Do you remember taxonomic rank from high school biology?  No? Okay, that makes you normal, but let’s jog your memory!  I’m sure you used some type of mnemonic device to remember all of the animal classifications when it came to test day. Mine was: King Phillip Came Over For Good Spaghetti (kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, species).  

What does this have to do with essential oils, and specifically rosemary? Well let me tell you! Just like animals, plants have their own taxonomy. Plants themselves are a kingdom, and rosemary is a genus.  But not all rosemary is the same.  There are many different species of rosemary, and Savhera’s species is rosmarinus officinalis. This beautiful evergreen shrub produces blue flowers with only the tender, smaller stems, buds and leaves being used for steam distillation.

But not all species of rosmarinus officinalis are the same.  The species is further subdivided into chemotypes, which is most often determined by the region where the species of rosmarinus officinalis is grown.  As discussed in a previous post, the chemical composition of the soil and weather patterns yield different chemical compositions of the same species of plant.  This means that rosmarinus officinalis grown in Tunisia has a different chemotype than rosmarinus officinalis grown in Italy.  It also means that two bottles of rosmarinus officinalis can smell differently based on being from different parts of the world or even being grown in different seasons.

Savhera’s rosmarinus officinalis is grown and harvested in Tunisia, North Africa which provides a Mediterranean growing climate known for creating a cineole chemotype. The GC/MS report for Savhera’s current batch of rosemary reveals that this batch is 48% 1,8 cineole. What does this mean?

1,8 cineole is anti-microbial, anti-bacterial, and anti-fungal.  Diffusing Savhera’s rosemary in your spaces literally cleans the air!  1,8 cineole can also be anti-inflammatory, meaning our rosemary can help relieve pain and tension.  Finally, 1,8 cineole is a mucolytic and expectorant, so our rosemary also can help clear sinuses and lead to easier breathing.

This one essential oil serves so many functions which makes rosemary a super special species!