Lavandula angusitfolia
HELLO ALL! I HOPE YOU'RE HAVING A GREAT HOLIDAY WEEKEND!
Lavender, (Lavandula angustifolia), is a wonderfully gentle and compassionate herb, that deserves a place in every garden. Lavender is very calming, relaxing and uplifting. It is a mild antidepressant, and can be used to help relive tension, stress, insomnia and headaches. It’s useful as an antibacterial, anti fungal and antiseptic herb and has been used to treat different infections like strep, staph and colds. Historically, it has been used to treat ringworm, yeast infections, bites and burns. In addition, it is often included in digestive herb formulas for its antispasmodic properties.
While it is most commonly used for it’s relaxing properties, lavender has a mixed relaxant and stimulating energy. Take a sniff and you might notice a slight hint of mint mixed with its floral notes. Lavender is part of the Lamiaceae (mint) plant family, and like its cousin, Rosemary, Lavender can help with alertness and focus. It is drying, cooling, stimulating and relaxing with some warming potential. Lavender has some analgesic (pain relieving) properties, can promote sweating, and stimulates circulation.
One of the primary constituents in Lavender is the monoterpene Linalool. In general, monoterpenes have highly concentrated essential oils which can be easily absorbed through the skin, directly into the central nervous system (CNS), according to Lisa Ganora, author of, “Herbal Constituents: Foundations of Phytochemistry.” Lavender is known for it’s calming and relaxing properties. Scientific study has found that linalool helps to calm the sympathetic nervous system, exciting the parasympathetic system. The sympathetic nervous system is responsible for our “fight or flight response” and the parasympathetic nervous system is in charge of relaxed states like rest and digestion. In other words, Lavender acts in the nervous system to help you calm down.
Lavender is safe to use with pretty much everyone, including the elderly and children, though it is recommend that pregnant women avoid taking large doses internally. Lavender, historically, has been used by midwives to help with a difficult and painful birth and to help promote afterbirth.
It is native to the Mediterranean, northern and eastern Africa, and parts of India. It likes to grow in well-drained soil, in a sunny spot that mimics its native habitat. It’s relatively easy to grow but is difficult to start from seed, with a germination rate of less than 50 percent. I’d suggest starting from cuttings or buying a few plants from your local nursery. It’s most commonly used as an infusion, tincture or essential oil. It’s great as a steam inhalation or a yoni steam. It’s also a common herb in lotions, creams, washes and baths. Lavender is a common ingredient in herbal smoke blends and can be burned for purification similar to White Sage.
Lavender has associations dating back to ancient Egypt and perhaps even earlier. It’s said that Queen Cleopatra used lavender to seduce her lovers and grew it in her gardens. Ancient Romans used to scent their baths with lavender and use it to wash their clothes. Christian myth says that lavender bushes used be scentless. They became scented when the Virgin Mary laid out baby Jesus’ swaddling clothes to dry on a bush. When she went to collect the dry clothes the flowers had miraculously gained their perfume. Rene Gattefosse, a French chemist who worked in the early aromatherapy industry, suffered a burn in his lab, but plunged his arm into a tub of lavender oil which is said to have significantly reduced his injury and sped up the healing process. Lavender is associated with peace, harmony, tranquility, love, purification, protection, and healing. It’s associated with the planet Mercury, the zodiac Virgo and the Air element.
