, fruits, roots, and wood.
1. Cold Pressing - This is the usual method used to produce the best quality oils (eg: extra virgin olive oil). At the village level, santan (coconut cream/milk, coconut oil) is usually produced by this method. The raw material is shredded/grated, then simply pressed hard or squeezed to extract the desired product. As may be expected, this is not highly productive – a mechanical press of some kind is far more efficient.
2. Infusions – A much simpler method, whereby the raw material is soaked in either hot or cold water. Refreshing teas may be made by placing fresh leaves in a cup, then pouring boiling water over same. Allow to steep 3-5 minutes before drinking. Lemongrass leaves (1-2 depending on size/desired strength of flavor) are particularly good. Neem (Indonesian name: Mimba) leaves (fresh or dried) may be treated similarly.
Cold water infusions may also be made, but require a much longer steeping time. Fresh lemongrass/neem leaves should be finely shredded – a blender/food-processor simplifies the process. Allow a minimum 4 hours then strain off the liquid. Put into a hand operated atomizer and spray directly onto the skin/into the air as an insect repellent. Add a few drops of liquid detergent to the spray if using as a garden insecticide. While 100% non-toxic, the effect is not long lasting.
Alcohol-based Tinctures – Pure Ethanol is hard to find and usually very expensive. Good results come from dropping plant parts into a neutral spirit and allowing to steep a week or two. I have found unflavored vodka to be the best (375ml bottles), and it is not necessary to buy expensive, imported vodka. The alcohol acts as a solvent to the volatiles and the oils. Depending on the need, the liquid may be rubbed onto the skin, or ingested in small quantities (ie: a teaspoon or two at a time).
Try this with 5-6 vanilla beans broken and dropped into the bottle. Give it a good shaking and place at hand (ie: top of refrigerator). Every time you open the fridge give it another shake. It takes about 3 weeks to develop full flavor and is ‘real’ vanilla essence.
Distillation - Proper distillation requires relatively expensive equipment. Small stills are available and some aromatherapy producers use these to make their essential oils. Home production is possible using a pot with a very tight fitting lid on top of the stove - or better still a pressure cooker which operates at a higher temperature.
Finely chop or shred the raw materials (blender/food processor). Pack as much as you can into the pot adding no more than a cup of water. As soon as it comes to the boil and at the first sign of steam escaping, remove from the heat and allow cool slowly. Do this three times.
Warm the contents to a manageable temperature. Using a fine mesh sieve, decant into a clean glass container with a pouring lip (bowl or jug). To make collection of the oils easier, pour from the jug into a narrow vessel (eg: the measuring cylinder inside a rain gauge). Allow to cool to room temperature, then remove the oil using a pipette if you have one, failing this a fine drinking straw (as supplied with Aqua gelas), or as a last resort a small spoon.
There will not be a huge yield from this process – if you want a large quantity you will have to repeat it many times. The oil will be very strong (95%+ pure) and needs to be ‘cut’ with a carrier oil (peanut, coconut, etc.). Six - ten drops per 100ml is about the usual rate.
Do not discard the remaining mash or water. Boil up 500ml water and pour slowly over the mash to extract the last of the volatiles. Press the mash firmly then add the water from which the oil has been removed. Enough of the volatiles will have dissolved into the water (probably more than by cold water infusion described above) for use as a skin lotion or spray.
The mash should be spread on garden beds as mulch where it will quickly break down into humus while at the same time acting as an insect repellent. To make a soothing, curative cream for skin disorders/insect repellent, mix a few drops of oil into a jar of plain sorbolene cream until the cream begins to take on its aroma.
If you don’t want to go to all this trouble, you can buy neem products via the internet. Go to www.indoneem.com and follow the links to products.
Please send all your gardening questions to
E-mail: gardendoctor08@yahoo.com
