The Encyclopedia of Essential Oils (25 page)

On the Continent an infusion of dried flowers is used as a mild stimulant of the nervous system, and as a blood cleanser. The distillation water, known as orange flower water, is a popular cosmetic and household article.

ACTIONS Antidepressant, antiseptic, antispasmodic, aphrodisiac, bactericidal, carminative, cicatrisant, cordial, deodorant, digestive, fungicidal, hypnotic (mild), stimulant (nervous), tonic (cardiac, circulatory).

EXTRACTION 1. A concrete and absolute are produced by solvent extraction from the freshly picked flowers. 2. An essential oil is produced by steam distillation from the freshly picked flowers. An orange flower water and an absolute are produced as a byproduct of the distillation process.

CHARACTERISTICS 1. The absolute is a dark brown or orange viscous liquid with a fresh, delicate yet rich, warm sweet-floral fragrance; very true to nature. It blends well with jasmine, benzoin, myrrh and all citrus oils. 2. The oil is a pale yellow mobile liquid (darkening with age) with a light, sweet-floral fragrance and terpeney topnote. Blends well with virtually all oils: chamomile, coriander, geranium, benzoin, clary sage, jasmine, lavender, rose, ylang ylang, lemon and other citrus oils.

PRINCIPAL CONSTITUENTS Linalol (34 per cent approx.), linalyl acetate (6–17 per cent), limonene (15 per cent approx.), pinene, nerolidol, geraniol, nerol, methyl anthranilate, indole, citral, jasmone, among others.

SAFETY DATA Non-toxic, non-irritant, non-sensitizing, non-phototoxic.

AROMATHERAPY/HOME USE

SKIN CARE
: Scars, stretch marks, thread veins, mature and sensitive skin, tones the complexion, wrinkles.

CIRCULATION, MUSCLES AND JOINTS:
Palpitations, poor circulation.

DIGESTIVE SYSTEM
: Diarrhoea (chronic), colic, flatulence, spasm, nervous dyspepsia.

NERVOUS SYSTEM
: Anxiety, depression, nervous tension, PMT, shock, stress-related conditions – ‘I find that by far the most important uses of neroli are in helping with problems of emotional origin’.
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OTHER USES Neroli oil and orange flower water are used to flavour pharmaceuticals. The absolute is used extensively in high class perfumery work, especially oriental, floral and citrus blends; also as a fixative. The oil is used in eau-de-cologne and toilet waters (traditionally with lavender, lemon, rosemary and bergamot). Limited use as a flavour ingredient in foods, alcoholic and soft drinks.

Citrus sinensis

FAMILY Rutaceae

SYNONYMS
C. aurantium var. dulcis, C. aurantium var. sinensis
, China orange, Portugal orange.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION An evergreen tree, smaller than the bitter variety, less hardy with fewer or no spines. The fruit has a sweet pulp and non-bitter membranes. Another distinguishing feature is the shape of the leaf stalk: the bitter orange is broader and in the shape of a heart.

DISTRIBUTION Native to China; extensively cultivated especially in America (California and Florida) and round the Mediterranean (France, Spain, Italy). The expressed oil is mainly produced in Israel, Cyprus, Brazil and North America; the distilled oil mainly comes from the Mediterranean and North America.

OTHER SPECIES There are numerous cultivated varieties of sweet orange, for example Jaffa, Navel and Valencia. There are also many other subspecies such as the Japanese orange
(C. aurantium var. natsudaidai).
See also
bitter orange.

HERBAL/FOLK TRADITION Avery nutritious fruit, containing vitamins A, B and C. In Chinese medicine the dried sweet orange peel is used to treat coughs, colds, anorexia and malignant breast sores. Li Shih-chên says: ‘The fruits of all the different species and varieties of citrus are considered by the Chinese to be cooling. If eaten in excess they are thought to increase the ‘phlegm’, and this is probably not advantageous to the health. The sweet varieties increase bronchial secretion, and the sour promote expectoration. They all quench thirst, and are stomachic and carminative.’
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ACTIONS Antidepressant, anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, bactericidal, carminative, choleretic, digestive, fungicidal, hypotensive, sedative (nervous), stimulant (digestive and lymphatic), stomachic, tonic.

EXTRACTION 1. Essential oil by cold expression (hand or machine) of the fresh ripe or almost ripe outer peel. 2. Essential oil by steam distillation of the fresh ripe or almost ripe outer peel. An oil of inferior quality is also produced by distillation from the essences recovered as a byproduct of orange juice manufacture. Distilled sweet orange oil oxidizes very quickly, and anti-oxidant agents are often added at the place of production. (An oil from the flowers is also produced occasionally called neroli Portugal or neroli petalae; an oil from the leaves is also produced in small quantities.)

CHARACTERISTICS 1. A yellowy-orange or dark orange mobile liquid with a sweet, fresh-fruity scent, richer than the distilled oil. It blends well with lavender, neroli, lemon, clary sage, myrrh and spice oils such as nutmeg, cinnamon and clove. 2. A pale yellow or colourless mobile liquid with a sweet, light-fruity scent, but little tenacity.

PRINCIPAL CONSTITUENTS Over 90 per cent monoterpenes, mainly limonene. The cold expressed oil also contains bergapten, auraptenol and acids.

SAFETY DATA Generally non-toxic (although ingestion of large amounts of orange peel has been known to be fatal to children); non-irritant and non-sensitizing (although limonene has been found to cause dermatitis in a few individuals). Distilled orange oil is phototoxic: its use on the skin should be avoided if there is danger of exposure to direct sunlight. However, there is no evidence to show that expressed sweet orange oil is phototoxic although it too contains coumarins.

AROMATHERAPY/HOME USE

SKIN CARE
: Dull and oily complexions, mouth ulcers.

CIRCULATION, MUSCLES AND JOINTS
: Obesity, palpitations, water retention.

RESPIRATORY SYSTEM
: Bronchitis, chills.

DIGESTIVE SYSTEM
: Constipation, dyspepsia, spasm.

IMMUNE SYSTEM
: Colds, ’flu.

NERVOUS
SYSTEM: Nervous tension and stress-related conditions.

OTHER USES Sweet orange peel tincture is used to flavour pharmaceuticals. Extensively used as a fragrance component in soaps, detergents, cosmetics and perfumes, especially eau-de-colognes. Extensively used in all areas of the food and drinks industry (more so than the bitter orange oil). Used as the starting material for the isolation of natural limonene.

Origanum vulgare

FAMILY Lamiaceae (Labiatae)

SYNONYMS European oregano, wild marjoram, common marjoram, grove marjoram, joy of the mountain, origanum (oil).

GENERAL DESCRIPTION A hardy, bushy, perennial herb up to 90 cms high with an erect hairy stem, dark green ovate leaves and pinky-purple flowers. A common garden plant with a strong aroma when the leaves are bruised.

DISTRIBUTION Native to Europe, now cultivated all over the world, including the USA, India and South America; the oil is mainly produced in the USSR, Bulgaria and Italy.

OTHER SPECIES There is much confusion concerning the exact botanical classification of the marjoram and oregano species. There are over thirty varieties some of which are used to produce essential oils, such as the winter or Greek marjoram O.
heracleoticum
, the African species O.
glandulosum
, the Moroccan species O.
virens
, as well as the Mexican oregano
Lippia graveolens
or L.
palmeri
and the Syrian oregano
(O. maru).
However, most commercial ‘oregano oil’ is derived from the Spanish oregano
(Thymus capitatus)
and to a lesser degree from the common oregano or wild marjoram – see entries on Spanish oregano and sweet marjoram.

HERBAL/FOLK TRADITION This is the ‘true’ oregano of the herb garden, which also has a very ancient medical reputation. It has been used as a traditional remedy for digestive upsets, respiratory problems (asthma, bronchitis, coughs, etc), colds and ’flu as well as inflammations of the mouth and throat.

In China it is also used to treat fever, vomiting, diarrhoea, jaundice and itchy skin conditions. The (diluted) oil has been used externally in herbal medicine for headaches, rheumatism, general aches and pains, and applied to stings and bites.

ACTIONS Analgesic, anthelmintic, antirheumatic, antiseptic, antispasmodic, antitoxic, antiviral, bactericidal, carminative, choleretic, cytophylactic, diaphoretic, diuretic, emmenagogue, expectorant, febrifuge, fungicidal, parasiticide, rubefacient, stimulant, tonic.

EXTRACTION Essential oil by steam distillation from the dried flowering herb.

CHARACTERISTICS A pale yellow liquid (browning with age), with a warm, spicy-herbaceous, camphoraceous odour. It blends well with lavandin, oakmoss, pine, spike lavender, citronella, rosemary, camphor and cedarwood.

PRINCIPAL CONSTITUENTS Carvacrol, thymol, cymene, caryophyllene, pinene, bisabolene, linalol, borneol, geranyl acetate, linalyl acetate, terpinene. NB: Constituents are highly variable according to source, but oils classified as ‘oregano’ or ‘oreganum’ have thymol and/or carvacrol as their major components.

SAFETY DATA Dermal toxin, skin irritant, mucous membrane irritant. Avoid during pregnancy.

AROMATHERAPY/HOME USE None. ‘Should not be used on the skin at all.’
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OTHER USES Used as a fragrance component in soaps, colognes and perfumes, especially men’s fragrances. Employed to some extent as a flavouring agent, mainly in meat products and pizzas.

Thymus capitatus

FAMILY Lamiaceae (Labiatae)

SYNONYMS T.
capitans, Coridothymus capitatus, Satureja capitata, Thymbra capitata
, oreganum (oil), Israeli oreganum (oil), Cretan thyme, corido thyme, conehead thyme, headed savory, thyme of the ancients.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION A perennial creeping herb with a woody stem, small dark green leaves and pink or white flowers borne in clusters.

DISTRIBUTION Native to the Middle East and Asia Minor; grows wild in Spain. The oil is produced mainly in Spain, Israel, Lebanon, Syria and Turkey.

OTHER SPECIES Although this herb is strictly a thyme, it serves as the source for most so-called ‘oregano oil’. For other related species see entries on common thyme, common oregano and sweet marjoram; see also Botanical Classification section.

HERBAL/FOLK TRADITION According to Mrs Grieve the properties and oil of Spanish oregano
(Thymus capitatus)
are similar to the common thyme
(T. vulgaris);
it also shares many qualities with the common oregano or wild marjoram
(Origanum vulgare).

ACTIONS See
common oregano.

EXTRACTION Essential oil by steam distillation from the dried flowering tops.

CHARACTERISTICS A dark brownish-red or purple oil with a strong tarlike, herbaceous, refreshing odour.

PRINCIPAL CONSTITUENTS Carvacrol, thymol, cymene, caryophyllene, pinene, limonene, linalol, borneol, myrcene, thujone, terpinene.

SAFETY DATA Dermal toxin, skin irritant, mucous membrane irritant.

AROMATHERAPY/HOME USE None. ‘Should not be used on the skin at all.’
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OTHER USES See
common oregano.

Iris pallida

FAMILY Iridaceae

SYNONYMS Orris root, iris, flag iris, pale iris, orris butter (oil).

GENERAL DESCRIPTION A decorative perennial plant up to 1.5 metres high, with sword-shaped leaves, a creeping fleshy rootstock and delicate, highly scented, pale blue flowers.

DISTRIBUTION Native to the eastern Mediterranean region; also found in northern India and North Africa. Most commercial orris is produced in Italy where it grows wild. The oil is mainly produced in France and Morocco and to lesser extent in Italy and the USA.

OTHER SPECIES There are many species of iris; cultivation has also produced further types. In Italy the pale iris
(I. pallida)
is collected indiscriminately with the Florentine orris
(I. florentina)
which has white flowers tinged with pale blue, and the common or German iris
(I. germanica)
which has deep purple flowers with a yellow beard. Other species which have been used medicinally include the American blue flag
(I. versicolor)
, and the yellow flag iris
(I. pseudacorus).

HERBAL/FOLK TRADITION In ancient Greece and Rome orris root was used extensively in perfumery, and its medicinal qualities were held in high esteem by Dioscorides. The juice of the root was used for cosmetic purposes, and the root bruised in wine was employed for dropsy, bronchitis, coughs, hoarseness, chronic diarrhoea and congested headaches. In Russia the root was used to make a tonic drink with honey and ginger.

Iris is little used medicinally these days, but it still appears in the British Herbal Pharmacopoeia as being formerly used in upper respiratory catarrh, coughs, and for diarrhoea in infants.

ACTIONS Dried Root – antidiarrhoeal, demulcent, expectorant. Fresh Root – diuretic, cathartic, emetic.