My Chamomile Flower Discoveries
On my journey of discovery with aromatic plants, I noticed that flowers of the venerable, perfume-worthy plants — the Roses, Jasmines, Ylang-Ylang, Neroli, even Lavenders! — are not the only ones with deeply alluring aromas and deep resources for human wellbeing. Besides that, Rose, Jasmine, and Lavender, etc. are flowers of summer and the energy of Fire (digestion and heat). Yet the flowers of spring and early summer are cooling, with the energy of Wood (growth and strength). Cooling is balm to inflammation, to all the vexations we feel during seasonal change. Flowers like German Chamomile and Yarrow offer cooling energy and welcome remedies.
As an aromatherapist, I am attracted to the scents of the curative herbs of the Aster family. And I’m considering that the flowers with less dreamy scents — Chamomiles, Yarrows, Helichrysums — may offer yet-unimagined healing gifts.
Dilemma in a Scent
As a culture, we don’t often turn to, or even think about, our sense of smell. Instead we purchase a marketed perfume or lotion, one from a recognized brand. But the very idea of an aroma with healing powers is new, and maybe a bit scary? A dilemma is created between our point of view and the healing powers of flowers. We might think — should we take a chance, or just buy that perfume and forget about it?
Scent lives in the heart and nose of the smeller. Yet healing gifts from scent are seen as a recent phenomenon in our culture. This dilemma, the choice we make for scent, depends on the heart, what the heart is drawn to in the moment. Then how, I wondered, does that affect working with, specifically blending with, those essential oils with fewer dreamy or sensual qualities? Are those essential oils challenging when it comes to blending them for specific remedies?
Flowers of the Aster family
Having similar characteristics, an estimated 32,000 Asteraceae herbs (Wikipedia article) are found in temperate climates in Europe, Asia and the Americas. Grown for medicinal qualities and steam-distilled at their peak for aromatherapy in early and mid-summer, these herbs — the Chamomiles and Helichrysum — are captured as essences or hydrosols as well as essential oils. German Chamomile (Matricaria recutita) and Roman Chamomile (Anthemis nobile), along with others like Yarrow (Achillea millefolium) and Blue Tansy (Tanecetum annuum) are often cited as prime examples of herbs in the Aster (Asteraceae) family. Helichrysum, also known as Immortelle (Helichrysum italicum), or Everlasting, is also in this family.
Two Chamomiles and an Everlasting
German Chamomile An airy armature of stems and profusion of small disc and ray flowers above them is the quiet or unassuming profile of German Chamomile. This Chamomile is diminutive and daisy-like in appearance. Yet, when converted to its essential oil form, it doesn’t smell like a beautiful flower.
There! I’m saying it — the scent of German Chamomile presents a dilemma: how do I blend a challenging aroma? However, this flower is one that taught me to explore restraint, to let the flower lead the way. German Chamomile has this capacity for path-setting.
It’s also alive, beyond its healing aspects, with lightness of being. It wants to be combined with other, not necessarily Aster-family, aromatics. On a journey of aroma-discovery, a dilemma with scent turns out to be not limiting, but revealing in several ways.
Roman Chamomile Roman Chamomile is sometimes called English Chamomile. The herb has a ground-hugging stature, reaching about 12 inches high compared with German Chamomile’s 2 foot height. Apparently, Roman Chamomile is also called English Chamomile because the essential oil was distilled (may not be true today) mainly in the U.K.
The aroma of Roman Chamomile is, in my opinion, regally Aster-like, which means it has tea-like notes. Yet at the heart of Roman Chamomile is a sweet-fruit intensity that can support essential oils with top-note-forward aromas like Lavender.
The Everlasting Flowers
Such a common name as “Everlasting” is confusing, as I think the term often refers to straw flowers. As that may be, the herb’s more specific common and botanical name “Helichrysum” means sun (helios) flower (chrysum). In the illustration above, Helichrysum italicum is a silver-toned shrubby plant — indeed it’s got woody stems near the ground — with gold-colored flowers.
The aroma of Everlasting is deeply fruity and intense, warm and herb-like. It’s reputation as a skin healer and for the mind-body connection is well-known.