Good stuff. I'm actually working on a list of medicinal plants and their chemical constituents. I've made a list of about 800 species with medicinal
properties so far, and I'm not finished yet. Making such a list was so much easier for the fungi kingdom. Plants are so diverse, it's amazing. It's a
shame we're destroying their habitats at ever increasing rates.SulfurApothecary - 10-7-2012 at 20:14
Nice, I will be actually testing some plant compounds on bacteria, I even got some pipets zoombafu - 15-7-2012 at 21:01
Thanks for the share! I'm very interested in extracted compounds from plants/fungi as well.RonPaul2012 - 16-7-2012 at 12:24
I also am interested in extracting compounds from plants ; I will favorite the link.
I am really amazed by the variety of plants that I find in the woods near where I work , I better not get involved too much , lest I become a botanist
I really need to get a soxhlet extractor.
Thanks mycotheologist zoombafu - 16-7-2012 at 12:33
A soxhlet extractor isn't always necessary. Ive extracted many essential oils from plants with a steam distillation setup. Its pretty easy to use. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steam_distillation
White Yeti - 18-7-2012 at 08:09
I came across a video about extracting essential oils a while ago. It used a setup I've never seen before, but I thought it was really neat. This guy
uses a separatory funnel with a sidearm to collect the distillate. Skip to 1:50 for the set-up. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gDojS7PWWPY&feature=relat...
A soxhlet extractor is ideal only when the oil is not too volatile and not too fragile, since they will inevitably cycle back into the boiling flask.
It's especially useful when you have a limited quantity of plant matter that is very rich in oils.
On a separate and related note, I went for a hike last week and found some Indian pipes. They grow everywhere and it's quite a sight to behold, so I
took a few for myself. I didn't know quite how to deal with them, so I packaged and froze them. Does anyone know if drying these plants at room
temperature reduces their essential oil content?
Here's a picture:
According to this source: http://www.ryandrum.com/threeherbs.htm#IndianPipe
Macerating these plants in a strong alcohol yields a tincture with soporific and healing properties. It's not a very authoritative source, but it
could be an interesting subject to look further into.zoombafu - 18-7-2012 at 11:55
Does anyone know if drying these plants at room temperature reduces their essential oil content?
This is something I've wondered about before, but I have never found an answer. When I have time Ill do some experiments. I'll go find some local
plants, pick a lot of them, then split the bunch in two. One Ill do an extraction of immediately, and the other I will let air dry and then do an
extraction. Then I will compare the results to find out if the dried plants have a lesser oil content or not.RonPaul2012 - 18-7-2012 at 14:34
A soxhlet extractor isn't always necessary. Ive extracted many essential oils from plants with a steam distillation setup. Its pretty easy to use. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steam_distillation
I just wish I had more time.
I have an idea , I could go through the woods with several bags and collect samples of everything I come across and post pictures ; so we could
identify the samples
What do you think ?
My friend pulled off a leaf to a plant (I don't remember the name) and told me to chew it , I did and it tasted a lot like lemons.
I may not know much but I am willing to learn
[Edited on 18-7-2012 by RonPaul2012]hyfalcon - 18-7-2012 at 14:42
Sounds like oxalis of some sort that tasted like lemons. Did it look like a 3 leaf clover only lighter and smaller?RonPaul2012 - 18-7-2012 at 16:01
