In the greenhouses, several varieties of spiders eat bugs and, in the summer, even the frogs help out. Oregano also helps repel insects. To keep weeds in check, workers use a natural blend of oils including pine oil and cinnamon. In late July, harvesting begins. After the crop is cut by a harvesting machine called a swather, the foliage is processed by a hay chopper and loaded into a waiting truck or wagon.
Horses pull the wagon to the nearby distillery where the herbs await distilling.
At the distillery, herbs freshly harvested from the fields are loaded into large vessels and steamed to extract fragrant essential oils. Our specially designed stainless-steel vertical distillers are of a proprietary design patterned after ancient distillation practices used in Europe, India, and Egypt. Once the essential oils are distilled, they are carefully tested for purity, and samples are sent to independent laboratories in order to verify results. At Young Living, we produce only oils that are the most effective and healing-therapeutic grade essential oils. The distillation process begins with softened, purified water evaporated in two gigantic boilers.