Plant Origins & Essences
Although hard to believe, there are about 380,000 named plants on our planet!
However, only about one-tenth of those are known to have aromatic essences that humans want for fragrance, perfume, culinary spices, flavorings, and incense.
Maps for Way-finding Among the Aromatic Plants
Although there aren’t thousands of aromatic plants, but instead hundreds, we can get lost seeking our bespoke fragrance, the scent(s) we love.
I’ve located two ways of presenting these plants and aromas: one is their origins and uses, and the other their essences and fragrance types. Listed by name and property, here are two way-finding maps for aromatic plants.
Below, find plant names organized into Aromatic Categories. For further details about their origins and uses in fragrances, find them as the Plant Parts.
Aromatic Categories
An Aromatic Category indicates a scent or aroma type.
For example, the essential oil steam-distilled from the leaf of a citrus tree is called Petitgrain. A leafy essential oil, it has an herbal scent as you would expect, and its fruity and sweet aroma blends well with other fruity and spicy scented essential oils.
Look at the Categories — Green, Herbal, Floral, Fruity, Spicy, Woody–Resinous, Cineolic
— and select one or more essences you love. Then begin your “aromantic” journey with scents that are trying to get your attention with their scent.
Choose an Aromatic Category, a scent or aroma type on Aroma Blending Salon, here.
The Plant Parts
The Botanicals of Aromatherapy are ancient plants. Just as all plants have a means to protect themselves against invasion by insects and animals, plants that are aromatic create and store protective essences in their leaves, barks, fruit peels, resins, etc.
Look at the Plant Parts — Flowers, Leaves, Fruits, Resins, Seeds, Woods and Roots — for the origins of the essences so precious in Aromatherapy, Perfumery, and the Cuisine Arts of all cultures.
Connect with ancient lineages that humans and plants share. Become familiar with aromatic plants, their habitats and ways humans include them in ritual and medicinal practices.
Plant Essences & Essential Oils
Plant essences are a natural product of extraction from flowers, fruits, leaves, resins, roots, seeds, woods. Read more …
Plant Parts: the Leaves
Leaves have bright, bold aromas, providing clarity of purpose and positivity. Read more
Plant Parts: the Resins
Inspiring for those with mystical leanings, who look beyond space and time to transcendence. Read more, here.
Plant Parts: the Flowers
Looking for a flower and want to find out everything about it? Floral aromas have many qualities they pass on to us. One of these is creativity. Read more
Plant Parts: the Roots
Roots anchor a plant, find moisture to satisfy its thirst, and send and receive messages from nearby plants. Root essences are nurturing for us. Read more.
Plant Parts: the Seeds
Seeds promote release and self-expression! They carry nutrients from the mother plant, so they are very rich sources of life. Read more.
Plant Parts: the Wood
Wood is strong, flexible, and consistent. Wood supports the capacity to thrive that the plant has in its leaves, flowers, seeds, fruits, and roots. Wood is the defender, To be added soon