One of the most versatile essential oils, lavender is native to the Mediterranean, and is cultivated in England and Northern Europe, Italy, and Australia. It is a woody evergreen shrub, with pale green narrow leaves and striking violet-blue flowers borne on blunt spikes. The whole plant is highly aromatic. Harvested toward the end of flowering, the fresh flower tops are steam distilled to yield a clear to yellow-green tinted essential oil. Lavenders scent is fresh, floral and distinctive, with fruit to herbaceous, slightly woody to non-descript dry-out notes. What is the essential oil not useful for? An invaluable skin healing essential oil, lavender is useful for burns, scar tissue, mature skin and oily skin. It eases anxiety, depression, grief, and insomnia, among numerous other qualities.

You will find deeper detail about this essential oil in my books, Essential Oils for Mindfulness and Meditation, and Essential Oils for the Whole Body