Aromatherapy Newsletter: Spring 2020

Spring Harvest News, 2020

Greetings Everyone!

In this Newsletter: New Distillations: Lemon Peels and River Red Gum Eucalyptus New Distillations: Meyer Lemon, Sweet Orange, Ruby Red Grapefruit and Lime Peels Anti-viral Essential Oils Essential Oils from Jamaica! List of New Essential Oils List of New Hydrosols More Helpful Hydrosols in Stock Hydrosol Recipes COVID-19 Update Anti-viral Herbal Vinegar Recipe Haiti Trip Update May Retreat Update Strengthening Self-care Tip

I usually write much shorter newsletters, because I know everyone is busy, but I hope you will bear with this because there is something beautiful at the end!

New Distillations: Lemon Peels and River Red Gum Eucalyptus

A mighty River Red Gum Eucalyptus tree

We have an established seasonal rhythm of plant distillation that we have followed for years now. This past fall we broke with that. After distilling all of the late summer/early fall blooming plants, and the conifers that we wanted to work with before mountain roads closed, we switched gears. We partnered up with Castle Hot Springs, in the foothills of the Wickenburg Mountains, AZ, to distill their Lemon Peels and River Red Gum Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus camaldulensis), from magnificent old growth trees. www.castlehotsprings.com.

New Distillations: Organic Meyer Lemon, Organic Sweet Orange, Organic Ruby Red Grapefruit and Organic Lime Peels

We also partnered up with Local Juicery, a fabulous organic plant-based cafe and cold-pressed juicery in Sedona, and began distilling Meyer Lemon, Sweet Orange, Ruby Red Grapefruit and Lime peels. It felt like the right direction and we followed it with great enthusiasm. www.localjuicery.com

Purchase New Eucalyptus Essential Oils here >>

Purchase New Citrus Essential Oils here >>

Anti-viral Essential Oils

There had been lag time on renewing our permit from the Forest Service (partially our fault, partially theirs, and then Covid-19), so our entire focus was on these plants. As I sit here in the quiet of a mostly shut down Sedona, I realize that we were doing exactly what we were supposed to be doing for the last several months - distilling anti-viral essential oils.

Exceptional Quality Jamaican Essential Oils

This past fall we also invested in many anti-viral oils from Yerba Buena Farm in Jamaica, such as Pimento Berry, Cinnamon Leaf, Sweet Orange, and Lemongrass. These oils are all distilled in a 5-gallon distillation system, and being such small batches, the quality of the plant material and the essential oil is impeccable. Also, there must be something said for the love and passion that go into them! www.yerbabuenafarmjamaica.com.

Purchase Essential Oils from Jamaica here >>

List of New Essential Oils

The River Red Gum Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus camaldulensis), Organic Lime Peel (Citrus x aurantifolia), Organic Meyer Lemon Peel (Citrus x meyeri), Organic Ruby Red Grapefruit Peel (Citrus x paradisi) and Organic Sweet Orange Peel (Citrus x sinenesis), and Unsprayed Lemon Peel (Citrus x limon) essential oils are now newly matured and ready for use.

List of New Hydrosols

The hydrosols of River Red Gum Eucalyptus, Organic Lime Peel, Organic Meyer Lemon Peel, Organic Ruby Red Grapefruit Peel, and Unsprayed Lemon Peel (Citrus x limon), are also available. The cost for all 4 oz. hydrosols is $15, which includes shipping.

Purchase Hydrosols here >>

More Helpful Hydrosols in Stock

Other hydrosols that we have an abundance of that may be helpful at this time are Rosemary ct. pinene/cineole, Oregano (a co-distill of Greek, Syrian and Kyrgystani varieties), Melissa, Bergamot Mint, Clary Sage, Desert Lavender, Blue Spruce, Pinyon Pine, Yerba Santa/ Pinyon Pine co-distill, Chaparral/ Pinyon Pine co-distill, Corkbark Fir, Douglas Fir, and Subalpine Fir.

River Red Gum Eucalyptus and Palm Trees

River Red Gum Eucalyptus: sky view

River Red Gum Eucalyptus: trunk close-up

Hydrosol Recipes

Diffusing Hydrosols

As I am sure you all know, hydrosols contain water soluble constituents and a small amount of emulsified essential oil. We have been using them daily in our diffuser with, and sometimes without essential oils. This offers a full spectrum of benefits from the plants. Here are three of our favorite recipes, all of which have an emotionally uplifting effect.

50 mls. filtered water
1 TBS River Red Gum Eucalyptus hydrosol
1 TBS Lemon Peel hydrosol
1 drop each River Red Gum Eucalyptus and/or Lemon Peel essential oils (optional for added strength)

50 mls. filtered water
1 TBS Blue Spruce hydrosol
1 TBS Grapefruit Peel hydrosol
1 drop each Blue Spruce and/or Grapefruit Peel essential oils (optional for added strength)

50 mls. filtered water
1 TBS Rosemary hydrosol
1 TBS Lime Peel hydrosol 1 drop each Rosemary and/or Lime Peel essential oils (optional for added strength).

Out of Stock

I am sorry to say that our Rosemary essential oil is out of stock, but we will be distilling it again soon.

COVID-19 Update

Since we have no employees, and work from home and in nature, we will remain open at this time. We began sheltering over three weeks ago (two weeks before the state mandated) and have not been in contact with anyone who we know has become sick. So far, our area has not been hit hard, but regardless of all of this, we are using hand sanitizer, gloves and mask to pack orders. Also, at this point, all of our packing materials were purchased before the outbreak. We will notify you immediately if things change for us.

Anti-viral Herbal Vinegar Recipe

We now are homeschooling Arabella, and are allowing more time for creative projects with her. She has chosen Herbology for her self-directed study, and we started our lessons with making an anti-viral herbal vinegar. This is a front line defense that can be used as a gargle at the first sign of sore throat. Also, Apple Cider vinegar and fresh herbs have not been greatly hoarded, so these items are still available in most places. My friend, Susan Williams, of www.pivot-health.com, reminded me of this simple and effective recipe.

One part chopped fresh herbs
Two parts Apple Cider vinegar

Combine these in a glass jar, and allow them to steep for a minimum of three days. When it is time to use the gargle:

Combine 1 oz. herbal vinegar and 3 ozs. warm water, and gargle away.

We used Rosemary, Melissa (Lemon Balm) and Thyme, because of their antiviral properties, and they are coming up in our yard right now. If you do not have access to fresh herbs such as this, you could add ½ teaspoon of hydrosol to your gargle.

Anti-viral Herbal Vinegar Recipe: Step 1

Anti-viral Herbal Vinegar Recipe: Step 2

Anti-viral Herbal Vinegar Recipe: Step 3

Haiti Trip Update

I am very sorry to say that we had to cancel the Haiti trip, due to political and civil unrest (before Covid-19), so we changed our plans to meet up in the Dominican Republic. We obviously had to cancel those plans too. The good news is that we have worked on developing products through WhatsApp, and have changed our focus to create a hand sanitizer that can be used in Haiti, and is made with all Haitian sourced ingredients.

May Retreat Update

We have also regrettably had to cancel our retreat for the New York Institute of Aromatic Studies, this coming May. We have had a wonderful 4 years running, and I hope we will be able to resume our work together again in the not to distant future. We are sending our love every day to our friends at NYIOAS and to all of NYC.

Strengthening Self-care Tip

By now we have all heard many ways of keeping ourselves safe from the virus, and strengthening our immune systems, but I would like to add one more thing that I have not seen mentioned. If you live in a place that is warm enough, try to get your bare feet on the earth for at least 15 minutes. I can’t say how many times this simple action has helped me fight off illnesses, and made me feel stronger both physically and emotionally.

In Closing…

Arabella clipping Clary-Sage

It is impossible to know how long these current conditions will last, and how our lives will be changed from it all, but it is my hope that we will find ourselves strengthened and more connected to ourselves, loved ones, local and global communities, and the earth. That being said, I’d like to share this poem, just written by our 13-year-old daughter.

Whispers
By Arabella Licher

I stop and listen to the forest breeze
As it whispers Welcome

I bow down humbly upon my knees
As the forest whispers Welcome

I feel the outside world freeze
As they whisper Welcome

 

We wish you all the best.

With love,
Clare and Max Licher