herbs

MAY CHANG – Litsea cubeba

/ Jeanne Rose / 1 Comment

MAY CHANG – Litsea cubeba

Essential Oil Profile

photo of berries and essential oils

May Chang – Litsea cubeba

Background, history, name, use, and essential oil

Jeanne Rose

Summary ~ May Chang, Litsea cubeba, gives us an oil beautiful in name, color, and scent. In a diffuser, it can cleanse the environment, ease breathing and uplift the spirit. Diluted in a blend with a carrier oil (Rice Bran oil is good) is healing and regenerative to the skin and leaves a clean and refreshing scent.

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COMMON NAME/LATIN BINOMIAL ~ Litsea cubeba, the common name includes May Chang, Exotic verbena, tropical verbena (unrelated to lemon verbena), Kilemo, or Mountain Pepper.

         Family ~ Lauraceae, or the laurels, is a plant family that includes the true laurel, Mediterranean Bay, and its closest relatives. This family comprises about 2850 known species, including Avocado, Bay Laurel, Cinnamon, Clove, Massoia, and more.      

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COUNTRIES OF ORIGINS: COUNTRIES OF ORIGIN ~ China primarily produces Litsea cubeba oil. It is also cultivated in Taiwan, Japan, and Indonesia.

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ENDANGERED OR NOT ~ This species is classified as a ‘Non-Timber Forest Product’ because it produces essential oils from several parts of the tree, such as leaves, fruits, flowers, and bark.

Unfortunately, the raw material for May chang oil has been obtained from natural forests, not cultivation. Continuous exploitation without cultivation efforts will threaten the existence of this endemic species.2.”

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GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF PLANT HABITAT AND GROWTH ~ Litsea cubeba is obtained from the small peppercorn-shaped fruits resembling the black peppercorns of another plant. Litsea cubeba, the aromatic Litsea or May Chang, is a deciduous to an evergreen tree or shrub 5–12 meters high. It flowers from March-April, and the seeds ripen from August to September. This small tropical tree has lemon-scented leaves and flowers, and the small berries resemble green or black peppercorns. The species is hermaphrodite, which has both male and female organs.1. It is native to the Southern Chinese region, including Sichuan, Guizhou, Yunnan, Taiwan and Fujian, and Southeast Asian countries such as Indonesia, Malaysia, and Cambodia.

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SUSTAINABILITY ~ you must examine each of the plants you use for their ability to reproduce before you choose to harvest or wildcraft them. Many plants are in dire straits because of human incursion into their environment. Best to learn to grow what you want to harvest.

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PORTION OF PLANT USED IN DISTILLATION, HOW DISTILLED, EXTRACTION METHODS, AND YIELDS ~ Berries are steam-distilled to produce the essential oil, sometimes solvent extracted for the absolute. Sometimes the leaves are distilled as well.

         Yield ~ 3-5% from the berries

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photo of berries

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ORGANOLEPTIC CHARACTERISTICS OF ESSENTIAL OIL ~A pale yellow liquid, clear, not-viscous, intensity 5-6, taste is tart and irritating, with a tart lemon-fresh and fruity odor. The scent of May Chang has been compared to Lemongrass and Lemon verbena. It is considered sweeter and finer than Lemongrass and a possible fragrance alternative to the costly Lemon verbena (not an option in terms of therapeutic potential). It has been used to adulterate both Lemon Verbena and Lemon Balm (Melissa) oils — both of which have a woody back note, while Litsea does not.

Aroma Assessment ~ The scent of May Chang has been compared to Lemongrass and Lemon verbena, but if you smelled the latter, you would know that it does not. It is considered sweeter and more refined than Lemongrass. It has been used as a possible fragrance alternative to the costly Lemon Verbena (not an alternative in terms of therapeutic potential). It has been used to adulterate both Lemon Verbena and Lemon Balm (Melissa), which have a woody back note, while Litsea does not.

  • Color – pale yellow
  • Clarity – clear
  • Viscosity – not viscous
  • Intensity of odor – 5-6
  • Tenacity of odor – 6-7
  • Taste – strong, bitter, aromatic, and sour

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Chemical Composition: Litsea cubeba is valued because of its high citral content, estimated to be at 75%. Geraniol is the alpha-citral, and Neral is the beta-citral. The sensitization risk, due to the high citral level, is mitigated by the presence of the chemical limonene.

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GENERAL PROPERTIES OF LITSEA cubeba

May Chang is most valued for its anti-inflammatory and calming properties. Other therapeutic actions are astringent, antiseptic, insecticide, hypotensive, stimulant, and tonic. The oil is used as a scent (especially in bar soap) and for flavoring in its own right. It is also used as a raw material by the chemical industry for the synthesis of vitamin A and for violet-like fragrances.

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         Circulatory system: Research in China has focused on the oil’s ability to regulate cardiac arrhythmia.

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SKIN CARE ~  This oil is helpful for general skin cleansing due to its antiseptic properties. It is also beneficial to the aromatherapy treatment of oily, acne-infected skin areas. It can be used directly on a cold sore (lip or nose) or wart to kill the virus, but this will sting. Best to always use this oil in dilution.

APPLICATION ~ There have been times in the past when I would develop a cold-sore/herpes outbreak on my lip. This was easily but painfully treated by directly applying a drop of one of three high citral-containing essential oils; Litsea cubeba, Lemon verbena, or Melissa. Litsea is, by far, the easiest to obtain. At the first notice of irritation on your lip, apply the tiniest drop of EO. Yes, it will burn, but it is killing the virus, Apply again about three times per day. Herpes will not develop and will disappear by the 2nd day.

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INHALATION ~ May Chang seems to work very well on the respiratory system as it functions as a bronchial dilator and is, therefore, helpful for relieving symptoms associated with bronchitis and asthma. “When given orally or by inhalation (citral), may possess prominent protective effects against bronchial asthma that is induced by inhalation of broncho-constrictors. May Chang oil may inhibit anaphylactic shock when inhaled and has a relaxing effect on the tracheal muscle.” (I am unable to find the original quote to cite)

            •Diffuse/Diffusion – Effect on the nervous system ~  This oil is helpful in the treatment of fatigue, lethargy, insomnia, anxiety, and depression. It should be used in a blend along with limonene oil, such as Orange peel or Lemon peel oil, and with a gentler oil, such as a high linalool Lavender oil.

•Emotional/Energetic Use ~ In a diffuser, Litsea cubeba is a useful addition to a blend as it is emotionally uplifting, clearing, and naturally refreshing. Tone its exuberance with Lemon or Grapefruit oil, and it will clear a room of negative energy and ‘clean’ a space for you.

photo of flowers

Litsea flowers on the tree

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NATURAL PERFUMERY & Blending ~ Blends well with Cedarwood, Chamomiles, citrus odors, Eucalyptus, Ginger, Palmarosa, and more, such as Patchouli, Labdanum, Oakmoss, and Ylang. Battaglia recommends using May Chang with the following essential oils: Basil, Bergamot, Geranium, Ginger, Jasmine, Rose, Rosemary, and Rosewood.

It is best used in smaller quantities as a bridge note or connecting note.

Extra information about citral and bridge notes.

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basic perfume formula and a formula using May Chang

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HYDROSOL ~ I have not had Litsea hydrosol. It might be slightly irritating if sprayed on the face directly, but it would work well as an application to acne sores and/or sprayed on minor cuts.

PLEASE NOTE: A true hydrosol should be explicitly distilled for the hydrosol, not as a co-product or by-product of essential oil distillation. The plant’s cellular water has many components, and most are lost under pressurized short steam runs for essential oil or by using dried material. We recommend that the producers specifically distill for a product by using fresh plant material.

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CULINARY AND HERBAL USES ~ The berries are used extensively as a spice by the aboriginal peoples of Taiwan; it is seen as one of the features of aboriginal cuisine.

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HISTORICAL & INTERESTING USES ~ Litsea plants are the primary source of traditional medicines, but they also serve as a secondary food source for muga silkworms (Antheraea assama). The silk from the muga silkworms produced from the Litsea plant is very attractive and more expensive than the silk produced from other plants. The silk cocoons fed with Litsea produce a creamy, glossy silk five times more costly than silk produced from a primary source of food plant, i.e., Machilus bombycina King4. [Silkworms mostly eat mulberry leaves. Silkworms eat vegetables mostly, especially mulberry leaves, and they are predominantly herbivores. The quality of food they eat determines the quality of silk they spin].

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ABSTRACT/SCIENTIFIC DATA ~ “…The plant [Litsea cubeba] possesses medicinal properties. It has been traditionally used for curing various gastrointestinal ailments (e.g., diarrhea, stomachache, indigestion, and gastroenteritis) along with diabetes, edema, cold, arthritis, asthma, and traumatic injury. Besides its medicinal properties, Litsea is known for its essential oil, which has a protective action against several bacteria, possesses antioxidant and antiparasitic properties, exerts acute and genetic toxicity and cytotoxicity, and can even prevent several cancers. …” 3.

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Key Use ~ Oil of Soap Odor

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This work is sponsored and supported
by Prima Fleur Botanicals.

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photo of two bottles of different Litsea cubeba essential oil from PrimaFleurBotanicals

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Citations

  1. https://pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Litsea+cubeba

2.https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1755-1315/959/1/012045/meta

3.Ethnopharmacological Properties and Medicinal Uses of Litsea cubeba. Y Heryati et al 2022 IOP Conf. Ser.: Earth Environ. Sci. 959 012045

       4.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6631214/

Bibliography

_____.  The Aromatherapy Book: Applications & Inhalations. San Francisco, California:

——. Respiratory Chart. 2002

Battaglia, Salvatore, The Complete Guide to Aromatherapy. The Perfect Potion Pty Ltd, 1995.

Herbal Studies Course/ Jeanne Rose, California: 1992

Mabberley, D. J. Mabberley’s Plant-Book, 3rd edition, 2014 printing, Cambridge University Press.

Rose, Jeanne, 375 Essential Oils and Hydrosols. Frog, 1999

Webb, Mark A. Bush Sense.2000

Williams David, The Chemistry of Essential Oils. Micelle Press, 1996.

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Safety Precautions

MASTIC

/ Jeanne Rose / Leave a comment

MASTIC EO & Tree Resin ~ Mastic EO & tree resin to understand the nature of Mastic, its description,

distillation methods, particular plant properties, uses, and science ~

MASTIC Essential Oil &/or Herb Resin Profile

By Jeanne Rose and other sources ~ 2023

INTRODUCTION ~ Mastic is a resin. I love the resins; I love to burn them for magic and ritual and, above all, use their essential oils in healing blends and via inhalation.

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COMMON NAME/LATIN BINOMIAL ~ Gum Mastic / (Pistacia lentiscus L.) is an oleoresin from a flowering shrub and contains very little oil. Other common names include Gum Mastic or Chios Mastic Gum in Greece. The word “masticate” comes from an ancient Greek word from the Greek practice of chewing this interestingly flavorful resin as gum in addition to freshening the breath and fighting tooth decay.

—-Family – Anacardiaceae is most often known as the cashew family; they are flowering plants with over 800 species, some of which produce an irritant called urushiol.

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MASTIC EO &  the HERB RESIN is known from Greece but grows in Mediterranean Europe and Northern Africa, Algeria, Morocco, and the Canary Islands. Only the true Mastic tree, the variety chia, has the qualities that are desirable. This variety grows well only in this specific area that has the perfect terroir, that is, the southeast corner of the island of Chios, a Greek island in the Aegean Sea.

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ENDANGERED OR NOT ~ A tree called Mastic (species unknown) is considered critically endangered in the Cayman Islands. The Pistacia lentiscus is considered threatened and endangered.

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GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF PLANT HABITAT AND GROWTH ~ The Mastic tree, Pistacia lentiscus, is a flowering shrub with a strong smell of resin; it is a dioecious tree with separate male and female plants. It is an evergreen from 1 to 5 m high and grows in dry and rocky areas in Mediterranean Europe. The leaves are alternate, leathery, and compound with five or six pairs of deep-green leaflets but no terminal leaflet. It has very small flowers; the male flowers are vivid red with five stamens, and the female flowers are green with a 3-part style. The fruit is a drupe (a fleshy fruit with thin skin and a central stone containing the seed). It is first red and then black when ripe, about 4 mm. in diameter.

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PORTION OF THE PLANT USED IN DISTILLATION, HOW DISTILLED, EXTRACTION METHODS, AND YIELDS ~ Mastic is an oleoresin containing a little oil. The oleoresin is produced primarily in the secretory tissues of the bark of stems and branches. “Mastic resin collecting is restricted to the southeastern corner of the island of Chios.
–––––– “The resin is collected by making small cuts made in the bark of the main branches and then allowing the trees to drip the sap onto the specially prepared ground below. The harvesting is done during the summer between July and October. After the Mastic is collected, it is washed manually and is set aside to dry, away from the sun, as it will start melting again.”3 The ground is prepared with fine white kaolin clay on spread on the ground and Mastic falls on it and keeps it clean.

______In Greece to get the Mastic from the Mastic tree is very precise work and takes all summer. First, the ground around the tree is cleaned, then the tree is carved with a special needle to a depth of about 3 mm. Now the Mastic flows slowly from the tree. The first Mastic is collected after fifteen days when it has become more solid.

_____YIELD is 0.7-1 and occasionally up to 3% EO.

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                                                         ORGANOLEPTIC CHARACTERISTICS OF MASTIC oil
Color                          EO is pale yellow
Clarity                        Clear
Viscosity                     Very slightly viscous
Taste                           Bitter (We do not recommend ingestion-only chewing of the resin)
Intensity of odor        5

 Intensity scale of odor ~ On a scale of 1-10, if Usnea is a 1, Lavender a 2, Tea Tree a 5, and Cinnamon or Massoia is 8; then Mastic is about 5-6 in intensity.

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 Odor Description/ Aroma Assessment: The Mastic odor is green, with strong smoky, herbaceous, and fruity notes and hints of spice, citrus, conifer, wood, and leather. Excellent to use in a gentleman’s fragrance or for a brunette woman.

Sources ~ This work is sponsored and supported by Prima Fleur Botanicals.

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CHEMICAL COMPONENTS OF MASTIC ~ The main components were α-pinene (58.86–77.10%), camphene (0.75–1.04%), β-pinene (1.26–2.46%), myrcene (0.23–12.27%), linalool (0.45–3.71%), and β-caryophyllene (0.70–1.47%).

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 TASTE ~ I have chewed the gum and tasted this sweet with tea for years, yet I am at a loss to describe the taste of Mastic. I suggest that you give it a try as it is a very special savor, and most memorable. It starts out floral and slightly bitter and then smooths its way to a herbal and sweetish taste. Delicious!

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GENERAL PROPERTIES of MASTIC

The essential oil is produced by steam distillation from the oleoresin or occasionally directly from the leaves and branches. It is considered antimicrobial, antiseptic, antispasmodic, diuretic, astringent, expectorant and stimulant. Mastic (Pistacia lentiscus) resin and EO have a plethora of qualities and uses. The resin is said to absorb cholesterol when masticated, and is an antibacterial and, acts as an oral antiseptic, tightens the gums, helps digestion, heals wounds; and scientists recently discovered that when it is administrated in small doses over a period of time, it cures stomach ulcers.

The EO is used to heal external skin problems.

Mastic varnish has been in use for thousands of years and is primarily obtained from male trees and used to protect oil and watercolor paintings. The varnish is also used in lithography and cement for precious stones1.

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PROPERTIES AND USES ~ Gum Mastic is used in medicine, pharmaceutical products like medical creams and dental toothpaste, and cures for ulcers; it is used in the paint industry, cosmetics, paint varnish, and artists use it both as an adhesive and to color oil. In the food industry, gum Mastic is used in liqueurs, ice cream, pure Mastic gum, chewing gum, and the most precious of all — Mastic EO.

After the oil is removed, a small, very durable, and pliable bit of chewing gum is left that lasts for a long time without disintegrating. This is the Olde Worlde chewing gum, while Spruce and Pine gums were traditionally chewed in the Newe Worlde of the USA and Canada.

It is suggested by Franchomme and Daniel Pénoël that Mastic EO can assist cardiovascular function. It also is useful as an inhalant for assisting bronchitis, coughs, and colds and application of muscular aches and pains.  An interesting oil.

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APPLICATION/ SKINCARE:  GUM MASTIC (Pistacia lentiscus) ~ Mastic is widely used in the preparation of ointments for skin afflictions like burns and eczema, frostbite, cancers, as well as other external skin afflictions, including the manufacture of plasters.  Mastic EO is used in products as well, both for this effect and its scent.

                                                                       Skin Care Recipe ___________________________________
A teaspoon of any unscented cleansing creams with a slight drop of Mastic EO works well in cleansing the skin. Apply a warm wet washcloth to warm the skin, and gently massage it into the skin for 10 seconds, then warm the skin again with the warm wet washcloth and gently wipe. This is great in the morning as a wake-up ritual. This is also considered to be rejuvenating.

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Other Uses: Mastic is found in varnishes.

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DIFFUSE/DIFFUSION: Since Mastic oil is from a resinous material, it can be diffused by using a FanFuser on the scent disc but not from a glass-enclosed diffuser as the resin and will clog the diffuser. The scent should be used as an accessory odor, not the primary odor.

Fan Diffuser 

EMOTIONAL/ENERGETIC USE: Aleister Crowley considered Mastic to be pale yellow, energetically and clean, and free from prejudice, whether for or against any moral idea. It is used in a ritual blend to intensify them and quicken their rate of vibration. Mastic is used as incense for Pisces people.

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BLENDS AND PERFUMERY ~ I like to use Mastic EO & Herb resin in my Natural Perfumery class as a tincture and used as a fixative where it lends a subtle smoky note. 

Blends Best ~ Citrus scents, Lavender-fern combos as a top note and in floral odors. I enjoy using Mastic in massage blends.

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Use the essential oils in moderation. Use the herb tea or resin when it is more appropriate.

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HERBAL USE OF MASTIC ~ The Mastic fruit (berries) can be crushed to obtain an oil that is used in liquor, or they can be used whole to flavor preserved meats and sausages. The leaf and stems of the plants are burned to smoke meats. Masticha is often prepared in a liquid form, mixed with honey or sugar, and spooned into cold water as the main flavor for a refreshing drink. “In Greece, it is mixed with sugar and water to form a thick white cream eaten by the spoonful with dark bitter coffee.” — 375 Essential Oils & Hydrosols.
                 Pistacia lentiscus is used occasionally as a chewing resin to improve breath, prevent tooth decay, and heal the gums.

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            BATHING ~ Francis Bacon’s prescription for a bath is as follows, “First, before bathing, rub and anoint the Body with Oyle, and Salves, that the Bath’s moistening heate and virtue may penetrate into the Body, and not the liquor’s watery part: then sit 2 hours in the Bath; after Bathing wrap the Body in a seare-cloth made of Masticke, Myrrh, Pomander and Saffron, for staying the perspiration or breathing of the pores, until the softening of the Body, having layne thus in seare-cloth 24 hours, bee growne solid and hard. Lastly, with an oynment of Oyle, Salt and Saffron, the seare-cloth being taken off, anoint the Body.” (cited by Classen, Howes & Synnott)

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             CULINARY USE ~ “One typical spoon sweet is from the island of Chios called the ‘ipovrichio’ or submarine. It can be flavored with Vanilla or is made from mastic resin, for which the Aegean island is famous. This is a sugary fondant to be served on a teaspoon and dipped into a glass of ice-cold water, thus why it is referred to as a submarine. Once you get your spoon submerged, the fondant softens, and you go to work licking the spoon like a fondant lollipop of sorts. During the summer, you will see people at the beach or cafeterias enjoying a submarine. This dessert is loved by children and adults alike. Although the typical flavors are Vanilla and Mastic, if you opt to make the sweet dessert at home, you can also add fresh berry juices to flavor and experience a glimpse of summertime traditions in Greece.”3

• Greece also makes a resinated white or rose wine that’s infused with sap from an Aleppo pine tree (Pinus halepensis). This wine is called Retsina and emerged from an ancient winemaking tradition that can be traced back as far back as the 2nd century BC.4 This wine has a unique flavor said to have originated from the practice of sealing wine vessels, the amphorae, with the resin of this tree. 

Since antiquity,  the resin of the Mastic tree that grows on the Greek island of Chios is also used to flavor wine and gives it a very special and surprising taste.

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JEANNE ROSE TOMATO TALES – Mastic

Mastic is a translucent sticky substance similar to tree sap, and when combined with sugar, lemon juice, and water is served on a spoon immersed in cold water. This is a special treat called a spoon sweet. In Greece, this ‘spoon sweet’ specialty is called a Submarine. It is delicious!
              In December 1993, I had a very formal 8-course meal for friends, and the 7th course was a cheese course of Roquefort with Aromatherapy sweetmeats of Bergamot candied peels, Bitter Orange candied peels and Mastic sweet on Lavender Honey Thins with a delicious wine of Muscat de Beaumes de Venise. It was a very successful meal.

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#2 – Mastic Tomato Tale

CHEWING MASTIC. In 2018 at a Resin Distillation Conference in Spokane, WA., I asked several well-known gum chewers if they wanted to try Mastic. “Yes, of course,” they said, but in fact, they were unable to learn to chew it or even try past 30 minutes. This is great gum and can be chewed for 4 hours without losing its eponymous taste, and it is good for the teeth.

And the occasional chewing of a Mastic ball will ease the pain of a tooth carie or cavity, act as a mouth antibacterial, and has in the past been used as a temporary tooth filling.  Remember this when you travel out of the country to carry some Mastic resin with you, both to burn as a magical fragrant incense and also as a first aid remedy. Really, we are forgetting some of our simplest first-aid skills!

Mastic resin pieces are also delicious when chewed like American chewing gum. It has a mild taste that is not lost after hours of chewing, and it can be chewed for hours. The problem is that Mastic takes a few times to learn how to chew, as a small ball of resin needs to be soaked in the mouth first to get to perfect mastication texture. Then you need to roll it around in the mouth once in a while so that it doesn’t stick to your fillings.

Mastic is tasteless in a tasty way, and a small tear (piece) can be chewed for hours without seeming to melt away. Since it does not have a strong taste, it doesn’t get tiring to chew like American chewing gum. I put a small tear in my mouth when writing this part of the article, slowly let it soften in my mouth, and then chewed it a bit and still had it in my mouth three hours later. It was pleasant to chew. I also love Chicle but think I like Mastic more.

The taste is floral with a bitter edge. As you hold it in your mouth, saliva begins to flow, which softens the Mastic, chewing becomes easier, and the floral taste softens and becomes quite pleasant.­

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MASTIC TOMATO TALES #3

AROMATHERAPY SALONS …  Years ago, I would have meetings in my home with women that I called “Aromatherapy Salons.” We would discuss various aromatic subjects, aromatherapy, essential oils, and drink fragrant tea, have tea cookies and sweetmeats. (A sweetmeat is a delicacy prepared with sugar, honey, or the like, as preserves, candy, or, formerly, cakes or pastries. Usually, they are any sweet delicacy of the confectionery or candy kind, such as candied fruit, sugar-covered nuts, sugarplums, bonbons, or balls or sticks of candy) One of my favorites sweetmeats was to use the Mastic from Greece that came as a smooth sweet white cream; a small spoonful on a cookie with tea was delicious, but it was especially tasty with bitter coffee.

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HYDROSOL: I do not as yet know a source for the hydrosol or its use. However, I postulate that its hydrosol would make a good antibacterial mouthwash.

 PLEASE NOTE ~ A true hydrosol should be specifically distilled for the hydrosol, not as a co-product or even a by-product of essential oil distillation. The plant’s cellular water has many components; most are lost under pressurized short steam runs for essential oil or by using dried material. We recommend that the producers specifically distill for a product by using plant material that is fresh.

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 Key Use ~ Resin is a masticatory and is also used to burn to cleanse spaces and EO in skin care.

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 HISTORICAL USES ~ The Mastic resin has been used for chewing since the time of Theophrastus, in relieving halitosis and as a filler for caries, and is also used in varnishes for oil pictures.  It is also an ingredient in Ouzo. Ouzo is a high-proof drink whose production begins with distillation in copper stills of 96% alcohol by volume and herbs. Anise is added, sometimes with other flavorings such as Cardamom, Cinnamon, Cloves, Coriander, Fennel, Mastic, and Star Anise.

“In January 1992, National Geographic mentioned that Columbus, sent by Genoese traders to cash in on the money-making crop of Mastic, visited Chios at least once”. — The Aromatherapy Book.
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INTERESTING INFORMATION ~ It is believed that the Sardinian warbler [a bird] is only found near fruiting shrubs of this species [Mastic].2 The tear-shaped drops of Mastic gum are associated with Saint Isadoros, whose martyred body was dragged under a Mastic tree where it wept the resinous tears called Mastic.

Ancient Egyptians employed Mastic during their embalming procedures, while Biblical scholars believe that bakha—derived from the Hebrew term for weeping (and, thus, the tear-shaped pieces of Mastic gum)—was none other than the Mastic tree.

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ABSTRACT/SCIENTIFIC DATA ABOUT THE GUM RESIN MASTIC ~

—–Researchers at Nottingham University Hospital and Barnet General Hospital have found that Chios Mastic is an effective treatment for ulcers. The findings showed that even in small doses of one gram a day for two weeks, Mastic gum could cure peptic ulcers.

—–In recent years, university researchers have provided scientific evidence for the medicinal properties of Mastic resin. A 1985 study by the University of Thessaloniki and by the Meikai University discovered that Mastic could reduce bacterial plaque in the mouth by 41.5%. A 1998 study by the University of Athens found that Mastic oil has antibacterial and antifungal properties. A recent and extensive study showed that Mastic gum reduced H. pylori populations after an insoluble and sticky polymer (poly-β-myrcene) constituent of Mastic gum was removed and taken for a longer period of time. Further analysis showed the acid fraction was the most active antibacterial extract, and the most active pure compound was isomasticadienolic acid.

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CONTRAINDICATIONS ~ Side effects of taking Mastic gum may include nausea, diarrhea, and constipation.

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 REFERENCES
Arctander, Steffen. Perfume and Flavor Materials of Natural Origin. Arctander. 1960
Aromatherapy Studies Course/ Jeanne Rose, San Francisco, California, 1992
Dioscorides. The Greek Herbal of Dioscorides. Translated in 1655 by Goodyer and printed in 1933.
Guenther, Ernest. The Essential Oils. Krieger Publishing. Florida. 1976
1Langenheim, Jean H. Plant Resins • Chemistry, Evolution, Ecology, Ethnobotany.  Timber Press. 2003
2Mabberley, D. J. Mabberley’s Plant-Book, 3rd edition, 2014 printing, Cambridge University Press.
Rose, Jeanne.  375 Essential Oils and Hydrosols.  Berkeley, California: Frog, Ltd., 1999
Rose, Jeanne.  The Aromatherapy Book: Applications & Inhalations.  San Francisco, California:
3Wikipedia – Mastic
4. https://winefolly.com/deep-dive/retsina-wine-making-surprising-comeback/

Other References are included within the body of the work.

The Jeanne Rose Aromatherapy Studies Course carries these blog posts as well as much more information on the many aspects of essential oils, hydrosols, absolutes, and aromatic ingredients for health and skin care.

My latest analyses of Mastic using the Advanced Vocabulary of Odor – See Natural Perfumery Workbook to use.

~JR~

ORRIS ROOT – a profile

/ Jeanne Rose / 5 Comments

Orris Root (Iris pallida, [Iris germanica]) is this Iris’s aged, peeled, and dried rhizome.

This Iris plant bursts into life in the spring in a variety of colors. The flower is fragrant

and has been named after the Rainbow Goddess, Iris.

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photo by JeanneRose showing a small 1-liter copper still, and two types of Orris root in front of a lincrusta wall.

ORRIS ROOT PROFILE & USES

By Jeanne Rose

COMMON NAME/LATIN BINOMIAL/NAMING INFORMATION ~  Orris Root, Iris germanica, or I. pallida, and from the subgroup ‘florentina’ is the substance commonly called Orris root and is really the rhizome product of a particular Iris. The apothecary’s name is Rhizoma iridis. And other common names include Queen Elizabeth root and “eye of heaven.”

FAMILY ~ A perennial and hardy flowering plant of the family Iridaceae and grows from a rhizome, the modified main stem of a plant growing horizontally underground.

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COUNTRIES OF ORIGINS ~  It is also called Iris florentina germanica, which means ‘of Germany.’ Florentina means ‘of Florence’ (Italy). This incredible ancient plant is native to the Mediterranean and used in Greece, Rome, and Macedonia in unguents and perfumes.

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HISTORICAL & INTERESTING INFORMATION ~ The plant was known, dried, and ground to powder, used for its violet scent, “to scent bedclothes in the 1480s and for flavoring certain gins.  It has been used medicinally as a fixative in perfume, a fixative scent in potpourris, and for powdering wigs and hair in the 18th century. The flowers are possibly the origin of the ‘fleur-de-lis’ of France.”1. To the French, the flower is often used in ceremony, symbolically or natural; the three petals symbolize faith, wisdom, and valor.

            It was possibly used to decorate the Sphinx and was known to Thutmose III of the era 1501-1447 BC. In the seventh century AD, the Slavic people used Iris germanica and other herbs in cosmetics.

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A Jeanne Rose Orris Root Tomato Tale

It was a lovely spring day in 1980, and I was traveling in Boulder, CO. I had come to visit friends, talk about bath herbs to other friends, and eat great food. They picked me up at the Denver, CO. airport, and we drove to Boulder, where I would stay for a few days. We were driving along and passed by a farm with row after row of Iris in flower in many colors and hues. I had already grown the Iris florentina at my home in San Francisco and was currently aging the root in my desk drawer. But this was a magnificent surprise to see such a lovely field and to be inundated with the astonishing sweet scent of the blooming Iris. I was surprised at the intensity of the odor that wafted into the car off the field; the scent was sublime, with a lush floral odor mixed with the spring breeze and the mountains nearby. Iris flowers are a wonder of nature that is appreciated for their exquisite beauty and fragrance. I believe the farm is still there in the middle of Boulder, called Longs Gardens, and is a great choice for a visit in May. (https://longsgardens.com/about/)

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From a copy in my personal library, The Romance of Perfume,  illustrated by George Barbier and written by LeGalliene.

Madame Pompadour is attended to by a lady, powdering her enormous coiffure with Orris root, and on her dressing table are bottles of perfume. From a copy in my personal library, The Romance of Perfume,  illustrated by George Barbier and written by LeGalliene.

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ENDANGERED OR NOT~ Some species of Iris are endangered.  The leaves and roots can cause skin irritations and allergies in some people.

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Several plants of Iris germanical, that provide the Orris root.

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GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF PLANT HABITAT AND GROWTH ~ The color of this species of Iris flower that gives Orris root is white, and in its second year can grow as tall as a person. “The flower petals reach the height of their beauty by the second year, but the roots must age for 2 to 3 years before they reach full maturity when they contain the highest concentration of the desired irone compounds…. It is necessary for the ground where it grows to be carefully weeded and maintained throughout the period. It has been said that whole families assume this task, and when the plant has arrived at maturity, they tend to the long, labor-intensive pulling, cutting, peeling, and drying process.” – David Mark of Renaissance Aromas.

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Orris root smells just like  powder

And it cannot get any louder

I love the scent Orris

With Rose is a chorus

Certainly not like clam chowder.

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Jeanne Rose home-grown Orris root from 2-year-old plants, and aged in a desk drawer for 3 years.

Planted in 1972, harvested in 1975, and aged in a desk drawer until 1978

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PORTION OF PLANT USED IN DISTILLATION, EXTRACTION METHODS, AND YIELD ~ Plant rhizomes, mainly from Morocco, are harvested, peeled, dried, and powdered, and are processed by supercritical carbon dioxide extraction yielding 1- kilo of extract from around 34 kilos of raw material. It is also solvent extracted for an absolute as well as CO2 extracted.

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HOME DISTILLING ~ You peel these rhizomes first, that is, if you want peeled white Orris. After you have pulled the roots, washed, and peeled them,  I will chop them coarsely, then let them dry in a warm place, in the shade, on trays.  I used to frame up 2’ X 2’ fiberglass screening and lay the drying Orris root there for a week or so, and then put them into muslin bags and let them mature in a dry place for three years. They have to be protected from rodents and bugs. I have also taken perfectly shaped rhizomes and aged them in my desk drawer so that no creatures could find them and gnaw at them.  After they have dried and the odor has has been obtained, you powder and use or distill.

            If you decide to distill, I recommend soaking/macerating the chopped roots in the distillation waters for 24 hours before beginning the distillation in the same waters, hydro-distillation. It also should be a warm day when you start the soaking and the distillation. When I distill, I have a copper screen in the bottom of the pot that is supported on a short stand. I put the chopped roots on the screen along with the maceration waters. Go low and slow. [go low on heat and slow with the distillation] Don’t be in a hurry when you are distilling, and watch the pot constantly so that it does not overheat.

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Benoit Roger says, “Steam can’t be used alone; it is usually hydrodistilled with continuous stirring. The rhizomes must be powdered and soaked overnight in hot water and then distilled for at least one day with cohobation. You must keep the condenser above 50-55 degrees C to allow the orris butter to come out of the condenser or raise the temperature to 60 degrees C periodically. I can’t tell you THE exact ratio of orris/water you need as it depends on the still, heating, agitation, or not, but it should be quite high (1/10 – 1/12, and some say more…) to not burn the plant material. Good luck”.

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ORGANOLEPTIC CHARACTERISTICS of ORRIS SELECT ~

  • Color – pale ivory
  • Clarity – semi-clear
  • Viscosity – slightly viscous
  • Taste – powder-like  taste, very somewhat bitter
  • Intensity of odor  – 2
  • Tenacity – If used in enough quantity will add some tenacity to the odor – 5
  • Odor Description/ Aroma Assessment ~ The Iris pallida of Italy and China has floral, powder, and green notes; from Serbia and Morocco, it is floral, powder, fatty, and sweet woody; the Iris germanica often has a fruity note. This distinctive soft powdery, violet-like odor is simply luxurious, and with it comes an aura of romance and child-like happiness. Orris root blends well with florals of Champa, Neroli, Rose, and Rose Geranium and green notes of Violet leaf and Galbanum.  
  • This is a fixative note: when added to a perfume, it holds, strengthens, and fixes the odor.

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SCENT SNAPSHOT OF ORRIS ROOT – 2010

5.Scent Snapshot is part of the Aromatherapy Studies Course,

https://jeannerose.net/courses.html

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SOURCES ~  You can obtain the CO2 extract from www.PrimaFleur.com. Get it when you can as this lovely product so useful in perfumery is sometimes very difficult to obtain.

            Use the oil in moderation in your work; sometimes, it is more appropriate to use the herb/plant for its therapeutic properties in a compress, tincture, or powder.

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I originally purchased my Iris plants (I. florentina) in 1972 and probably obtained them from Old House Gardens; see I. florentina, I. pallida at (https://oldhousegardens.com/display/?cat=iris). You may need to order now for fall planting and remember to order now to get some two years in the future.  The true heirloom plants for old-time fragrance are getting harder and harder to find.

This work was sponsored and
supported by Prima Fleur Botanicals.

A small bottle of Prima Fleur Orris, Select from Iris pallida.

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GENERAL PROPERTIES of Orris root

Although Orris may have been used medicinally at one time, its chief uses now are in perfumery, soap making, and to flavor liquors, from gin to vermouth. The carbon dioxide extracts, CO2, are closer in composition to the scent as it occurs in the botanical plant than those obtained by other techniques.

PROPERTIES AND USES ~ Orris root powder was used as a face or wig powder and mixed with talcum as a body powder.  It is now primarily used as a concrete or CO2 extract in fine perfumery.

……….Diffuse/Diffusion ~ I love this scent, the flower, the aged root, and the Orris Select.  But I admit to never using it in a diffuser as it is one of the more expensive oils, and I think putting it into a diffuser is wasteful.                                                    

……….Emotional/Energetic Use ~ Inhaling the scent of this plant or its oil, by itself or in a floral blend, is a soothing, relaxing way to calm your mind.  It blends well with most florals and woods. The root powdered also has been frequently mentioned ritually as an ingredient in spells, particularly in love magic, protection, and in divination rituals.

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CHEMICAL COMPONENTS of Orris root ~ oil of Orris (0.1–0.2%), a yellow-white mass containing myristic acid. The oil of orris is sometimes sold as orris butter. Other components include fat, resin, starch, mucilage, bitter extractive, and a glucoside called iridin or irisin. The root needs to be harvested and aged/cured before processing. “During this curing period, oxidative degradation of iridals to irons occurs (Brenna et al., 2003; Schütz et al., 2011). It is these irones (α‑irone, β‑irone, and γ‑irone) that are at the heart of the distinctive violet-like smell that has made it, along with its natural fixative properties, so popular in perfumery and also to the distiller (Krick et al., 1983)”.4 

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Concrete of Iris pallida - Alberta-grown and CO2 extracted shown in a jar and diluted in a bottle.

Concrete of Iris pallida – Alberta-grown and CO2 extracted

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PERFUMERY & BLENDS ~ The CO2 is from Serbia and Morocco and blends well with florals of Neroli, Rose, and Prima Fleur’s Malawi Geranium as well as green notes of Violet leaf and Galbanum. The distinctive violet-like odor is the definition of luxury and feels like a romantic indulgence. While the Iris pallida of Italy and China has distinct floral and green notes, the Iris germanica boasts fruitier, richer notes useful in more industries.

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            MAKING  A TINCTURE OF ORRIS – Here is a technique I use, and it might be useful to someone:

Place freshly ground powder of aged Orris root, Iris pallida, into a quart-size glass jar with a good-fitting lid. Use about a cup full of Orris. Cover by a scant inch with pure 95% grape spirits, I use http://www.organicalcohol.com. As the Orris takes up the alcohol, add more to keep the level at that scant inch. You can use less; just adjust the proportions. Shake vigorously by succussion, every day, as you would for a regular tincture. Store in a quiet, dark, dry place. It takes about 3-6 months for it to be ready. When ready, filter the liquid through a fine grade laboratory type filter paper or an ultra-fine silk cloth and then press the remainder through a tincture press into a new clean 1-pint bottle. Label the bottle. If possible, use the proper laboratory equipment. Let the liquid settle. There may be a fine powder that has settled to the bottom. I will then use this tincture as part of the diluent in a perfume or essential oil blend, and the powder can be kept for a new production of the tincture. 

Some people will dry out the alcohol by pouring the liquid into a shallow glass dish, leaving it open in a safe place away from family and pets. There should be good ventilation. Check it regularly. The alcohol will evaporate, leaving a layer of a butter-like resinous substance that smells very good. Wait until all the alcohol is gone. This will depend on the amount and the surface area of the dish you have used. Use an immaculately clean stainless-steel spatula to scrape the buttery layer off the dish and place it in a separate container. Label and date it. This particular process can be tiring, and, in my opinion, I will always choose the actual tincture.

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            TINCTURING PROCESS ~ Septimus Piesse says (page 134, The Art of Perfumery) that the classic perfume tincture for Orris root is 7 lbs. of aged crushed Orris root in 1 gallon of spirits to ‘stand together (be macerated) for one month before the extract is fit to take off.’ “It requires considerable time to drain away, and, to prevent loss, the remainder of the Orris should be placed in the tincture press.”

There is much information in this book as well as in Steffen Arctander’s book, regarding this substance.

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BLENDING WITH FORMULA ~  I have used Orris root Total from a wild source of Iris pallida. This wonderful perfume item was grown in Alberta, and CO2 extracted for the aged root’s sweet, soft, floral scent. Delicious.

A perfume formula

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            Rose oil with Orris root is a classic scent combination, making a fantastic perfume. Rose Oil is a general tonic and powerful nervous system tonic when inhaled – historically known to be relaxing; the SD oil is used in skin care as a tonic astringent and gentle tonic to the skin. The two items together are quite lovely.

• § •

These two formulas are from my New Age Creations company,

with more in The Herbal Body Book.

Two formulas, one for sachet and one for potpourri using Orris root.

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HERBAL USES OF ORRIS  ROOT ~ The dried root of the Iris florentina, Orris root, was used as a teething item for children. I used it for my second child. It has a pleasant violet smell and a pleasant taste. Then it was deemed allergenic, and one could no longer obtain the carved roots for teething. 

            When I first started my company in 1966, New Age Creations, it was all about my design in clothing for rock ‘n roll stars; in 1969, I switched to herbal products and made a tooth powder of equal proportions of chalk or baking soda and Orris root. This was considered an excellent dentifrice as long ago as 1854.

            In the ‘30s, Orris root was given as a treatment for asthma, and on the other hand, people who have allergies are often sensitive to Orris root. 

            There are some wonderful herbal formulas for Orris root powder in the Jeanne Rose Herbal Body Book; see p. 314 for a sweet body powder.3

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#45 Milk Bath (1973) – from New Age Creations

1 lb. dry milk instant nonfat dry)
¼  lb. Oatmeal (meal or powder)
¼  lb. Oatmeal (meal or powder)
1 oz by vol Orris root – powder
1 oz by vol. Orange Peel – powder
1 oz by vol. Almond Meal – powder
½ oz by vol. Comfrey root – powder
Weigh and divide into  8 oz bottles (4 oz by weight)

This slightly brown/tan product is due to the Comfrey root and Almond meal. This milk/oat/Orris bath is healing, soothing, relaxing, and a tonic to the skin. I have a variety of recipes for this wonderful bath, and this is only one of them. Use about ½ cup per bath (or more).

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HYDROSOL ~ This is another one of those plants that should not be collected to distill.  It takes a long time to start, two years to grow, and another three years to cure/age to develop the scent, so why waste your work throwing it into a pot with lots of water to distill?

HOWEVER, there is a recipe from 1779 for a distilled water, called Angelic Water, of a most agreeable scent, from the Toilet of Flora …

Angelic Water, Put into a large alembic the following ingredients, Benjamin of four ounces; Storax of two ounces; Yellow Sanders an ounce: Cloves two drachms; two or three bits of Florentine Orrice, half the Peel of a Lemon, two Nutmegs, half an ounce of Cinnamon, two quarts of Rose-water, a pint of Orange Flower-Water, and a pint of magisterial Balm-water. Put the whole into an alembic well-luted; distill in a water bath; and what you draw off will prove an exquisite Angelic Water.– “The Toilet of Flora” printed in London in 1779.

PLEASE NOTE: A true hydrosol should be specifically distilled for the hydrosol, not as a co-product or even a by-product of essential oil distillation. The plant’s cellular water has many components; most are lost under pressurized short steam runs for essential oil or by using dried material. We recommend that the producers specifically distill for a product by using plant material that is fresh.

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Key Use ~ Orris root Concrète and oil are best used in fine perfumery.

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Use the essential oils in moderation. Use the herb tea, juice, or resin when it is more appropriate.
Often, the herbal use is preferred over the distillate, oil, or hydrosol.

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A photo of Jeanne Rose collection of concrete, butter, dried roots and CO2 extract.

Jeanne Rose Collection of Orris Concrète and dried rhizome

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CONTRAINDICATIONS ~ Web MD states that Orris root may not be used freshly dug and eaten “as it is possibly unsafe to use the fresh plant juice or root. It can cause severe irritation of the mouth, as well as stomach pain, vomiting, and bloody stools.2.”

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REFERENCES

1.Mabberley, D. J. Mabberley’s Plant-Book, 3rd edition, 2014 printing, Cambridge University Press.
2. https://www.webmd.com/vitamins/ai/ingredientmono-645/orris
3.Rose, Jeanne. Herbal Body Book, published by www.jeannerose.net/books.html. P. 314.
4. https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/agricultural-and-biological-sciences/orris-root

Anonis, Danute Pajaujis: Flower Oils and Floral Compounds in Perfumery, Perfumer and Flavorist. 1993.
Arctander, Steffen. Perfume and Flavor Materials of Natural Origin
Coombes, Allen J. Dictionary of Plant Names. Timber Press, Oregon, 1985
Piesse, Septimus. The Art of Perfumery. 1867
Rose, Jeanne.  375 Essential Oils and Hydrosols.  Berkeley, California: Frog, Ltd., 1999
Rose, Jeanne.  The Aromatherapy Book: Applications & Inhalations.  San Francisco, California:
Rose, Jeanne. Herbal Studies Course. Jeanne Rose, California: 1992

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Safety Precautions to Remember.
Iris plant

Champaca

/ Jeanne Rose / Leave a comment

CHAMPA – a profile

Champaca oil, CO2 extracted on a bed of yellow cashmere and black silk scarf.

By Jeanne Rose ~ 2023

CHAMPACA, Magnolia champaca, also seen as M. aurantiaca and Michelia alba, has many common names including all forms of Champa, Shamba, and more.

Family ~ Michelia is one of the most popular flowering trees and the genus is now called Magnolia. It belongs to one of the ancient families of the plant kingdom having existed for 95 million years. This family Magnoliaceae of flowering plants with many species most of which have bisexual flowers.

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COUNTRIES OF ORIGINS ~ Champaca tree is native to South Asia, Indochina, and southern China. The CO2-extracted oil comes from India.

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ENDANGERED OR NOT ~ The species, Magnolia champaca, is famous for its lush aromatic flower and is included in IUCN red list species as threatened in its geographical distribution range.2 Champaca flowers are often used during festivals as necklaces or hair bands.

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GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF PLANT HABITAT AND GROWTH MICHELIA CHAMPACA is a large evergreen tree used as a timber tree.  It is a hardwood with a long straight trunk with a close tapering crown. It is a medium-growing tree, attaining a height of 33 m or more, and can attain a size of 2-4 m around its middle. The bark is light gray and smooth, and the leaves are generally long and wide, shining above, hairless on the other side; the old leaves are yellow. In general, it grows in moist, deep, well-drained, good-quality soil. It grows in deep valleys, and some grow best in foothills In its natural habitat, M. champaca grows in areas where temperatures are up to 47.5°C and annual rainfall is 100 inches or more. It thrives in a damp climate.

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An open flower on the champaca tree.

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CHAMPACA flowers are usually not distilled, but CO2 extracted ~ It is picked fresh, and then semi-dried and sent to the extraction plant. Extraction of the fresh flowers of Michelia champaca L. with liquid CO2 provides a floral extract with a yield of 1.0 ± 0.04 wt.%. 4

Yield ~ solvent-free supercritical CO2 extraction of flowers  had a higher yield than the essential oil, and in one study the yield of the concrete was 1.5 ± 0.05% vs. essential oil in 0.03% yield.3

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CHAMPACA FLOWERS ARE USED ~ for the extraction of the scent by carbon dioxide extraction for an absolute.

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ORGANOLEPTIC CHARACTERISTICS of Champaca CO2

  • Color – dark brown with a yellowish cast
  • Clarity – Opaque
  • Viscosity – semi-viscous
  • Intensity of odor – 4
  • Tenacity of odor – 5
  • Taste – bitter

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ODOR DESCRIPTION/ AROMA ASSESSMENT ~ The scent is deeply floral and wood with many sub-notes that include hay, leather, and powder.

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SCENT SNAPSHOT

A scent snapshot of Champaca.

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“Magnolia champaca, is rare and has a strong perfume, and is used – for example in hair it is worn singly or as a small corsage but rarely as a whole garland, and for bridal beds, it is most often with Jasmine and Roses and in bowls of water to be placed around rooms for colorful decoration and for the perfumed flowers.”

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I have Champa that I use as perfume.

It comes from flowers abloom.

In the bedroom, it seems

When my heart is abeam

Champa blooms and then there’s perfume, I assume.

2020

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This work is sponsored and supported by Prima Fleur Botanicals

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GENERAL PROPERTIES of Champa

The extract from the flowers is used in the preparation of perfume. Medicinally, the tree has wide applications; the bark is used to prepare a tonic and as a fever reducer, the leaves to feed silkworms and make tea, the wood cut into boards for tea boxes and furniture, the oil extracted from flowers is used for perfumery, whole plant extracts used to treat coughs and arthritis, and for relieving eye troubles and gout.

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Properties and Uses ~ The plant is scientifically stated to exhibit antipyretic, anti-inflammatory,, antioxidant, antimicrobial, cytotoxic, antidiabetic, and analgesicactivities.6

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SKINCARE WITH CHAMPA OIL ~  Champa is a somewhat drying oil, useful for normal to oily skin. Mixed with carrier oil and other skin-loving scents and oils, it absorbs quickly into the skin leaving it smooth, hydrated, and silky.

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DIFFUSE/DIFFUSION ~ Champa works very well when used in a blend with citrus oils, or with Lavender oil. It will soften the bright scent of the citrus and floral notes, and when diffused is very pleasant in a room, particularly the living room or bedrooms.

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EMOTIONAL/ENERGETIC USE ~  “Champa is considered a sacred incense that purifies personal space, clearing out stagnant or negative energy and filling your space with positive vibrations. It is known for its calming powers reducing stress and anxiety. Cleanse, purify, and protect your energy with a blend that includes Champa.

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Champa Limerick

Champa is the oil of the day.
It is sweet and reminds you of hay.
When the morning is over
I feel like I’m in Clover
Rolling in Champa until May

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CHEMICAL COMPONENTS ~ “M. champaca is famous for the sweet odor of its blossoms. The flower possesses a scent that can be described as a fresh, floral and strong sweet jasmine-like scent. Most of the aromatic compounds encountered have rather strong odors, and especially the esters are regarded as possessing floral notes. Methyl benzoate (heavy-sweet, deep-floral), indole (floral character highly reminiscent of jasmine and orange blossom), and 1,8-cineole (fresh, camphoraceous) are contributing significantly to the fragrance of M. champaca flowers.” 5.

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PERFUMERY with Champa ~ The tree flowers were traditionally used to make fragrant hair and massage oils. The vernacular name “Joy perfume tree” comes from this. Many perfumers are using Champaca Absolute as single-note fragrances or in blends for perfumery.

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Blends Best with florals, woods, Lavender, and citrus type of odors.

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CHAMPA PERFUME

Fun Day Champaca Perfume from 2013

Top Note is composed of
25 drops Grapefruit (pink or white)
15 drops Bergamot

Bridge: 1 drop Cardamom
2 drops Litsea cubeba

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Heart Note is composed of
10 drops Neroli
10 drops Ylang-ylang
15 drops Petitgrain
5  drops Champaca.

Bridge Note: Amber or Amber complex

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Base Note is composed of
20 drops Champaca
20 drops Vanilla Abs

Make and succuss each note individually and allow it to age for at least a week. Then add your neutral spirits. I prefer neutral grape spirits from Organicalcohol.com. 240 drops of neutral grape spirits. Succuss again and age for at least two weeks to let the scents incorporate.  You will now have 33% active perfume ingredients.

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CHAMPACA SOLID WAX is left after the absolute is removed making an excellent base for a solid perfume. This floral wax has all the properties for good skin care and it smells delightful. Floral waxes are created as a result of solvent extraction that is used on delicate flowers whose scent would be destroyed by steam distillation. Floral waxes are available to add scent and texture to skincare products as well as the incredible moisturizing capability for the skin. Champaca helps to moisturize, soothe and soften, it is a free radical scavenger, is skin-protective, and is recommended for products to restore the skin to a smoother surface.

Formula for solid perfume using champaca

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HYDROSOL ~ I have never had a real bottle of Champaca hydrosol to use.  And thus, do not have any experience with it. There are some who pick the flowers, soak them in water for a few hours to extract some scent, and then hydro/steam-distilled with that extraction water, with low heat and slowly, for the hydrosol.

PLEASE NOTE: A true hydrosol should be specifically distilled for the hydrosol, not as a co-product or even a by-product of essential oil distillation. The plant’s cellular water has many components most are lost under pressurized short steam runs for essential oil, or by using dried material. We recommend that the producers specifically distill for a product by using plant material that is fresh.

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HERBAL USES OF  CHAMPA ~ The flowers are used in South Asia for several purposes. In India, they are primarily used for worship at temples, and in the home, and are generally worn in the hair by girls and women for beauty and as a natural perfume. You can float the flowers in bowls of water to scent the room, weave them together in garlands, or as a fragrant decoration for bridal beds.

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HISTORICAL/RELIGIOUS USES ~ Michelia champaca is also known as Champa, Yellow Champa, Golden Campa, or Fragrant Champa. It is highly revered by the followers of Hinduism and Buddhism who use Michelia flowers during religious ceremonies. Tibetans believe that the Buddha will find enlightenment under the white flower canopy of the champaca tree.

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INTERESTING INFORMATION ~ The extract from the flowers of Michelia (Magnolia) alba is used in the preparation for the famous ‘Joy’ perfume.

            The civet of Sri Lanka, Paradoxurus montanus is said to have a very pleasant odor that is somewhat similar to Champaca flowers. This is unlike other civets that have a urinous odor.

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ABSTRACT/SCIENTIFIC DATA from 2008 ~ Results ~ M. champaca was studied and the ethanolic extract exhibited significant antihyperglycemic activity but did not produce hypoglycemia in fasted normal rats. Apart from this extract, the crude aqueous and petroleum ether extracts were found active only at the end of the first hour. Treatment of diabetic rats with ethanolic extract of this plant restored the elevated biochemical parameters significantly … and the activity was found dose-dependent.
Conclusion: This study supports the traditional claim that the ethanolic extract of this plant could be added to traditional preparations for the ailment of various diabetes-associated complications.1

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KEY USE ~ This is a fine scent that is useful in perfumery and in your yoga or meditative practice.

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Resources ~

This work is sponsored and supported by Prima Fleur Botanicals

A single bottle of Champaca scent from India - courtesy of Prima Fleur Botanicals

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REFERENCES ~

  1. Jarald E, Joshi S B, Jain D C. Antidiabetic activity of flower buds of Michelia champaca Linn. Indian J Pharmacol [serial online] 2008 [cited 2023 Feb 2];40:256-60
  2. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jssas.2021.02.003
  3. Composition of the concrete, absolute, headspace and essential oil of the flowers of Michelia champaca Linn.  https://doi.org/10.1002/ffj.1742
  4. Liquid CO2 extraction of flowers and fractionation of floral concrete of Michelia champaca Linn by Prasant K. Rout, Satyanarayan Naik, Y. Ramachandra Rao.

5.Volatiles from Michelia champaca Flower: Comparative analysis by Simultaneous Distillation-Extraction and Solid Phase Microextraction.  Disnelys Báeza , Diego Moralesa and Jorge A. Pinob.

6. Pharmacological basis for the medicinal use of Michelia champaca in gut, airways, and cardiovascular disorders by Fatima Saqib, et all : Asian Pacific Journal of Tropical Medicine,  2018, Volume 11, issue 4, pages 292-296.

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BOOKS REFERRED.

Mabberley, D. J. Mabberley’s Plant-Book, 3rd edition, 2014 printing, Cambridge University Press.

Rose, Jeanne.  375 Essential Oils and Hydrosols.  Berkeley, California: Frog, Ltd., 1999

Rose, Jeanne.  The Aromatherapy Book: Applications & Inhalations.  San Francisco, California:

Herbal Studies Course/ Jeanne Rose & Berkeley, California: North Atlantic Books, 1992

Source: Aromatherapy Course – Home & Family

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SAFETY PRECAUTIONS

Safety Precautions Table
photo of half-opened flower

USNEA

/ Jeanne Rose / 3 Comments
a bottle of Usnea Lichen on a copper stand

USNEA – A Lichen

By Jeanne Rose ~ 2-28-23

Usnea Lichen, Usnea barbata grows all over the world. It is very sensitive to air pollution and might even be a pollution indicator plant.

It is a cultivated lichen/herb, and the CO2 is extracted in Germany. Usnea herb is an extremely useful antimicrobial, and antifungal, is used internally and externally, and the herb and its tincture are effective on the lungs and used in skincare. It is often used to treat bacterial, viral, and fungal infections. Usnea is somewhat anti-inflammatory and analgesic. The plant itself is also used to create attractive dyes.

            The oil is an interesting deep non-volatile note and rich deep low-intensity, high-tenacity odor for perfume blends and acts as a fixative in a blend or perfume.

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USNEA LICHEN (Usnea barbata)  is the common name and the Latin binomial of a commonly seen ‘moss’ that hangs in the trees. Other common names include Old Man’s Beard, Beard Lichen, Beard Moss, Moose Moss, and Tree Moss (although it is NOT a moss). This lichen, (a symbiotic combination of algae and a fungus) belongs to the Family ~ of Parmeliaceae. The common names pretty well describe the appearance of Usnea. It resembles Spanish Moss, however, the two are not related.

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COUNTRIES OF ORIGINS ~ commonly known, the medicinal herb Usnea barbata is indigenous to the northern hemisphere; there are over 300 species of Usnea.

ENDANGERED OR NOT ~ Some species are now extinct or threatened in Europe. U. barbata is extinct in Finland and threatened in the Czech Republic.

CONTRAINDICATIONS ~ It is suggested that Usnea not be used as a food or dietary supplement because of liver toxicity related to the content of usnic acid.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF PLANT HABITAT AND GROWTH ~ Lichens grow on trees that look like a single plant but are, in fact primarily algae and fungi. Usnea is a genus of mostly pale grayish-green fruticose (having often branched thallus) lichens that are without leaves, with tassel-like ‘threads’ that anchor on the bark or the tree twigs.

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Golden Gate Park Arboretum showing a branch covered with lichen and moss

Pine lichen and moss – Golden  Gate Park

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PORTION OF PLANT USED FOR EXTRACTION, EXTRACTION METHODS ~ The entire plant is harvested and extracted by CO2 in Germany.  Flaking and cutting + grinding of the lichen enabled the highest extraction yield.1

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Source ~ This work is sponsored and supported by Prima Fleur Botanicals.

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ORGANOLEPTIC CHARACTERISTICS of Usnea

Color ………………….. greenish-gray

Clarity ……………….. Opaque

Viscosity ……………. Semi-viscous

Intensity of odor ……….1

Tenacity …………….. 5-6

Intensity scale guide to gauge the Intensity of odor: On a scale of 1-10 if Usnea is a 1, Lavender a 2, Tea Tree a 5, Mastic about 5-6,  and Cinnamon or Massoia is 8.

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Odor Description/ Aroma Assessment  ~ I have completed several odor profiles and odor snapshots of Usnea (one is at the end of this piece) and truly enjoy this soft, woody, floral, and somewhat fatty odor. It works well in any perfume to enhance the woody and floral notes.

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GENERAL PROPERTIES of Usnea

Usnea barbata has been used in cosmetic products for its antimicrobial and antifungal properties as a preservative and deodorant. Usnea is a useful antimicrobial in both internal and external applications, especially effective on the lungs and skin. Included in products to treat bacterial, viral, and fungal infections. All of my resources stress its antibacterial properties.

It is reported to be an effective treatment for pneumonia, bronchitis, staph, strep, tuberculosis, and urinary tract infections. I have successfully used it to prevent and treat colds and flu. It boosts the immune system and can be used like echinacea. Another great thing about Usnea is that it has anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties.

Properties and Uses ~ Medical claims.

According to Paul Bergner, Author of Medical Herbalism. “The usnic acid in Usnea is effective against gram-positive bacteria such as Streptococcus and Staphylococcus, making Usnea a valuable addition to herbal formulas for sore throats and skin infections. It is also effective against a bacterium that commonly causes pneumonia”. There is reason to believe that in high concentrations, Usnea could possess some toxicity.

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COSMETICS & SKIN CARE ~ Usnea barbata has been used in cosmetic and personal-care products for its antimicrobial and antifungal properties as it is a co-preservative and deodorant. Use only a preservative-free Usnea, preferably one that you have made yourself for your products, lotions, creams, or salves.  It has strong anti-microbe effects and can be used in products against body odor, hair products for dandruff or scruffy scalp, and in applications for skin blemishes.

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Diffuse/Diffusion ~ Emotional/Energetic Use ~ The mystery of aromatherapy —Get to know the elusive essence that can create such a variety of emotional and physical changes.

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BLENDING & PERFUMERY Usnea Lichen is cultivated from Usnea barbata, and the CO2 is extracted in Germany. It is an attractive deep non-volatile note and rich deep odor for perfume blends. Acts as a fixative in a combination or perfume.

            OTHER lichens used in Perfumery are

OAKMOSS: Evernia prunastri (Usneaceae). Oakmoss is solvent extracted, light Brown in color, opaque, medium viscous, and often used in Perfumery as a Base. It is a rich, earthy, woody scent that adds to the smell of the forest with its woody odor. Despite its name, Oakmoss is not a moss but a lichen, somewhat resinous, growing on the bark of deciduous and coniferous trees. Baskets filled with it have been found in the ancient royal tombs of Egypt, but whether it was intended for perfume is unknown.

TREEMOSS (Mousse d’arbre) Treemoss derivatives (concretes, absolutes) are mainly prepared from the lichen species Pseudevernia furfuracea (L.) Zopf. with Usnea barbata and other species often co-gathered in. These tree lichens can be found living on the barks of firs and pines in Southern and Central Europe, including and France and Morocco, & Balkan countries, including former Yugoslavia. Fragrant Treemoss products are prepared similarly to the practice of Oakmoss. Tree moss products are generally considered inferior to Oakmoss products and are often lower in price.

USNEA blends best with florals and woody odors as it is tenacious in a perfume but of low intensity.  It deepens floral odors.

Here is one Floral Perfume using Usnea in the base note.

A floral, green Usnea lichen perfume formula

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HYDROSOL: Do not make a hydrosol of this plant, as too much must be picked for an effective distillation.  This is a plant that should be used in its pure herbal form.

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HERBAL USES OF USNEA ~ Usnea herb is used to prevent or treat infections.  I have taken 8-10 drops of the tincture (made with neutral grain spirits) and diluted it in 2 X water and take this two to three times daily. I have also added Usnea to herbal mixtures to make teas, and cough drops.

To be effective, Usnea tincture should be macerated*/soaked in slowly warmed alcohol. Stuff a sturdy wide-mouth glass canning jar/container with Usnea lichen and then fill it with 75% neutral-grain alcohol**. Close the jar. Some people suggest that the jar be closed tightly. Alcohol can be dangerous to use, and you don’t want to place it directly on the stove. Put the jar into a deep container and place both in the sink. [you are making a bain marie, but in a sink]. Now macerate the Usnea for up to 48 hours. Do this by filling the larger container with hot water from the tap and keep changing out the water and keep refilling with ever hotter water until you can use water that has been heated on the stove. This will allow the Usnea-filled canning jar to warm up slowly. Add some hot water every few minutes until you can cover the jar to above-the-jars-shoulder with hot water. Now let the Usnea macerate** (soak and warm up slowly) in the now warm-to-hot alcohol. Let it sit until the water has cooled naturally or at least 24 hours. When it is totally cool, remove the jar from the outer container. Check the tincture organoleptically for the strength of color, scent, and taste. Label this tincture bottle, with the plant used, date started and finished, and use. See also reference #2

*I  macerate/soak herbs in alcohol to create tinctures; I also percolate ‑ both maceration and percolation can be called tincturing, and this is also called extracting by some. Any use of external heat for maceration requires care with your equipment.

Macerate, Use a clean metal or porcelain pan; use the type of flowers/plants required for the odor wanted and that are carefully picked (fresh). Place in the hot alcohol or liquid fat or add to the fat or alcohol and allow to remain from twelve to forty-eight hours; fat has a particular affinity or attraction for the oil (scent) of flowers, and thus, as it were, draws it out of them, and becomes itself, by their aid, highly perfumed and alcohol has an affinity for the plant’s therapeutic values.

** Source: https://organicalcohol.com/

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USNEA INFORMATION

Lung abscess treatment by Ryan Drum 2000

1. Watch mucous for any changes by spitting onto white tissue or cloth.

2. Establish good nutrition and restful sleep.

3. Use the following herbs daily:

     a. Usnea :1 tablespoon of previously hot (120 degrees F) Usnea-infused oil in salad dressing for salads of fresh wild greens, dandelion, wild carrot, wild mustard, chickweed, and goldenrod tips.

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• Herbal uses of Usnea ~ Dyes

Usnea species have been used to create orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple dyes for textiles. Usnea lichen was once used for silk and wool dyes. Some blue and purple hues are still obtained from the species of  Usnea.

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•Combustible – Usnea barbata is highly flammable and often used as a firestarter when dry.

    

CULINARY USES OF USNEA ~ Usnea as Food

Usnea is very high in Vitamin C and is a carbohydrate. Before eating, Usnea should be soaked in several changes of water. Usnic acid can be very irritating to the digestive system. In the book, “Tanaina Plantlore,” Priscilla R. Kari states that the Inland Dena’ina Natives of Alaska sometimes eat Usnea as an emergency or camp food after boiling it in water.

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DO NOT take for weight loss.  Modify what you eat and how to live, and exercise more and better.  Don’t rape the planet of its plants because you have bad habits.

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a bottle of Usnea on a background of a lichen-covered tree

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INTERESTING INFORMATION ABOUT LICHENS ~ And litmus and archil* are still obtained from species of lichens. Litmus is used in chemistry to determine if a solution is acid or basic and will turn blue when exposed to basic and red if exposed to an acid. Litmus paper is paper with litmus on it.

*Archil is a violet dye obtained from some lichens.

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KEY USE ~ The oil of Perfumery.

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SCENT SNAPSHOT of USNEA

References

1. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0896844613000211?via%3Dihub

2. https://www.outdoorapothecary.com/usnea-tincture-recipe/

And Herbalist Stephen Buhner, the author of Herbal Antibiotics, says that Usnea tinctures best in a combination of water and alcohol (1:5 in 50%) and that a hot extraction method will yield better results (Buhner, 1999).

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Bibliography

Mabberley, D. J. Mabberley’s Plant-Book, 3rd edition, 2014 printing, Cambridge University Press.

Rose, Jeanne.  375 Essential Oils and Hydrosols.  Berkeley, California: Frog, Ltd., 1999

Rose, Jeanne.  The Aromatherapy Book: Applications & Inhalations.  San Francisco, California:

Herbal Studies Course/ Jeanne Rose & Berkeley, California: North Atlantic Books, 1992

SOME CAUTIONS TO REMEMBER for all Plants and their Parts.

Patch Test:  If applying a new essential oil to your skin, always perform a patch test on the inner arm (after diluting the EO in a vegetable carrier oil). —Wash an area of your forearm about the size of a quarter and dry carefully. Apply a diluted drop (1 drop EO + 1 drop carrier) to the area. Then apply a loose band-aid and wait 24 hours. If there is no reaction, then go ahead and use the oil in your formulas.—The Aromatherapy Book, Applications &  Inhalations, p. 64

DISCLAIMER:  This work is intended for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for accurate diagnosis and treatment by a qualified health care professional. Dosages are often not given, as that matters between you and your healthcare provider. The author is neither a chemist nor a medical doctor.  The content herein is the product of research and personal and practical experience. Institute of Aromatic & Herbal Studies  – Jeanne Rose©

SPEARMINT

/ Jeanne Rose / Leave a comment

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Essential oil OF Spearmint, courtesy of Prima Fleur Botanicals. Fig. 1

SPEARMINT PROFILE – this is not Peppermint

By Jeanne Rose

There is a difference between Spearmint and Peppermint, defined by their chemistry, botany, folklore, odor description, and properties. The uses of Spearmint are described.

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It is called Spearmint, and it is not Peppermint or Menthol-mint. There are 13 species of the Mentha genus. The ones with the ‘X’ are made by humans by crossing one plant species with another; they are considered sterile and usually do not produce seed. They are duplicated by cloning or by replanting the underground stems. In this post, we will discuss Spearmint.

Mentha aquatica L. – water mint

Mentha arvensis L. – wild mint, field-mint, or Japanese menthol mint

Mentha x piperita – Peppermint [aquatica x spicata]

Mentha spicata L. – spearmint (the mint of the ancients)

Mentha suaveolens Ehrh. – apple mint

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Spearmint Common Name/Latin Binomial ~ Spearmint, Mentha spicata. Sometimes known as garden mint, common mint, lamb mint, and mackerel mint, … including Mentha crispa, Mentha crispata, and Mentha viridis.

            Botanical Family ~ Lamiaceae

            Naming Information ~ The genus name comes from Minthe or Menthe, a water nymph in Greek mythology. And from a legend of the beginning of the Earth,  “…When Man came, he saw the plants and remembered some of his past in the wonderful Kingdom, he smelled the wonderful scents, and saw pictures in his Mind. So, whenever man was asked the name of the fragrant plants, he called them mint.” —Kitchen Cosmetics, p. 78

COUNTRIES OF ORIGIN ~ Native to the Mediterranean.

SPEARMINT GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF PLANT ~ Spearmint is a very hardy, perennial herb with bright green, fragrant leaves that sets seeds. As it grows, it can quickly exhaust the soil of nutrients and should be replanted regularly via underground or over-ground stems or roots. Many Mints behave in this manner.

                 This species can readily hybridize with other Mentha species to form hybrids. This mint LOOKS different than either Peppermint or Lemon Balm. The green is softer in Spearmint than the bluish Peppermint, and it looks somewhat like Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis)  but is not as hairy on the leaves. The smell is eponymously Spearmint, with none of the menthol odor that characterizes Peppermint and little of the lemon scent of Lemon Balm. There are several cultivars.

Two photos showing the difference between Spearmint and Lemon Balm.

Fig. 2

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PORTION OF SPEARMINT PLANT USED IN DISTILLATION, HOW DISTILLED, EXTRACTION METHODS & YIELD ~ Spearmint’s over-ground tops and flowers are harvested just prior to its bloom; after blooming, the oil content in the plant decreases. The plants are cut and allowed to dry on the ground for 2 or more days until ‘clover dry,’ that is,  still flexible and NOT brittle. They are taken to the various distilleries, packed into the still, moistened by the steam, sealed in,  and then steam distilled.

            In Egypt, “There are two chemotypes of Spearmint dependent upon where they are grown. One had both good carvone and limonene and a better yield (grown in Siwa Oasis), while the other analyzed from Cairo had less quantity oil but a higher percentage of carvone.”8  

            Yield ~ The over-ground plant is steam distilled. “3,000 lbs. charge requires up to 30-50 minutes and produces over 20 pounds of oil” 375 Essential Oils and Hydrosols, p. 142. One acre of Spearmint may yield 35-40 lbs. of oil.5

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Spearmint close-up with a budding flower top.

Spearmint & flower – photo by Jeanne Rose … Fig. 3

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            CO2 Extraction – …… Essential oil compositions and attainable yields were nearly the same as those by steam distillation when single pass mode of CO2 … was used for oil recovery…. The flavor and fragrance of the carbon dioxide mint extracts were closest in quality to actual mint plant leaves, compared to mint oils produced by conventional steam distillation.1

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    SPEARMINT OIL ORGANOLEPTIC CHARACTERISTICS ~

            Color:                          Pale, celery-like green; some have a pinkish quality, and some oils are golden yellow

            Clarity:                         Clear

            Viscosity:                    Non-viscous, like water

            Taste:                          Yummy, refreshing, delightful, and delicately spearminty.

            Intensity of Odor:       A fresh 5

            Tenacity in blend:        6

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Jeanne Rose enjoying the odor of Spearmint.

Spearmint  oil courtesy of Prima Fleur Fig. 4

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            ODOR DESCRIPTION ~ Spearmint and Caraway have the same chemical component of scent, carvone, but a different mirror-image isomer. Spearmint has a fresh, green, and minty odor, while Caraway has a fresh, herbal, and green but spicy odor.

An easy experiment is to mix equal parts of each of these essential oils and then pass the bottle around to students and have them guess what they are smelling. Because they both contain the same molecule, carvone, but a different isomer of it, you will have guesses equally on both sides of the scent, and some people will be totally unable to figure it out. After smelling both, you will be able to isolate and identify the scent of each plant, but when mixed together, it becomes more difficult. This is a wonderful exercise for an aromatherapy class.

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CHEMICAL COMPONENTS ~ You will find numerous people and websites stating that Spearmint has menthol. Spearmint does not contain menthol unless it is a specifically bred or a hybrid variety that has been bred specifically for this. Since Spearmint is used to modify the scent and flavor of Peppermint, this may be where the mix-up in the plant began with people. I have only seen one paper out of 25 that listed menthol as a component via GC/MS in Spearmint (Mentha spicata), which was at 1.88% of the total. This paper was confusing and co-listed Peppermint and Spearmint together.

            Spearmint does contain up to 56% l-Carvone, Terpenes, Limonene, Phellandrenes, and, sometimes, Linaloöl and Cineol.

A chart showing the difference in the carvone chemistry of caraway and spearmint.

Carvone chemistry in Caraway and Spearmint … Fig. 5

            As described above in Spearmint, the main components are carvone for the scent and limonene, myrcene, and others. It is possible to distinguish by taste and odor between the dextro- and laevo-rotatory forms of carvone; dextro-carvone in Caraway seed oil and laevo-rotatory carvone in Spearmint herb oil.

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HISTORICAL USES ~ The herb tea has been widely used as a tonic drink almost everywhere it has been introduced.

            The following refers to Spearmint or wild Mint, not Peppermint. In the first century A.D., the naturalist Pliny wrote, “The smell of mint (Spearmint) stirs up the mind and appetite to a greedy desire of food.”3 (Plinie’s Natural History First Century AD. Translated by Philemon Holland.). He recommended binding the head in a crown of mint, which delights the soul and is good for the mind. Pliny, along with Hippocrates and Aristotle, judged it ‘contrary to procreation,’ while the Greeks were of the opposite opinion: forbade their soldiers to eat (Spear)mint because it incites a man to love, diminishing his courage. It was found that the Greeks, not Pliny, have been shown to be correct.

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INTERESTING FACTS ~ Spearmint tea is poured after every meal in Egypt. One of the more exciting properties mentioned for Spearmint tea is that that could help treat mild hirsutism (hairiness) in women.10 Drink up to 5 cups/day.10 Maybe this is one of the reasons it is so enjoyed as a tea.

            The oil extracted from Native Spearmint is used in Michigan and is considered highly concentrated. One pound will flavor 135,000 sticks of gum. Chewing gum companies regularly blend Spearmint and Peppermint oils to maintain a consistent and specific flavor. An advantage to growing mint is farmers may store the oil for several years if market prices fall.9

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GENERAL PROPERTIES OF SPEARMINT

SPEARMINT is an anti-inflammatory, calming, mucolytic, antioxidant, and tonic for the digestive system. When inhaled, it has a wonderful ability to create a feeling of joy and happiness and therefore makes an excellent addition to stress relief blends. It is also packed with antioxidants and is good for digestion has been said to have anti-fungal properties, as well as the properties indicated for all sorts of respiratory problems and chronic bronchitis.4                                        

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SPEARMINT PHYSICAL USES & HOW USED (IG OR AP)

APPLICATION — The essential oil is used in many body-care products for soothing the skin, treating acne, and relieving skin irritations. This is a beautiful herb to use in any bath herb, and the essential oil can be added to the skin lotion or skincare product. It is so refreshing and healing. The herb and the essential oil are excellent additions to products, blends, and foods. Please read Jeanne Rose Herbal Body Book for great information and formulas.

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INGESTION — Digestive ailments. Nausea. Vomiting. Gums. Candies. Dental products.

            •The herb tea is taken for digestive disturbances and is lightly fever-reducing.

            •Chewing gum ~ Of all the flavors incorporated into chewing gum, Spearmint and combination mint flavors have been some of the most popular. Most widely used have been Peppermint and Spearmint, as well as blends of the two in the form of their essential oils. Oil of Spearmint is derived from the distillation of several varieties of this genus. The principal species and varieties are Mentha spicata L. and Mentha verticillata, and Mentha cardiaca. —part of a patent application filed in 1989 and 2020-03-28. Application status is Expired – Lifetime

Spearmint – 1 cup 2x/day women with hirsutism had less free testosterone in the blood. Drink up to 5 cups/day to help this problem. Some say it also increases breast size.

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INHALATION — Spearmint can be added to any blend for respiratory ailments and chronic bronchitis. It has a relaxing and happy odor.   When diffused — Spearmint oil can be added to almost any blend where you want the scent of refreshment and joy. Try it. It will make you feel joyous.

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EMOTIONAL USES (AP OR IN)— Spearmint is applied to the temples for headaches; it can be inhaled as a memoristic antidepressant, alleviates mental strain and fatigue, and acting as a tonic for the entire system. 

            •Calming Spearmint E.O. is used by inhalation, and blends can include Bergamot, most citrus fruit oils, Cumin, Eucalyptus citriodora, Lavender, Marjoram, Spearmint (calming and joyous), and their comparable hydrosols used as spray mists.

            •Emotional/Energetic Use – Uplifting. Reduces nervous stress and tension. Ylang Ylang Extra with a touch of Spearmint is a delicious scent to inhale for headaches or to soothe your depression. Dilute with a carrier oil or alcohol and put it into a small bottle to carry around and inhale whenever.

            Scott Cunningham, in his book, Magical Aromatherapy, suggests that Spearmint is an element of Air and whose magical influences are Healing, protection, and promoting sleep when inhaled; it helps one with visualization to speed healing;  wrap the fresh sprigs in a bag and inhale the bag as you fall asleep, visualizing that it is wrapping you in protective energy.

Spearmint plant with a bizarre growth pattern in the stem.

Jeanne Rose bizarre growth on Spearmint – Fig. 6

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GENERAL HERBAL USES OF SPEARMINT – Mentha spicata

Medicinal uses ~ Herb Spearmint has been used extensively for its medicinal properties for over 3000 years. It can be used internally as a tea, to make poultices or balms, or inhaled to make use of joyful quality. Spearmint’s medicinal properties include stomachic, stimulant, calmative, disinfectant, and nervine. The following afflictions are treated with Spearmint herb and/or essential oil:

            •Colds– The Flathead and Kutenai Indian tribes drank native wild mint or Spearmint teas to treat both the coughs and fevers associated with colds.

            •Digestive Ailments –  An overall aid to most digestive disorders, it is especially beneficial in treating flatulence, diarrhea, colic, retching, and vomiting. A poultice of Spearmint leaves over the stomach region also helps to aid in digestive distress. Spearmint tea also helps to promote appetite.

            •Female afflictions-  Spearmint can be used to treat menstrual cramps. In Near Eastern societies, it helps to increase sexual desire, suppressed menstruation, … and helps to relieve the breast of curdled or congested milk via compress. Spearmint tea reduces hirsutism in women.10

             •Heart Ailments – The Blackfeet Indians and other tribes chewed wild Spearmint leaves to treat chest pains and strengthen heart muscles.

            •Nervous System-  All Spearmint teas have a soothing quality and are used to treat nervousness, fatigue, nausea, vertigo, hiccoughs, palpitations, anger, confusion, depression, and mental strain.

            •Rashes – Spearmint oil can be rubbed on poison ivy rash, diaper rash, and athlete’s foot.

            •Toothache  – A drop of Spearmint essential oil can be used directly on the source of pain to help alleviate the pain from both cavities and gum disease.

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1975. JEANNE ROSE’S TOMATO TALES – Spearmint

            In the early days of keeping records of all the essential oils I used, I also kept an emotion chart that I used with my students to get their favorite scents for specific emotions. This was in 1972, and I called the chart “Scent & Psyche: Experience Aroma.” I had a paper file of dozens of these charts from all my previous classes and had included the information in a book that I had written called “Aromatherapy – Inhalations for the Mind.” You have never heard of that book, and that is not a surprise as I took the written prototype with me when I  went to New York in 1975 to speak before the “Fragrance Foundation” and lost it along with my suitcase at the airport and all my lecture notes as well on the way to the Plaza Hotel where I would be staying. It was a devastating loss to me not only because I lost my lecture notes but also because it was the only draft of the book that I was delivering to the publisher. This book was once written, was not rewritten but eventually evolved into “The Aromatherapy Book –  Applications & Inhalations.”

            One thing I learned from the collection of these charts is that my American students always said that Spearmint made them happy, that it smelled like their childhood, and that it smelled like chewing gum, but my Asian students thought it smelled like cleaning fluids. Scents have power and cultural differences depending upon where you grew up and where you experienced them.

            Europeans also do not have the same ‘feelings’ about Spearmint as Americans do, even though Spearmint is indigenous to  Europe and Asia and then became naturalized in North America, where it became a favorite.

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BLENDING AND PERFUMERY ~ Spearmint has a bright and joyous scent and can perk up any heavy perfume on the floral bouquet. It mixes well with Ylang-Ylang. You just need a bit. Start with 10 drops of Ylang Extra and 1 drop of Spearmint. Smell it. Then add either more of the floral or green herbal scent, depending on what pleases you. Remember that Spearmint contains carvone and not menthol and has an herbaceous and green note.

            Spearmint blends with the herbs such as Basil, Lavender, Marjoram, and Rosemary; it combines with spices such as Black or green Pepper, Ginger; with florals such as Jasmine and  Ylang-Ylang and with many citrus scents like Grapefruit and Lemon. These all can be used as mixtures for room diffusing.

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SPEARMINT HYDROSOL is known to have calming, cleansing, and carminative effects on the digestive system when taken as a drink and is used externally as a spray for skin irritations, soothing to the senses, and cooling on the skin. This hydrosol is an excellent skin toner, and when kept in the refrigerator, it makes a wonderful relieving mist during a ‘hot flash.’

            PLEASE NOTE: A true hydrosol should be specifically distilled for the hydrosol, not as a co-product or even a by-product of essential oil distillation. The plant’s cellular water has many components most are lost under pressurized short steam runs for essential oil, or by using dried material. We recommend that the producers specifically distill for a product by using plant material that is fresh.

Hydrosol of Spearmint from Positively Aromatic

Fig.7 Spearmint Hydrosol, courtesy of Positively Aromatic

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HERBAL USE OF SPEARMINT

            •HERBAL TEA of SPEARMINT. As previously stated, science has shown that 2-5 cups per day of Spearmint tea will relieve hairiness and PCOS in women. It is also delicious to drink and is very refreshing.

            •HERBAL BATHS, SHAMPOOS, AND HAIR CONDITIONERS. Customizing your hair, skin, and body care products with herbs is so easy. And Spearmint is ideal for this. I am in love with a mixture of Spearmint and Rosemary herbs in my shampoo and hair conditioner. I just get my favorite shampoo or conditioner and customize it by adding ¼ cup of a strong infusion of these herbs to 1 oz of the product and then proceed to wash or condition as usual. The Herbal Body Book is 400 pages of skincare formulas and recipes using both the herbs and essential oils. It is available from jeannerose.net.

            •CULINARY USE OF SPEARMINT ~  Spearmint has been used extensively in the preparation of foods throughout the world. Though seldom cooked, mint can be in teas, jellies, candies, and gums. In the Middle East, mint leaves are added to salads, which makes them more flavorful, as well as add high concentrations of vitamins A, C, and carotene. Spearmint sauce is the basic accompaniment to roast lamb and veal and is said to help in the digestion of these meats. [see The Herbal Guide to Food for more uses.]

            Mentha spicata could also be considered an antioxidant source. In fact, Spearmint and Spearmint extracts are often used as preservative agents to delay the oxidative degradation that occurs in food during processing or over time with storage.6

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            •Cocktails with Spearmint Include The famous ‘Mint julep”  from Kentucky that you drink in May at the start of the  Kentucky Derby – except maybe, in 2020, when we are all ‘sheltering in place’ because of the COVID-19 Virus. The Kentucky Derby has been run continuously since 1875 and has been only postponed once.

Mint julep cup.

Fig. 8 – the Julep

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            •Herb and flower-butters are a delicious and easy way to add flavor to foods. Herb-butters are simply freshly picked herbs that are finely chopped and blended into sweet (unsalted) butter, mixing it thoroughly, and then refrigerated in a glass container so that the flavor and scent permeate the butter. Also, label it so you will remember one from the other. These butters are delicious on vegetables or spread on toast or crackers. They are necessary when having a tea party. They have not been widely used since Victorian times and may have simply dropped out of fashion…
            In most cases, fresh herbs are preferable to dried herbs and flowers. Mashed dried seeds, such as Anise seed, are also used. And margarine will not do; you must use good, sweet butter. Finely chop the fresh herbs or flowers and then mash them into the butter; cream your herbs or flowers into the softened butter with a fork or the back of a wooden spoon. Two tablespoons of herb part for every quarter-pound stick of butter. Add just a touch of Lemon juice or white wine vinegar to bring up the herb’s flavor, and refrigerate overnight to allow full flavor to develop. Spearmint butter is good with meats such as lamb and on cookies and pastries. —The Herbal Guide to Food.

            •Spearmint jelly is really delicious. I used to make it whenever we had lamb for dinner. I have a very simple recipe in my Herbal Guide to Food, p. 216. It only says mint, but I can assure you I was discussing Spearmint. When I wrote this book, I was not as particular as I am now about the name of which mint I was discussing.

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KEY USE of SPEARMINT ~ Dentifrice products and as an antidepressant.  

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This work is sponsored and supported by Prima Fleur Botanicals.

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RESOURCES ~ Many herb stores, nurseries, home product-makers, and skincare companies make and use Spearmint. When you look at the label, make sure the mint they mention is Spearmint, Mentha spicata, for that sweet and joyous herb we all enjoy.

photograph of an old print of Spearmint

Fig. 9 – Spearmint illustration – 1850

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REFERENCES used to both Peppermint and Spearmint ~

1 https://doi.org/10.1016/0896-8446(92)90002-2 • Supercritical carbon dioxide extraction of peppermint and spearmint

2 Staff of L. H. Bailey Hortorium • Hortus Third • Macmillan Publishing. 1976

3 Plinie’s Natural History First Century AD. Translated by Philemon Holland.

4 The Mint Family – Uses of Mints ~ Mints are not Just for After Dinner By Linda L. Hein; additions by Jeanne Rose

5  Guenther, Ernest. The Essential Oils. Vol III, p. 679. Krieger Publishing. 1974

6 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6274304/

7 https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10826070600674893?src=recsys

8 https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00217-003-0802-4

9 http://geo.msu.edu/extra/geogmich/mint.html

10 https://www.endocrine-abstracts.org/ea/0015/ea0015p282 (there are many articles about hirsutism and Spearmint tea)

Landing, James E. American Essence, A History of Mint in the United States. Kalamazoo Public Museum. 1969

Rose, Jeanne. 375 Essential Oils and Hydrosols. Berkeley, California: Frog, Ltd., 1999

Rose, Jeanne. The Aromatherapy Book: Applications & Inhalations. San Francisco, California:

Rose, Jeanne. Herbal Guide to Food. 1989.

Rose, Jeanne. Kitchen Cosmetics. 1978. Available from http://www.jeannerose.net/books.html

Rose, Jeanne. The Herbal Body Book. 2000. Available from http://www.jeannerose.net/books.html

Herbal Studies Course/ Jeanne Rose & Berkeley, California: 1992.

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SPEARMINT LIMERICK

Spearmint, Caraway, and Thyme

Makes me feel good and feel fine

Two of them are chiral

They go into a mirror spiral

And it is always good as a rhyme. – JeanneRose2011

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SAFETY PRECAUTIONS

A small Spearmint illustration

Moderation in All Things.
Be moderate in your use of essential oils as they are just not sustainable for the environment.
Be selective and more moderate in your usage.
Use the herb first as a tea or the infusion. —JeanneRose 2014

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MASTIC

/ Jeanne Rose / 1 Comment

MASTIC, Frankincense, Galbanum, and more … I love all the resins; I love to burn them as incense

and use their essential oils in healing blends and via inhalation.

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A bottle of Mastic oil with a dropper showing the color of the essential oil as a clear yellow, matching the yellow paperweight.

MASTIC – an Ancient Resin produced by a tree

By Jeanne Rose ~ 11-30-22

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COMMON NAME/LATIN BINOMIAL ~ Gum Mastic / (Pistacia lentiscus L.) is a tear-like oleoresin obtained from a flowering shrub-like tree. When distilled, it has very little oil. It is called Chios Mastic Gum in Greece.

                 Family ~    Anacardiaceae

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COUNTRIES OF ORIGINS ~ Mastic is known from Greece but grows in Mediterranean Europe and Northern Africa, Algeria, Morocco, and the Canary Islands. Only the true Mastic tree, var. chia, has the proper qualities considered desirable. It is true to its terroir, and this variety grows well only in the specific area with this perfect terroir, the southeast corner of the island of Chios, a Greek island in the Aegean Sea.

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GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF PLANT HABITAT AND GROWTH ~ The Mastic tree, Pistacia lentiscus, is an evergreen, flowering shrub, growing 1 to 5 m high in dry and rocky areas in Mediterranean Europe. It has a vivid fruity smell of resin; it is a dioecious tree with separate male and female plants. The leaves are alternate, leathery, and compound with five or six pairs of deep-green leaflets but no terminal leaflet. It has very small flowers; the male flowers are vivid red with five stamens, and the female green flowers with a 3-part style. The fruit is a drupe (a fleshy fruit with thin skin and a central stone containing the seed). It is at first red and then black when ripe, about 4 mm in diameter. This is edible.

            This oleoresin is produced primarily in the secretory tissues of the bark of stems and branches.

            “Mastic resin collecting is restricted to the southeastern corner of the island of Chios. Small cuts are made in the bark of the main branches, and the trees drip the sap onto the specially covered ground below, and the resin is collected. The harvesting is done during the summer between July and October. After the Mastic is collected, it is washed manually and is set aside to dry, away from the sun, as it will start melting again.”3 This small bushy tree produces the natural oleoresin from the trunk, obtained by wounding the trunk and larger branches with a gouge-like instrument.

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ENDANGERED OR NOT: The Pistacia lentiscus is considered threatened and endangered.

A selection of mastic oil, and mastic oleoresin, and resin, 1972, 1973 and 2012.

Jeanne Rose collection of Mastic from 1973 to the present.

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MASTIC RESIN OF THE PLANT, HOW DISTILLED, EXTRACTION METHODS, AND YIELDS ~ Mastic is a resin, or more correctly, an oleoresin containing a little oil, obtained from an evergreen dioecious shrub, Pistacia lentiscus L. Mastic occurs in yellow or greenish-yellow rounded or pear-shaped tears about 3 mm in diameter. The tears are brittle but become plastic when chewed.  The essential oil is produced by steam distillation from the oleoresin or occasionally directly from the leaves and branches.  160-170 tonnes per annum from the male plants on Chios.

            THE YIELD is 0.7-1 and occasionally up to 3% EO.

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ORGANOLEPTIC CHARACTERISTICS OF MASTIC ~ Mastic oil is a pale yellow, clear, slightly viscous, and with a bitter taste; the intensity of scent is 5-6.
           Taste ~  Mastic is the world’s first chewing gum. I have been chewing this gum and tasting the sweet for weeks, and the taste is very eponymous. I suggest that you give it a try as it is a very special savory, most memorable taste. It starts out floral and slightly bitter, and then it is herbal and floral. Delicious!

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ODOR DESCRIPTION/ AROMA ASSESSMENT: The Mastic odor is earthy and green and woody, with a slightly fungal odor and back notes of fruity and citrus, herbaceous, and hay. It is excellent to use in a fragrance for a man or for a darker-haired woman.

An odor 'snapshot' of Mastic, showing its different scent notes.

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GENERAL PROPERTIES of Mastic

PROPERTIES AND USES ~ Gum Mastic is used in medicine and products like medical creams, dental toothpaste, and cures for ulcers; it is used in the paint industry, cosmetics, paint varnish, and in artist color oil. In the food industry gum Mastic is used in liqueurs, ice cream, pure Mastic gum, chewing gum, and the most precious of all — Mastic EO. After the oil is removed, a small, very durable, and pliable bit of chewing gum is left that lasts for a long time without disintegrating. This is the old Worlde chewing gum, while Spruce and Pine gums were traditionally chewed in the Newe Worlde, USA, and Canada.

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Years ago, I would have meetings in my home with my students and friends that I called “Aromatherapy Salons”. We would discuss various aromatic subjects, aromatherapy, essential oils, drink fragrant herbal teas, have tea cookies and sweetmeats. (A sweetmeat is a delicacy, prepared with sugar, honey, as a cake or pastry.) One of my favorites sweetmeats was to use the Mastic from Greece that came as a smooth sweet white cream; a small spoonful on a cookie with tea was delicious and it is especially tasty with bitter coffee.

A jar of Mastic cream being dropped from the lid into the jar, showing consistency.

Mastic cream from Greece

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APPLICATION/ SKINCARE: GUM MASTIC (Pistacia lentiscus) is widely used to prepare ointments for skin afflictions like burns and eczema, frostbite, cancers, as well as external skin afflictions, including the manufacture of plasters. Mastic EO is used in products for this effect and scent.

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DIFFUSE/DIFFUSION ~ EMOTIONAL/ENERGETIC USE ~ The mystery of aromatherapy is to find that elusive essence that can create various emotional and physical changes. Aleister Crowley considered Mastic a pale yellow color energetically and is clean, and free from prejudice, whether for or against any moral idea.

It is used in any ritual blend to intensify them and quicken their rate of vibration. Mastic is used as an incense for Pisces people.

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BLENDING & PERFUMERY ~ Mastic blends best with citrus scents, Lavender-fern combos as a top note, and in floral odors. In perfume, use the tincture as a fixative. I enjoy using Mastic in massage blends. I particularly like to use Mastic EO in my Natural Perfumery class as a tincture and as a fixative where it lends a subtle smoky note.

Mastic oil highlighted with a yellow paperweight.

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HYDROSOL ~ I have not as yet had the opportunity to experience Mastic Hydrosol.

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CULINARY &HERBAL USE OF MASTIC ~ Mastic is a translucent sticky substance similar to tree sap and, when combined with sugar, lemon juice, and water, is served on a spoon immersed in cold water. This is a special treat called a spoon sweet. In Greece, this ‘spoon sweet’ specialty is called a Submarine. I find it delicious!

Researchers at Nottingham University Hospital and Barnet General Hospital have found that Chios Mastic is an effective treatment for ulcers. The findings showed that even in small doses of one gram a day for two weeks, Mastic gum could cure peptic ulcers. Regular consumption of Mastic resin has been proven to absorb cholesterol, thus easing high blood pressure, and reducing the risk of heart attacks.

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            In 1993, I had a very formal 8-course meal for friends, and for the 7th course was a cheese course of Roquefort with Aromatherapy sweetmeats of Bergamot candied peels, Bitter Orange candied peels, and Mastic spoon sweet with Lavender Honey Thins and a delicious wine of Muscat de Beaumes de Venise. It was a very successful meal.

2 jars of Mastic with the resin.

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KEY USE ~ The Olde Worlde gum.

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INTERESTING INFORMATION ~ The word “masticate” comes from an ancient Greek word from the Greek practice of chewing this interestingly flavorful resin as a gum to freshen the breath and to fight tooth decay.

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JEANNE ROSE’S MASTIC TOMATO TALES

Mastic resin pieces are also delicious when chewed like American chewing gum. It has a mild taste that is not lost after hours of chewing, and it can be chewed for hours. The problem is that Mastic takes a few times to learn how to chew it as a small ball of resin needs to be soaked in the mouth first to get to perfect mastication texture. Then you need to roll it around in the mouth once in a while so that it doesn’t stick to your fillings.
            In 2018 at a Resin Distillation Conference in Spokane, WA., I asked several well-known gum-chewers [thankyou, Monica, and Kendall] if they wanted to try Mastic. “Yes, of course,” they said, but in fact, they were unable to learn to chew it or even try past 30 minutes. This is great gum and can be chewed for 4 hours without losing its eponymous taste, and it is good for the teeth.
            And the occasional chewing of a Mastic ball will ease the pain of a tooth caries or cavity, act as a mouth antibacterial, and has in the past been used as a temporary tooth filling.  Remember this when you travel out of the country, carry some Mastic resin with you, both to burn as a magical fragrant incense and also as a first aid remedy.
Really, we are forgetting some our simplest first-aid skills!

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This work is sponsored and supported by Prima Fleur Botanicals.

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References

1Langenheim, Jean H. Plant Resins • Chemistry, Evolution, Ecology, Ethnobotany.  Timber Press. 2003
2Mabberley, D. J. Mabberley’s Plant-Book, 3rd edition, 2014 printing, Cambridge University Press.
3Wikipedia – Mastic

Bibliography

Mabberley, D. J. Mabberley’s Plant-Book, 3rd edition, 2014 printing, Cambridge University Press.

Rose, Jeanne.  375 Essential Oils and Hydrosols.  Berkeley, California: Frog, Ltd., 1999

Rose, Jeanne.  The Aromatherapy Book: Applications & Inhalations.  San Francisco, California:

Herbal Studies Course/ Jeanne Rose & Berkeley, California: North Atlantic Books, 1992

• • •

SOME CAUTIONS TO REMEMBER for all Plants and their Parts

DISCLAIMER:  This work is intended for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for accurate diagnosis and treatment by a qualified health care professional. Dosages are often not given, as that is a matter between you and your healthcare provider. The author is neither a chemist nor a medical doctor.  The content herein is the product of research and personal and practical experience. Institute of Aromatic & Herbal Studies  – Jeanne Rose©

PLAI & Tea Tree

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Photo by Jeanne Rose of Plai and tea Tree oil enhanced by a paperweight.

SYNOPSIS ~ Tea Tree and Plai are two essential oils with many healing qualities.  They are used much in the same way, have the same main component, but yet, smell very different one from the other.

TEA TREE & PLAI HISTORY & USES

By Jeanne Rose ~ 11-12-22

NAME & FAMILY  ~ Tea Tree oil is steam-distilled from the leaves of Melaleuca alternifolia, although other Melaleuca species are also called TeaTtree; this one mentioned is the primary tree used to distill Tea tree oil. Melaleuca is a genus of nearly 300 species of plants commonly known as honey myrtles, paperbarks, or tea trees.

            …..Family – The Tea tree is a member of the Myrtaceae family, including plants such as Myrtle, Clove, Eucalyptus, and Bay rum.

            Plai is distilled from rhizomes of the plant Zingiber cassumunar. Cassumunar ginger or Zingiber cassumunar, now thought to be a synonym of Zingiber montanum Link ex A.Dietr. and is a species of plant in the ginger family and is also a relative of galangal. It is called Plai in Thailand.

….. Family – Plai is a member of the Zingiberaceae family, which also includes Ginger, Galangal, Cardamom, and Hedychium.

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COUNTRIES OF ORIGINS ~ Plai originates in India and is often steam-distilled in Thailand. It may have originated in Southeast Asia and was introduced into China, Europe, and the Philippines, as well as the Caribbean Islands and the Americas.

…..Tea Tree is an Australian plant and can grow in many places. It prefers moist but well-drained soil. It grows well in the Botanical Gardens in San Francisco.

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ENDANGERED OR INVASIVE ~ Plai is considered to be invasive in the warm, humid countries where it is at home, while Tea Tree is not endangered and in a certain area may also be considered to be invasive.

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GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF PLANT HABITAT AND GROWTH ~ As interesting as these two essential oils are, they come from two different families and two different parts of the plant. Tea tree is a leaf part from a rather large tree with papery bark, while Plai is an underground, branched rhizome from a Ginger type plant. You can refer to botanical texts for descriptions of these two plants.

Photo by Jeanne Rose of Tea Tree tree and a botanical illustration of Plai plant with rhizome.

2. Teatree in San Francisco Botanical Garden and Plai in the botanical collection

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PORTION OF PLANT USED FOR EXTRACTION, EXTRACTION METHOD, DISTILLATION, HOW DISTILLED ~

Plai is steam-distilled from the freshly dug rhizome and  

…..Yield ~ Plai = 0.5-0.9 % (v/w)

Tea tree is distilled from the leaves of several trees, most often is M. alternifolia and

…..Yield ~ Tea Tree is 1-2%

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SOURCE (S) ~ Plai is sourced in Indonesia, and Teatree is from both organic and cultivated trees in Australia.

A bottle of Plai and a bottle of Prima Fleur Tea Tree oil

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A chart of the organoleptic or sensory qualities of Plai and Tea Tree oil.

4. Sensory qualities

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CHEMISTRY ~ Both these essential oils and possibly the hydrosol contains terpinene-4-ol. Terpinene-4-ol is an antimicrobial effect; terpinene-4-ol promotes anti-inflammatory cytokine production while inhibiting proinflammatory cytokine expression. Plai also contains sabinene, which contributes to the spiciness of black pepper and is used in the perfume industry for its pleasant odor. Sabinene is also considered to be both anti-fungal and anti-inflammatory.

Tea Tree Oil was found to be composed of approximately 40% terpinene-4-ol, 23% y-terpinene, and 10% a-terpinene plus many other components, and terpinene-4-ol seems to be the most significant regarding the therapeutic values. It should be used freshly distilled and is otherwise is non-allergenic, not an irritant, and only slightly toxic.

Plai was in a 1992 study and discovered zerumbone was contained in the plant’s rhizomes, and it has antifungal properties against pathogenic fungi. It contains about 42% terpinene-4-ol, and that is the very same component that makes Tea Tree so healing. Plai also contains about 27% sabinene. This makes it a very pleasing-smelling essential oil, cool, green, and peppery.1

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GENERAL PROPERTIES OF PLAI AND TEA TREE

            The plant parts of these different plants, rhizome, and leaf, share terpinene-4-ol and share the properties as pain relievers, anti-inflammatories, with Plai having the addition of sabinene as a potent anti-fungal.

Lake Ainsworth in Australia

5. Lake Ainsworth

PROPERTIES AND USES OF TEA TREE AND PLAI ~ Plai and Tea Tree oil have many properties, particularly as an analgesic, anti-neuralgic, and anti-inflammatory. They are useful on sprains and strains, torn muscles, and ligaments.

On inflamed joints, applying Plai, straight on; it has been found to ease the pain for upwards of 18 hours, which is incredible since no other oil has been found to change pain levels so far. On joints that were inflamed due to injury, Plai was best combined with oils such as Black Pepper and Lemon or Neroli, Himalayan Cedar, and Orange. These combinations worked to take the swelling down, calm the pain, and speed up the healing time considerably.

Dilutions were 10% concentration in a vegetable gel or oil or small roller top.
            A Japanese study from 1991 suggest that sabinene, a terpene, an active ingredient of Z. cassumunar rhizomes, has analgesic and anti-inflammatory properties. In addition, an American study found that Plai oil exhibits antimicrobial activity against a wide range of Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, an anti-fungal that require keratin (skin cells) to grow (dermatophytes), and yeasts.  A study also showed that the essential oil from Z. cassumunar had anti-microbial activity and worked well with medically useful antibiotics. __ Wikipedia

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PLAI – Zingiber cassumunar

Working with Plai that is blended

It is wonderful and very most splendid

With a hidey-high-ho

There it goes on my toe

And thus have a cut that is mended.

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APPLICATION/ SKINCARE WITH PLAI AND TEA TREE OIL

Pain relief with Plai and Tea Tree oil – These oils work well for minor pain relief by applying a 2-5% mixture in a carrier oil 2-3 times per day.  I personally prefer Plai for this as I prefer the scent, and I think the chemical composition with sabinene is more effective.  I usually blend 5% with Marjoram and sometimes high-altitude Lavender.

            There are many formulas using these two oils externally in so many different ways, and just too many to list here.  You can add to your formulations starting at just 5% and work up or down as you wish.

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INTERNAL USES such as pessaries, gels, and douche preparations have been made using these EO as part of the product. However, only Tea tree has extensive published results of the antimicrobial activity. Some of the reports are complicated by the lack of a scientific name or description of the oil discussed and where no data is given on the chemical composition.

            “Allergic reactions to Tea Tree Oil occur in predisposed individuals and may be due to the various oxidation products formed by exposure of the oil to light and/or air. Adverse reactions may be minimized by avoiding ingestion, applying only diluted oil topically, and using oil that has been stored correctly.” 4

… “With digestive upsets, Plai, along with Black Pepper, Orange, and Tarragon, has been used to counter irritable bowel syndrome. This blend was used, as a massage blend, across the abdomen after each bowel movement or anytime there was any cramping or pain in the abdominal area.5”

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BLENDING & PERFUMERY ~ There is a significant difference in the scent of Tea Tree and Plai, mainly because Plai contains fragrant sabinene and Tea tree does not. I prefer using Plai if I have it, therapeutically, in massage blends, and even in certain perfumes.  Tea tree I would only use it as an application in a therapeutic sense.

Blends Best ~ Plai blends best with citrus, spice, and floral scents and, in a small amount in perfumery will lift and brighten any scent made with a mixture of absolutes.

Since I only use Tea Tree in certain therapeutic blends, I really don’t worry too much about the odor profile, only how effective the therapeutics of the blend will be.

Inhalation Blending Formula – 7-16-22 , Anti-inflammatory and inhalation formula. I  used this mixture of oils at 15% in an Olive oil and Maqui berry mixture as a carrier oil at 85% (about 85-90 drops): Clove (2 drops), Eucalyptus, Peppermint, and Plai (5 drops of each).  I wasn’t too concerned  about the exact numbers as this was mainly an inhalation. I always mix the essential oils together first and then succuss them, then add the carrier oil, and always label the container immediately with the contents and the use and always list the date as well.

Jeanne Rose photo of Prima Fleur oil of Plai and Tea Tree, 2022

6. both oils

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DIFFUSE/DIFFUSION ~ EMOTIONAL/ENERGETIC USE ~ The mystery of aromatherapy is that you get to know these scents that can create a variety of emotional and physical changes. Plai and Tea Tree, these are two powerful healing oils and can be used with care and attention to detail. However, it is not wise to diffuse them, and certainly not with young children and pets nearby.

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HYDROSOL ~ Tea Tree DISTILLATION, SUMMER ~ 2000

            “ … I should mention that the Tea Tree  I distilled was one of two Melaleuca linariifolia that grew in Strybing Arboretum in Golden Gate Park.  It was quietly cut down by city gardeners. When I was informed that this magnificent tree which was in full flower at the time, was lying in heaps on the ground, another person and I gathered all that we could and sent 250 lbs. to an Aromatic Plant Project distiller to be distilled.  In Australia, the Tea tree is harvested several times per year and thus never is allowed to flower.  Our Tea tree was in full flower, and the resulting hydrosol and essential oil were unlike anything I had ever experienced.  Instead of the scent being fungal and herbaceous, the scent was highly floral-sweet and with a hint of herbal and some citrus notes.

Tea Tree Hydrosol is used as a wash for any sort of skin infection, fungal or bacterial. It makes a great wash for any deep wound that needs to be bandaged. I used it on my dog, Sumo, who had a 12-inch long cut that was stapled and needed to be washed, and the bandage changed daily.

         It is also a useful gargle or mouthwash for a sore throat or daily usage; it can be taken as a drink when you have a cold or flu (1 t/glass of water, 3 x/day) and many other uses.

            Since that hydrosol was never analyzed, we only know that the alcohols probably come over into the hydrosol (esters and acids as well); we can assume that some of the terpinene-4-ol is also in the hydrosol and thus has somewhat the same uses as the essential oil.

            I obtained both excellent quality hydrosol and essential oil that were authenticated by the Aromatic Plant Project and given its Seal of Authenticity for true essential oil and hydrosol.

            It was an excellent summer for distillation.  The days were cool, the still worked efficiently, and the plants were perfect.”5

Jeanne Rose photo of a bottle of Tea Tree hydrosol from 2007

7. Tea tree hydrosol from 2007

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HERBAL & CULINARY USES ~ I have used only the freshly picked leaves and flowers of Tea tree in tea to drink, and while not my favorite scent, it tasted okay and was a hot relief to my sinus and throat when I had a cold.  I certainly would enjoy trying the Plai rhizome but have not as yet experienced it.  They are generally not used in a culinary sense.

These herbs are used in their plant (herbal) form as a compress, macerated in oil for massage oil, and in many other ways. The pulverized rhizome of Plai simmered in water is effective in relieving asthmatic symptoms in children by inhalation and by sipping the tea.

“The herbs Plai, Turmeric, and fresh Ginger rhizomes and plant material are contained in a muslin poultice, which is steamed and rubbed into the body after a deep tissue massage. This tradition dates back over 1000 years.In the 14th century, the Thai developed this form of herbal relief combined with massage to help their soldiers recover after battle. Massage with Thai herbs and rhizomes, like Plai, was used to treat inflammation, sprains, infections, contusions, and other injuries. A poultice was used to treat infection and topical wounds while the massage itself increased blood flow and encouraged the essential oils to penetrate affected areas. . Today, Plai is used in the same way in the form of a balm, oil, or cream.7”

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PET CARE ~ Be careful and use only fresh and diluted Tea tree oil on your pet, as it can oxidize and become toxic.  Pets sniffing or ingesting Teatree oil can cause a low body temperature, weakness, walking drunk, inability to walk, tremors, coma, increased liver enzymes, and even death. In my personal uses of Tea Tree oil on my dogs, I recommend only using the hydrosol on the skin. See the Tomato Tale that follows.

            I do not have any information or personal knowledge on using Plai oil or hydrosol on pets.

Warning -do not trap a pet near a diffuser without a way for it to get away.
Some  odors are just too strong for a dog’s sensitive sense of smell.

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KEY USE ~ Two oils of Healing

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HISTORICAL USES ~ Tea tree has been used as a folk medicine treatment among the indigenous Australians of eastern inland areas who use tea tree leaves by inhaling the oils from the crushed leaves to treat coughs and colds. They also sprinkle leaves on wounds, after which a poultice is applied. In addition, tea tree leaves are soaked to make an infusion to treat sore throats or skin ailments. Characteristic of the myrtle family Myrtaceae, it is used to distill Tea Tree essential oil.2

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INTERESTING INFORMATION ~ If ingested, tea tree oil is toxic with serious side effects, including coma, and may cause skin irritation if used topically in high concentrations. As of 2006, no deaths were reported in the medical literature.2

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This work is sponsored and supported by Prima Fleur Botanicals.

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8. SCENT SNAPSHOTS

Scent snapshots of Plai and Tea Tree oil.

∞

TEA TREE TOMATO TALE3

Many who have the books of Jeanne Rose, aromatherapist and author of many books concerning herbs and aromatherapy, know the story of her dog, Sumo.  Sumo-dog, a full-grown Akita-Shepherd cross with the face of a puppy, was run over by a car and dragged along the pavement on his right side for some distance.  The injury to his rear right leg was severe, including severed ligaments and tendons, torn off skin and muscles in a 180-degree rotation around the hock joint!

Veterinarians recommended amputation.  Jeanne refused to allow this and treated the dog’s wounds with Tea Tree and Lavender oils and hydrosols.  Today there is only an almost unnoticeable scar the length of his leg and a slight limp in Sumo’s happy gait.  At the same time, Jeanne used diluted Ylang-Ylang oil in a diffuser to treat her other dog, Wolfie-dog, which was emotionally traumatized by the terrible incident.

            Tea Tree oil can be one of the most useful of essential oils for pet care.  The only drawback is that cats and dogs usually hate the smell and run, crawl, or hide under the bed when the bottle is opened and give the most heartbreaking sorrowful looks when being treated with it.  BUT IT WORKS!  “Tea Tree oil is 4-5 times stronger than household antiseptic and must be diluted to 10% or less. And the oil must be fresh.  Its bacterial action is increased where blood or pus is present.  Externally used in deep wounds or cuts it will remove necrotic tissue and leave a healthy surface”.__ Jeanne Rose’s The Aromatherapy Book: Applications & Inhalations. 

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References

1.https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/22/10/1645. A Review of the Biomedical Applications of Zerumbone and the Techniques for Its Extraction from Ginger Rhizomes.

2.Wikipedia

3. Rose, Jeanne.  The Aromatherapy Book: Applications & Inhalations.  San Francisco, California, p.109-110

4. Hammer, Carson, etc. A review of the toxicity of Melaleuca alternifolia (tea tree) oil •Food and Chemical Toxicology, vol. 44, Issue 5, May 2006, pp. 616-625

5.Rose, Jeanne. personal and distillation notes.

6. Clin Microbiol Rev. 2006 Jan: 19(I):50-62. doi:10.1128/CMR.19.1.50-62.2006

7. https://applairelief.com/what-is-plai/

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Bibliography

Mabberley, D. J. Mabberley’s Plant-Book, 3rd edition, 2014 printing, Cambridge University Press.

Rose, Jeanne.  375 Essential Oils and Hydrosols.  Berkeley, California: Frog, Ltd., 1999

Rose, Jeanne.  The Aromatherapy Book: Applications & Inhalations.  San Francisco, California:

Herbal Studies Course/ Jeanne Rose, California: 1992.

§

SOME CAUTIONS TO REMEMBER for all Plants and their Parts

Cautions to remember about using essential oils.
Jeanne Rose perfume photo

OREGANO

/ Jeanne Rose / Leave a comment
photo of Oregano oil and plant
Oregano oil and plant

Synopsis ~ We are discussing the high carvacrol culinary Oregano called ‘Greek or  Italian Oregano’. Many different members of this grouping are called Oregano. To get what you want, know the difference, the correct name, and the uses of each.

OREGANO/MARJORAM – the names of confusion

By Jeanne Rose ~ 10-2022

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COMMON NAME/LATIN BINOMIAL ~ OREGANO IS ORIGANUM VULGARE, and it has many varieties and chemotypes. The word Oregano is also used for like-named cousins and even other genera, such as some types of  Marjoram and Thyme.

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OTHER COMMON NAME/NAMING INFORMATION – Oregano ~

Many of the Oregano and Marjoram types were in a kit I once made to help people to learn the difference between the Oregano, Thyme, and Marjoram types. Here are some of the most well-known.

_____1. OREGANO OR WILD MARJORAM, Origanum vulgare. This one is simple, not as flavorful or pungent as the Greek Oregano variety called hirtum.

_____2. OREGANO OR GREEK OREGANO, ORIGANUM VULGARE subsp. HIRTUM  and usually CT (chemotype carvacrol), aka O. vulgare heracleoticum. Formerly listed botanically as Origanum heracleoticum, it has a strong herbaceous scent, and the taste burns the mucous membrane from the strongly tasting and scented phenol, carvacrol. The main component is up to 75% carvacrol from the leaves, stems, and flowers. This signature chemical is responsible for the sharp, pungent flavor of the culinary Oregano. [Organoleptically, this particular Oregano is light gold to red in color, clear, non-viscous, with a scent intensity of 6-8, and has an irritating taste].

This variety acts as a disinfectant, preservative, and anti-bacterial; infusions made from Greek Oregano have a wide range of purposes, from a simple cleansing mouthwash to reducing bloat, stomach cramps, and coughs.

            Greek Oregano is a very spicy herb. [Its parent, Origanum vulgare, has little flavor and no taste in culinary preparations and is often commercially grown and offered incorrectly as Greek Oregano. This plant is often also known as Wild Marjoram and is a highly invasive plant with a pink flower.]   Origanum vulgare hirtum is the true Greek Oregano with a very intense bite that can numb the end of your tongue when fresh. Like all culinary Oreganos, the flower of Greek Oregano is white.

_____3. OREGANO, ORIGANUM VULGARE VAR.COMPACTUMis a small compact mound of leaves with an appreciated flavor, white to pinkish flower, and is steam-distilled for its essential oil [pale yellow to gold, clear, non-viscous, 5-8 intensity, depending upon the amount of carvacrol].            

…

photo of Greek Oregano flowers
Greek Oregano flowers

MARJORAM is in several genera, including Origanum and Thymus

  ____ 4. Marjoram, Origanum majorana [the oil has very little color, clear, non-viscous, 6, herbaceous]

_____ 5. Sweet Marjoram, Origanum majorana [the oil has very little color, clear, non-viscous, 5, herbaceous, even fruity]  …  See https://jeannerose-blog.com/marjoram/

_____ 6. Sweet Marjoram CO2, Origanum majorana, is reddish, with a stronger, more definitive odor.

_____ 7.  Pot Marjoram or Cretan Oregano, Origanum onites. I love this plant for its scent.

_____ 8. Spanish Marjoram, Thymus mastichina. See the entry above. This is also called ‘sweet Marjoram’. This oil is herbaceous (no camphor note) with a sweetness of fruit and some citrus [very little color, clear, non-viscous, the intensity of 4. Components are 50% cineole, camphor  & camphene.   

_____ 9. Spanish Oregano. Thymus capitatus. This oil is vegetative, fungal, herbaceous, and spicey. Also sometimes called Turkish Oregano, which adds to the confusion of these like-named plants and oils. The components are thymol, alpha-amyrin, carvacrol + beta-Caryophyllene. Thymus essential oil inhibits the growth of both Botrytis cinerea and Penicillium italicum. SEM observations also indicated that the mycelia of both fungi were severely injured by applying T. capitatus essential oil. It kills mosquitoes. [SEM = Scanning Electron Microscopy]

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THYME called Thymus.

_____ 10. Spanish Oregano and also called Spanish Thyme, Thymus nummularius is called pizza Thyme.

_____ 11. Sweet Thyme, French White Thyme, Thymus vulgaris, also Thyme English Red Thyme has a fruity, green, herbaceous, spicy scent; the oil is very light gold, clear, non-viscous, 4 in intensity.

_____ 12.Thyme Spanish Red Thyme, Thymus vulgaris, has a spicy, herbaceous, green, hot dark red, clear, non-viscous, and strong intensity.                    

_____ 13. Thyme CT Borneol, Thymus satureioides. The scent is green, herbaceous, and woody, and the oil is red, clear, and non-viscous, 6, with a vegetative taste.                    

_____ 14. Thyme CT linalool, Thymus vulgaris CT linalool. The scent is herbaceous (no camphor note) and with floral and fruity notes. The essential oil is steam-distilled from the clover-dried herb, and the herb originates in either Hungary or France. It is produced with minimal pesticides or organically grown. The scent is of the oil strongly sweet-herbaceous, and fresh. Thyme linalool is regulating and a tonic, so useful for mood swings, mental inconsistency, and energy fluctuations and is used like Tea Tree. This oil is versatile, and when used in dilution, it helps to cleanse and disinfect the skin for those prone to frequent or recurring infections.

_____ 15. Thyme CT p-cymene from  [Bosnia & Herzegovina] Thymus vulgaris CT paracymene  

_____ 16. Thyme CT thymol, Thymus vulgaris CT thymol                            

_____ 17. Spain White Serpolet, Wild Thyme, Thymus serpyllum

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OTHER GENERA

_____ 18. Mexican oregano (Lippia graveolens) was one of the herbs listed in the Aztec herbal of 1552, written in the Aztec language Nahuatl. The Nahuatl name for the herb was ahuiyac-xihuitl, which means “fragrant, savory herb.” In one formula, it was included with other herbs and fluid of choice in a hot foot bath to be used “against lassitude.”

a page From the Badianus Manuscript showing Mexican Oregano and a formula for lassitude.
from the Badianus Manuscript – 1552

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Traditionally Mexican oregano was used for digestive issues such as colic, indigestion, and flatulence, for motion sickness, for menstrual cramps, to induce menstruation, for earaches and toothaches, and for upper respiratory infections and coughs. It’s also used as a common culinary spice. A common Latin American spice blend, adobo, usually includes oregano. – Bevin Clare

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FAMILY ~ Lamiaceae, also called the Mint family, has fragrant and flavorful leaves and flowering tops.

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COUNTRIES OF ORIGINS ~ Oregano, called Turkish, Greek, or Italian Oregano, is native to the hills of the Mediterranean countries and western Asia and has naturalized in many parts of Mexico and the United States.

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HARVEST LOCATION ~ Prima Fleur carries Origanum compactum, organically grown in France.

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ENDANGERED OR NOT ~ “Wild Oregano is a perennial plant of the Lamiaceae family and is native to the Mediterranean Basin; it grows naturally only in southern Spain and northern Morocco, where it can be found on rocky hillsides.  Due to overharvesting, the species is severely endangered in its native regions” and habitat. ‑‑ Biolandes, an essential oil and perfumery company.

            Origanum compactum L. (Lamiaceae) is one of the most important medicinal species in terms of ethnobotany in Morocco. It is considered a very threatened species as it is heavily exploited. Its domestication remains the most efficient way to safeguard it for future generations.7

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GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF PLANT HABITAT AND GROWTH ~ The true culinary Oregano, aka Greek or Italian Oregano, Origanum vulgaris hirtum is a woody perennial flowering herb, with white flowers, vigorous and very hardy, with hairy foliage. Other types of Oregano with less intense flavor have pink flowers and are not so hairy.

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close-up photo of hairy leaves of Greek Oregano, variety hirtum.
hairy leaves of Greek Oregano, variety hirtum.

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Greek Oregano is a very spicy herb. The parent, Origanum vulgare, has little flavor and is a culinary zero but is often grown commercially and incorrectly offered as Greek Oregano. This plant is also often known as Wild Marjoram and is an extremely invasive plant with a pink flower.   Origanum vulgaris hirtum is the true Greek Oregano with a flavor so intense it numbs the end of your tongue when fresh. Like all culinary Oreganos, the flower of Greek Oregano is white and with an “excellent reputation for flavor and pungency, as well as medicinal uses, strong, archetypal oregano flavor (Greek kaliteri: the best).”1

•

a photo of Origanum vulgare var compactum flowers
Origanum vulgare var compactum flowers

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The Oregano used in aromatherapy, body care, and in diffusers is usually Origanum vulgare var compactum. It is grown in France and Morocco, where it is called Zaatar, and it is used as an aromatic medicinal plant. This is a compact, bushy perennial that forms a low mound (10 inches wide by six inches high) of soft leaves and attractive sprays of white to pinkish-white flowers. It grows well in full sun in average, dry to medium, well-drained soils. These tasty leaves love heat and are drought-tolerant. It does not do well in areas of high humidity. Cut back in the spring to encourage new growth. Apparently, the leaves are toxic to dogs, cats, and horses.

[Oregano is not safe for cats, (dogs, or horses), according to the ASPCA. This herb, unlike basil, sage, and thyme, should not be administered to cats orally or topically. It doesn’t matter if the plant is fresh or dried; it’s toxic. Phenols and terpenoids are poisonous essential oils for cats found in oregano.3]

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PORTION OF PLANT USED IN DISTILLATION, HOW DISTILLED, EXTRACTION METHODS

~  There is a solvent-extracted absolute and a CO2 produced scent from the leaves. The leaves are usually either steam-distilled or solvent extracted.  The steam-distillate is the usual product.

            YIELD of Steam Distillate ~ is 1.2%

•

Essential oils showing color of oil with Oregano compactum with dark yellow oil.
Essential oils showing the color of oil

ORGANOLEPTIC CHARACTERISTICS

Sensory qualities of 3 essential oil of genus Origanum
Sensory qualities of 3 essential oil of genus Origanum

CHEMISTRY OF SAMPLES OF OREGANUM VULGARE Hirtum6

For this purpose, a wide evaluation of the existing variability all over the Moroccan territory was tested. The essential oils of 527 individual plants belonging to 88 populations collected from the whole distribution area of the species in Morocco were analyzed by GC/MS. The dominant constituents were carvacrol (0 – 96.3%), thymol (0 – 80.7%), p-cymene (0.2 – 58.6%), γ-terpinene (0 – 35.2%), carvacryl methyl ether (0 – 36.2%), and α-terpineol (0 – 25.8%).4

            As you can see, there is a significant chemistry variation in this native environment.

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GENERAL PROPERTIES ~ OREGANO

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PROPERTIES AND USES ARE LISTED IN THE CHART BELOW for OREGANO  types

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CHEMISTRY OF OREGANO/MARJORAM ~ Chart

            Environmental factors, the terroir, plays a huge role in the chemistry of Oregano. Within varieties on various islands, chemistry can change significantly. Temperature, humidity, soil type, day length, climate, altitude, amount of available water, etc. The chemical composition also depends on the season and vegetative period of the plant.4  These all make up the terroir.

a complex chart showing many types of Oregano, Thyme, and Marjoram, chemistry, what their sensory characteristics are, and uses.

All rights reserved 2007. No part of this article may be used without the prior permission of Jeanne Rose© http://www.jeannerose.net

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Let us start out with the fact all plants called Oregano are in the Origanum genus and that most plants called Marjoram are either in the Thymus or Origanum genus.  In the past, Marjoram used to have its own genus. Now Oregano is the genus, and Marjoram or Sweet marjoram (Origanum majorana) is only one variety or species of over fifty types of the genus Oregano. Pot marjoram (Origanum onites) is another species, but even this causes confusion, sometimes being called Cretan Oregano because of its place of origin. In Spain, there is Thymus nummularius, and in Mexico, there are Lippia graveolens (see photo above of page from Badianus manuscript); both are sold as Oregano and used in place of Oregano. One last example of how it all is jumbled: Origanum vulgare, or what is taken for common Oregano, is also known as wild Marjoram or Thyme.

Yes, it is confusing, and in this group of plants, it is very helpful to also know the place of origin and the chemotype as well as the scientific name.

            Both Marjoram and Oregano are steam inhalants to clear the sinuses and relieve laryngitis. “The combination of carvacrol and cymene in this oil results in an increased antibacterial effect on the growth and a synergistic effect on the viability of Listeria. There is monocytogenes in low concentrations. It can be used to preserve foods or cosmetics. … “Know the Latin binomial – to be assured”2

For more information on the uses of the Marjoram/Oregano/Thyme essential oil and Hydrosols,

see 375 Essential Oils & Hydrosols by Jeanne Rose.

***

Oregano has been used for a long time by the Moroccan population for medicinal properties and food preparation purposes. This application is not wide because of its bitterness, despite the pleasant odor. The taste is very intense, quite unpleasant, and intensely bitter, so its culinary application is limited to the region of origin, such as Morocco, where It is mainly used as a culinary condiment and primarily employed in popular medicine for the treatment of ailments such as dysentery, colitis, bronco-pulmonary issues, gastric acidity, and gastrointestinal diseases. O. compactum is also used as a preservative for the melted butter item called (smen).6  Smen is salted aged and fermented butter that is made in Morocco.

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APPLICATION/ SKINCARE ~ I only use the high carvacrol-containing Oregano oil for the skin in a preservative formula for lotions and creams. Here, it is in a low enough percentage that it will not cause irritation.

For the full article, please refer to http://www.jeannerose.net/articles/Preserve_Lotion_Water.html


Preserve Formula
The following formula should be used at 1.5%, that is, 1.5 ml to a 4 oz. jar:  
Too much Cinnamon? – Reduce the amount
     2 ml  Oregano CT carvacrol
     2 ml  Palmarosa with geraniol
     1.5 ml  Cinnamon leaf
     2 ml Thyme [50%  paracymene and 50% Thymus vulgaris with thymol] 
A formula to preserve cosmetics

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DIFFUSE/DIFFUSION for Oregano ~ I strongly suggest that you do not diffuse this high carvacrol oil into your home. Save it for its strong medicinal properties.

•

A TOMATO TALE OF CHAMPAGNE AND OREGANO

EMOTIONAL/ENERGETIC USE ~ Saturday, October 1, was a special day for me. The previous Tuesday, I had been introduced to a new bottle of sparkling wine/champagne that was delicious and new to my tastebuds, and it came from a winery in my state called Lichen Estate. This champagne (it’s California, so it is really sparkling wine) stunned me with its deliciousness. I tried it first at Waterbar in San Francisco.  I came home and got on the phone and called Lichen Estate, and had an informative discussion with Doug, the owner. This call initiated a long conversation about this and that and an order from me to obtain some of their delicious wine. It arrived in record time, and I invited a journalist from the S.F. Chronicle, Tony Bravo, to share a bottle with me. I chilled the 2013 Cuvée. When he arrived on Saturday, we had to mask up as I had just inhaled and dropped some of the Oregano oil with high carvacrol all over me and the house. This essential oil filled my house with its odor and my nose with pungency, and the intensity of the carvacrol made me slightly delirious.  I started to speak very loudly and laughed rather insanely.  The champagne? Well, I had chilled the Cuvée, and we decided to taste it in different types of Riedel glassware and plain wine glasses and pulled out six to taste from.  We also closed ourselves into the kitchen, which speaks well for not having an open floor plan, as the Oregano scent was exuberantly manifesting itself in the rest of the house.  The champagne had a pleasing and attractive odor and a fine and delicious taste. But both together? It was like drinking champagne in a pizza oven.

            Emotionally –  the wine was delicious, and when we finished the bottle, the scent in the house was calmer and more of the culinary plant odor rather than the intensity of the essential oil. I felt happy, and the scent was very homely, as if I was back in the home of my Italian godmother and eating some of her delicious homemade pasta.

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HYDROSOL & another Oregano Tomato Tale ~ I have had the opportunity to distill Oregano, and not knowing the extreme variability of this plant at the time, I was amazed at the dark red hydrosol that was obtained.  This was in Grand Rapids, MI, in 2009 with my Distillation class at the home of Linda Beyer. This hydrosol was intensely pungent, tasting and smelling.  I took an 8 oz. bottle home with me and used it over the next few years as a cold and flu preventative and a therapeutic treatment. Of course, it has to be diluted with water or juice, about 1 teaspoon of hydrosol per glass of liquid or juice; this dilution is best to soften the pungency of the Oregano hydrosol.  This would be taken 4-6 daily at 4-hour intervals while awake.  It certainly worked very well, indeed.

two hydrosols of Oregano

PLEASE NOTE: A true hydrosol should be distilled explicitly for the hydrosol, not as a co-product or a by-product of essential oil distillation. The plant’s cellular water has many components most are lost under pressurized short steam runs for essential oil or by using dried material. We recommend that the producers precisely distill a product using fresh plant material.

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CULINARY USE of Oregano ~ Oregano is used in cooking to flavor soups and sauces, pizza, meatballs, and many other foods. Cultivars traded as Italian, Sicilian, etc., are often a hardy sweet marjoram hybrid (O. majorana or O. majoricum), and the southern strongly Adriatic, O. v. subsp. hirtum and sweet marjoram (O. majorana). They have a reputation for sweet and spicy tones with slight bitterness and are prized for their flavor and compatibility with various recipes and sauces.5

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HISTORICAL USES ~ Use of Greek oregano dates back to ancient Greece, where it was said that it was created by the love goddess Aphrodite, who grew it in her garden atop Mount Olympus as a symbol of joy. It was commonly planted around homes to ward off evil spirits.

            Despite the heavy association of Oregano with Italy, Oregano likely originated in Greece. Ancient Greeks used to let their cattle graze on fields of Oregano in the belief that it produced tastier meat. Even the name Oregano comes from the Greek, meaning “joy of the mountain.”

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KEY USE ~ The oil of Disinfection.

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REFERENCES

  1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oregano
  2. Aromatherapy Course – Home & Family
  3. Wikipedia
  4. Origanum compactum Benth: A Review on Phytochemistry and Pharmacological Properties • Abdelhakim Bouyahya1,etc.• Biochemistry-Immunology Laboratory, Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, Mohammed V University, Rabat, Morocco
  5. Wikipedia,  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oregano
  6. 5. Med. Aromat. Plants, Vol 5, Issue 4, 1000252
  7.  Chemical Polymorphism of Origanum compactum Grown in All Natural Habitats in Morocco, Kaoutar Aboukhalid, etc.• https://doi.org/10.1002/cbdv.201500511

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Mabberley, D. J. Mabberley’s Plant-Book, 3rd edition, 2014 printing, Cambridge University Press.

Rose, Jeanne.  375 Essential Oils and Hydrosols.  Berkeley, California: Frog, Ltd., 1999

Rose, Jeanne.  The Aromatherapy Book: Applications & Inhalations.  San Francisco, California:

Herbal Studies Course/ Jeanne Rose & Berkeley, California: North Atlantic Books, 1992

This work is sponsored and supported by Prima Fleur Botanicals.

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PRECAUTIONS

Precautions to remember for all plants and their parts.
Cautions
Cowboy boot growing Oregano
Cowboy boot Organo

Cinnamon Bark & Leaf

/ Jeanne Rose / Leave a comment
Photo by Jeanne Rose of the essential oils of the leaf and bark plus the bark itself, powdered bark and leaves (a tree from the SF Conservatory of Flowers).

CINNAMON BARK & LEAF ~ botany, history, and uses.

Synopsis ~ Cinnamon is a spice, a very fragrant culinary condiment,  obtained from the inner bark of the genus Cinnamomum. Here listed are history, uses, and more.

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CINNAMON BARK & LEAF, Hydrosol, Uses

Jeanne Rose – August 2022

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COMMON NAME/LATIN BINOMIAL OF CINNAMON ~ Cinnamon bark & leaf, Cinnamomum verum AKA zeylanicum, or Ceylon cinnamon, true Cinnamon; the Cinnamon that is commercially used but is often adulterated.

Family ~ Lauraceae, the same family that includes the true Bay tree, Litsea spp., Sassafras spp., and Cinnamomum cassia.

COUNTRIES OF ORIGINS ~ Cinnamon was a native of Ceylon and is now grown in other areas such as Java, Sumatra, Borneo, South America, the East Indian, and West Indies, among places.

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ENDANGERED OR NOT ~ The Cinnamon tree is threatened by human growth into once wild and farming areas T; the Cebu Cinnamon is endangered.

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GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF PLANT HABITAT AND GROWTH ~ CEYLON CINNAMON. -This large, evergreen tree grows in mixed forests and valleys and has glossy,  thick, leathery,  alternate leaves; the entire tree has a distinct odor. The spice is “long, closely rolled quills, composed of 8 or more layers of bark of the thickness of paper; pale yellowish-brown; outer surface smooth, marked with wavy lines of bast-bundles; inner surface striate; fracture short-splintery; odor fragrant; taste sweet and warmly aromatic”-(U. S.).            There are several hundred species of the Cinnamon tree.

photo of Mabberley's Plant Book.

Find a good Field Guide Book and learn how to identify plants by their external and internal look.
Or use Mabberley’s Plant-Book for the correct names, classification, and uses.

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PORTION OF Cinnamon USED FOR EXTRACTION, EXTRACTION METHODS; DISTILLATION, HOW DISTILLED, AND YIELDS ~ Distillation is one of the oldest, simplest, and most widespread methods of extracting cinnamon essential oils, especially at commercial levels. In the Cinnamon bark or leaf hydrodistillation process, water vapors at boiling temperature are used to drive out the fragrant components. Supercritical fluid extraction yields Cinnamon CO2 and is one of the techniques used for Cinnamon oil and other essential oil extraction.1

Yield – The steam distillation of the bark is about 4% yield; while the steam distillation of the leaf is about 5%.

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•SOURCE ~ Prima Fleur Botanicals is an excellent source of true Cinnamon essential oil•

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photo of Prima Fleur Cinnamon bark oil and the bark (quill) and powder

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Organoleptic or Sensory qualities of the Bark and leaf.

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ODOR DESCRIPTION/ AROMA ASSESSMENT ~ Cinnamon bark oil is fruity, floral, and spicy; while the Cinnamon leaf oil is spicy, woody, and vegetative.

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CHEMISTRY  OF CINNAMON ~ “Regarding the differences between plant parts, it is known from Cinnamon (Cinnamomum zeylanicum) that the root-, stem-, and leaf oils differ significantly (Wijesekera et al., 1974): only the stem bark contains essential oil with up to 70% cinnamaldehyde, whereas the oil of the root bark consists mainly of camphor and linalool, and the leaves produce oils with eugenol as the main compound. In contrast to it, eugenol is 70–90% of the main compound in the stem, the leaf, and bud oils of cloves (Syzygium aromaticum) (Lawrence, 1978)”. —from Handbook of Essential Oils by Buchbauer.

The essential oil of cinnamon bark (max. 4%) is dominated by the two phenylpropanoids cinnamaldehyde (3-phenyl-acrolein, 65 to 75%) and eugenol (4-(1-propene-3-yl)-2-methoxy-phenol, 5 to 10%).

            Essential oil of cinnamon leaves, another (1%) can be obtained that consists mainly of eugenol (70 to 95%) and can be used as a substitute for clove.

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Photo of Cinnamon tree, bark in quills, and dried leaves.

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GENERAL PROPERTIES of Cinnamon

CINNAMON PROPERTIES AND USES ~ Action are stimulant, tonic, stomachic, carminative, and astringent; reputed emmenagogue can diminish milk secretion.

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CINNAMON SKIN CARE ~ Add Cinnamon bark oil to your products as an antibacterial and for that delicious spicy scent. Cinnamon oil contains eugenol; it is antispasmodic, anti-infectious, and antifungal and is also indicated for tooth care, respiratory blends, or the herb tea for sleepiness or depression.

This is a skin irritant; use it with moderation and with caution.

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APPLICATION/MASSAGE ~ CINNAMON CO2 (Cinnamomum zeylanicum)  Add Cinnamon to your products as an antibacterial stimulant and for that delicious spicy scent. Cinnamon CO2 retains the true scent of dried Cinnamon. You can add it to your products as part of your scent blend.

            CHAI BLEND #6050  ~ This warm, spicey, and energizing blend is used in massage and diffusion to energize the air in a common room. Add the blend to Turmeric oil at  5% with a carrier oil for deep-tissue massage for aching joints or add to an unscented cream and use it as a body massage. The spicy blend “Chai” from Prima Fleur includes Cardamom, Cinnamon leaf, Ginger, Nutmeg, and others. … …… Not for facial skincare

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CINNAMON DIFFUSE/DIFFUSION ~ EMOTIONAL/ENERGETIC USE ~ The mystery of aromatherapy is the everchanging scent —Get to know this essence that can create such a variety of emotional and physical changes. Cinnamon first stimulates and then depresses the nervous system. Cinnamon is used in medications to correct the effects and improve the drug’s flavor.

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BLENDING & PERFUMERY ~ Always dilute Cinnamon oil (and all the spice oils) very well, as they are skin irritants. Cinnamon bark oil blends well with most odors such as florals, citrus, woods, herbs, spices, and resins.

Here is a perfume formula.

Cinnamon Chypre Perfume formula

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HYDROSOL OF CINNAMON ~ I am fortunate to have two bottles of Cinnamon bark hydrosol. I use them in cooking, as a light spray on some desserts and other foods, or as a spray to scent the room. Both these hydrosols taste delicious and can also be used in your tea (up to 1 t./cup) and as a compress for aching muscles or joints.

PLEASE NOTE: A true hydrosol should be specifically distilled for the hydrosol, not as a co-product or even a by-product of essential oil distillation. The plant’s cellular water has many components; most are lost under pressurized short steam runs for essential oil or by using dried material. We recommend that the producers specifically distill for a product by using fresh plant material.

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HERBAL/USE ~  Culinary uses of Cinnamon include flavoring in many products, spicing up desserts and in candies and other sweets; and eating Cinnamon cassia, which is a different species, 1-2 t./day to improve your glucose (1, 3, or 6 grams – 2 t per day).

Also, Cinnamon bark, crushed, is useful in potpourris to scent a room.

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KEY USE ~ The oil of Scent and Taste.

HISTORICAL USES ~ Wiki says, “It was regarded as a suitable gift for Monarchs and for Gods. Ancient Egyptians used Cinnamon as part of their embalming rituals. Physicians from the Middle Ages used Cinnamon to help treat cold and throat ailments such as coughing, hoarseness, and sore throats. And “it was the most profitable spice in the Dutch East India Company trade.”2

            It was also used as a preservative in food and added flavor as long ago as 2000 B.C. The Bible also mentions Cinnamon.

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This work is sponsored and supported by Prima Fleur Botanicals.

INTERESTING INFORMATION ON CINNAMON ~ Cinnamon oil from C. zeylanicum has antifungal, antiviral, bactericidal, and larvicidal properties. A liquid carbon dioxide extraction at 0.1% has been demonstrated to suppress the growth of many organisms, including E. coli, S. aureus, and C. albicans.3

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CINNAMON LIMERICK

Cinnamon so sweet and so nice
For this you may want to pay the price
Use it for scent
But not for rent
And if you want it will kill all your lice. —JeanneRose2016

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References

  1. Cinnamon Oil By Khalid Haddi, Lêda R.A. Faroni, Eugênio E. Oliveira • Green Pesticides Handbook, 1st Edition. 2017. CRC Press

2. Wikipedia mention

3. PRESERVATIVES | Traditional Preservatives – Vegetable Oils. E.O. Aluyor, I.O. Oboh, in Encyclopedia of Food Microbiology, 2nd Ed., 2014. … Oils from Vegetables as Possible Preservatives

Bibliography

Mabberley, D. J. Mabberley’s Plant-Book, 3rd edition, 2014 printing, Cambridge University Press.

Rose, Jeanne. 375 Essential Oils and Hydrosols. Berkeley, California: Frog, Ltd., 1999

Rose, Jeanne. The Aromatherapy Book: Applications & Inhalations. San Francisco, California:

Herbal Studies Course/ Jeanne Rose & Berkeley, California: North Atlantic Books, 1992

SOME CAUTIONS TO REMEMBER for all Plants and their Parts

DISCLAIMER:  This work is intended for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for accurate diagnosis and treatment by a qualified health care professional. Dosages are often not given, as that is a matter between you and your health care provider. The author is neither a chemist nor a medical doctor. The content herein is the product of research and personal and practical experience. Institute of Aromatic & Herbal Studies  – Jeanne Rose©