Purple cone flower, Echinacea purpurea
Echinacea purpurea
Purple coneflower, Coneflower
Asteraceae
History and Origin
Echinacea is indigenous in North America. It is found wild in the vast prairies of the United-States. It likes rich, light, and well-drained soils. This plant is cultivated for its ornamental value as well as for its interesting therapeutic properties. Echinacea, now famous in Europe, has first been employed by Native Americans. Archaeologists have found seeds dating from as early as the XVII Century on sites formerly populated by the Sioux Nation. The Plains Natives used it to treat respiratory infections as well as snake bites. They also used it against cough and some venereal disease.
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Echinacea purpurea
Purple coneflower, Coneflower
Asteraceae
History and Origin
Echinacea is indigenous in North America. It is found wild in the vast prairies of the United-States. It likes rich, light, and well-drained soils. This plant is cultivated for its ornamental value as well as for its interesting therapeutic properties. Echinacea, now famous in Europe, has first been employed by Native Americans. Archaeologists have found seeds dating from as early as the XVII Century on sites formerly populated by the Sioux Nation. The Plains Natives used it to treat respiratory infections as well as snake bites. They also used it against cough and some venereal disease.
| pH |
3.9 |
| Aroma and Taste |
Very fresh and bright; it literally zings in the nose at first sniff. This is followed by a deep, dark, haunting odor and finally a slight salty liquorice smell with a bitter edge. The taste is also fresh and definitely alive. Very mildly bitter and green but somehow simultaneously honeylike, with the same undertone of salty liquorice as in the aroma. Unique and very palatable. |
| Stability and Shelf Life |
Unknown. Seems stable at one year or more. |
| Properties and Applications |
Experimental. This hydrosol was made from the whole plant in flower, including roots. German research into Echinacea indicates that certain sugars (polysaccharides) present in tinctures and alcohol extracts of coneflower give it the immune-boosting properties for which it is chiefly known. Kurt Schnaubelt and others suggest that the sesquiterpenes found in the essential oil from the root and whole plant (up to 43 % germacrene D) also have immune-boosting properties, and the matter is being hotly debated among the chemistry fraternity. One thing is for sure, there is an immediate cellular response throughout the entire body that is very distinct and happens within seconds of ingestion. Whatever the chemists decide, the human body has already voted; it likes this a lot, thank you very much! |
References
Hydrosols, The Next Aromatherapy (Suzanne Catty), La Flore Laurentienne, Native American Ethnobotany and the personal notes of Lucie Mainguy.
Discharge
Aliksir strongly recommends that you consult with a physician or aromatherapist. It is important to inform yourself concerning contraindications or incompatibilities with other substances. Hydrosols are powerful, and they must be used according to the physiological doses.