Essential Oils 101 – Tagetes – Ylang Ylang

Today:

• Tagetes
• Tea Tree (Melaleuca)
• Thyme
• Vanilla
• Vetiver
• Ylang Ylang

Tagetes Essential Oil (Top)

Properties: Tagetes essential oil is an antibiotic, antimicrobial (kills microorganisms or inhibits their growth), antiparasitic, antiseptic, antispasmodic, disinfectant, insecticide and a sedative substance.

Health benefits: It inhibits biotic, microbial and other parasitic growth, protects against sepsis, relaxes spasms, fights infections, kills and repels insects, soothes inflammation and nervous disorders.

Tea Tree (Melaleuca) Essential Oil (Middle)

Properties: Tea tree essential oil is antibacterial, antimicrobial (kills microorganisms or inhibits their growth), antiviral, fungicide, insecticide, antiseptic, cicatrisant (skin healing), expectorant, stimulant and sudorific (induces sweating) in nature.

Health benefits: It inhibits bacterial, microbial, and viral infections, kills insects, protects wounds from becoming septic, promotes absorption of nutrients, speeds up healing of scars, cures coughs and colds, stimulates systemic functions and appropriate discharges.

Thyme Essential Oil (Middle)

Properties: Thyme essential oil is an antispasmodic, antirheumatic (slow rheumatoid arthritis down), antiseptic, bactericidal (kills bacteria), cardiac, carminative, cicatrisant (skin healing), diuretic, emenagogue (stimulates or increases menstrual flow), expectorant, hypertensive, insecticide, stimulant, tonic and vermifugal (kill worms) substance.

Health benefits: It stops spasms, relieves rheumatism by removing toxins, protects wounds from becoming septic, and kills bacteria, cures chest infections, coughs and colds, is good for heart health, relieves excess gas, heals scars, increases urination and regulates menstrual cycles.

Vanilla Essential Oil (Base)

Properties: Vanilla essential oil is an antioxidant, aphrodisiac, anti-carcinogenic, febrifuge (reduce fever), antidepressant, sedative, tranquilising and relaxing substance.

Health benefits: It neutralises the effects of free radicals and other oxidants, repairs damages due to oxidation, enhances the libido and promotes sexual arousal, inhibits the growth of cancerous cells, reduces fever, fights depression and uplifts mood, soothes inflammation, reduces nervous disorders, promotes sleep, reduces stress and anxiety through its soothing qualities.

Vetiver Essential Oil (Base)

Properties: Vetiver essential oil is an anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, aphrodisiac, cicatrisant (skin healing), nervine (calm the nerves), sedative, tonic and a vulnerary (wound healing) compound.

Health benefits: It soothes inflammation, protects against sepsis, enhances the libido, speeds the healing process of scars and spots, cures nervous disorders and boosts the body’s ability to heal itself.

Ylang Ylang Essential Oil (Base/Middle)

Properties: Ylang Ylang essential oil is an antidepressant, antiseborrhoeic (preventing or relieving seborrheic dermatitis), antiseptic, aphrodisiac, hypotensive (lowering the blood pressure), nervine (calm the nerves) and sedative substance.

Health benefits: It fights against depression and uplifts mood, stops sebum secretion, protects against sepsis, increases libido and cures various sexual disorders, reduces blood pressure, cures nervous disorders, soothes inflammation and reduces the severity of nervous disorders.

 

DISCLAIMER

Information provided is for personal information and interest only, it is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease and does not offer medical advice or treatment for any condition. It is recommend you consult your doctor or aromatherapist if you are pregnant, nursing, take medication, have any health/medical conditions and want to include using essential oils.

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Angled Potted Herbs

Remember a while back we all got the awesome idea from my clever friend Des to stack pots in our gardens.  Well I just couldn’t wait for Spring so scrummaged through our spider infested shed (I was so brave all on my own – John, I know you will appreciate this fact) and found a few pots – all a bit battered but still very functional and some steel poles (hope Pete doesn’t need them for something) and set to work in my little cordoned off herb garden which I have spoken about before.  Once I saw what Des did in her garden, I was sold and changed my entire idea to follow in her foot steps.  Thanks again Des!

Winter isn’t the best time for herbs but I have persevered  and at least have some spinach, lettuce (not herbs I know), oregano, rocket, thyme, parsley – moss curled and flat leaf, spring onions, dill, garlic chives and birds eye chillies.

I could supply all foodies bloggers with bay leaves from our bay tree which you can see sticking out behind the centre row of pots – it is trying to do a Jack and the Bean Stalk number and keeps getting taller and taller.  I am continually hacking away at it to keep it from taking over the herb garden.

Now I cannot wait to fill in the open spots with a few more pots and plant basil, coriander, sorrel, sage and rosemary.

Out of view in the photo are two free standing ceramic pots on either side of the herb garden.  The one pot has mint in it and the other has baby tomatoes.  There is one more ceramic bowl type pot which currently has a peppadew plant in it – I want to add some strawberries when they are in season too.

Bring on Spring! 😀

Herb Garden

It’s no secret that I REALLY dislike winter so to wish it away even faster (it hasn’t even officially started yet – we are still in Autumn) , I sat down and redesigned my herb garden for in our courtyard area, so by the time Spring shows it’s beautiful face, I will be ready to rock and roll.  We have a designated triangular area which is pretty bare at the moment except for a ever thriving bay tree which is smack bang in the middle.  In hindsight, it was probably not the best place to plant it.

The only “open” piece of the triangle is the bottom, both sides are walls so no moving the herb garden to a better position; only remedy is to keep the herbs in pots and move them around.

I have tried to work around companion planting, perennial versus annual herbs and which plants want a little less sunlight and below is a rough sketch of what I have in mind.

The strawberries, mint and baby tomatoes are in their own terracotta pots which stand separate to the herb garden.

What do you think?

Garlic, Wine & Thyme Mushroom Pasta

This is one of those meals you can have ready in 20 minutes, you know, for those evenings when you have sat behind the computer for too long AGAIN…

Ingredients

Pasta of choice
250g button mushrooms sliced
Vegetable spice
2.5ml dry thyme
250ml cream
60ml dry white wine
15ml maizena (cornstarch)
2 garlic cloves crushed
Salt and black pepper

Method

1. Cook the pasta as per the package instructions.
2. Fry the mushrooms in a little butter sprinkled with the vegetable spice and thyme until tender.
3. Pour the cream and wine into the pan and bring to a boil.
4. Mix the maizena with a little water and stir through the cream mixture to thicken.
5. Add the garlic and season with salt and black pepper.
6. Serve over the pasta.