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Conventional or organic available Jojoba (Simmondsia chinensis) , also known as goat nut, deer nut, pignut, wild hazel, quinine nut, coffeeberry, and gray box bush, is native to South-western North America. The plant came to prominence in the late 1970s when scientists found that the liquid wax from the jojoba bean has a strikingly similar structure to the natural wax esters in human skin. The CSIRO introduced the plant to Australia in 1978 and selectively bred certain varieties especially suited to Australian conditions. Commercial plantations are now established across the country, including at Kalannie, Wagin, Geraldton and York in Western Australia. A shrubby bush which usually grows between 3-6 feet, though occasionally taller, the leaves are up to 1 ½” long, thick with a waxy gray-green coloration. The flowers are small with a green-yellow color and contain no petals. The plant is usually dioecious, either male or female, with both sexes needed to produce the fruit. Occasionally there are hermaphrodite plants but this is rare. The plants can live between 100-200 years. While often solitary in growth, jojoba’s can produce ground based shoots and form into thickets.

Eucalyptus citriodora is a tall tree, growing up to 40 meters in height (but sometimes taller), from temperate and tropical north eastern Australia. It is one of the most popular eucalyptus trees grown throughout Melbourne in Australia, which is its native country. This species is believed to have originated from a restricted area of Queensland on the Tropic of Capricorn, and is now found growing throughout the world’s tropical climates. It is also known as lemon-scented gum, blue spotted gum, lemon eucalyptus. It has smooth, pale, uniform or slightly mottled bark, white to coppery in summer, and a conspicuously narrow-leaved crown which smells strongly of lemons. Pear-shaped buds are borne in clusters of three, formed in the corner of leaf and stem junctions, whilst fruit (capsules) are urn-shaped. The bark is smooth for the entire height of the tree, often powdery shedding in thin curling flakes. It prefers lighter, slightly acidic loamy soils and occurs in dry sclerophyll forest and woodlands in hilly country. All species of eucalyptus leaves have been used in traditional Aboriginal bush medicine for thousands of years. Infusions made of E. citriodora leaves were taken internally to reduce fevers and ease gastric conditions, and applied externally as a wash for the analgesic, anti-fungal and anti-inflammatory properties. Aborigines would make leaves into a poultice and apply them to ease joint pain and speed up the healing of cuts, skin conditions, wounds and infections. Respiratory infections, colds and sinus congestion were treated by inhaling the vapors of steamed leaves, and to treat rheumatism the leaves were made into beds or used in steam pits heated by fire. The therapeutic qualities of the leaves and its essential oil were eventually introduced and integrated into many traditional medicine systems, including Chinese, Indian Ayurvedic and Greco-European. Find out more about our 8 other species of Eucalyptus in the video below and discover the different uses of their essential oils in our Essence of Eucalyptus blog post.

Conventional or organic available Melissa, or Lemon Balm, is a perennial herb from the mint family. It grows to about 60 cm (2 feet) and likes soil with a high iron content and has small serrated slightly hairy leaves. During summer, small white flowers full of nectar appear that are very attractive to bees. The oil is steam distilled from the leaves and flowers of the plant and has a sweet, fresh, citrus like fragrance. One of the most powerful essential oils in all of aromatherapy, Melissa essential oil is most significantly known for being an effective mood lifter. Because lemon balm uses are popular with the perfume and other industries and the plant has a very low oil yield, the distillation cost is extremely high making it a rare and expensive oil.