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Pelargonium Graveolens
''Pelargonium graveolens'' is a ''Pelargonium'' species native to the Cape Provinces and the Northern Provinces of South Africa, Zimbabwe and Mozambique. Etymology ''Pelargonium'' comes from the Greek πελαργός ''pelargos'' which means stork. Another name for pelargoniums is stork's-bills due to the shape of their fruit. The specific epithet ''graveolens'' refers to the strong-smelling leaves. Description ''Pelargonium graveolens'' is an erect, multi-branched shrub, that grows up to 1.5 m and has a spread of 1 m. The leaves are deeply incised, velvety and soft to the touch (due to glandular hairs). The flowers vary from pale pink to almost white and the plant flowers from August to January. The leaves may be strongly rose-scented, although the leaf shape and scent vary. Some plants are very strongly scented and others have little or no scent. Some leaves are deeply incised and others less so, being slightly lobed like '' P. capitatum''. Common names and syn ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pelargonium 'Citrosum'
''Pelargonium'' 'citrosum' (often sold by the invalid binomial name ''Pelargonium citrosum'' ) is a perennial subshrub with fragrant leaves that are reminiscent of citronella. ''P.'' 'citrosum' is marketed as "mosquito plant" or "citrosa geranium" in stores in the United States and Canada, even though research from the University of Guelph indicates the plant is ineffective against ''Aedes aegypti'' mosquitos. "Not only was the plant ineffective at protecting humans against Aedes mosquito bites, the mosquitoes were seen landing and resting on the citrosa plant on a regular basis." It is claimed that ''P.'' 'citrosum' may be a genetic bonding of the African geranium with genes from Cymbopogon grass, but that claim has also been proven false. The plant appears to be a cultivar of ''Pelargonium graveolens''. The citronella geranium is not to be confused with others that are also called "mosquito plant", nor with the group of plants also known as citronella grass, or with ''Cit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Organic Compound
In chemistry, organic compounds are generally any chemical compounds that contain carbon-hydrogen or carbon-carbon bonds. Due to carbon's ability to catenate (form chains with other carbon atoms), millions of organic compounds are known. The study of the properties, reactions, and syntheses of organic compounds comprise the discipline known as organic chemistry. For historical reasons, a few classes of carbon-containing compounds (e.g., carbonate salts and cyanide salts), along with a few other exceptions (e.g., carbon dioxide, hydrogen cyanide), are not classified as organic compounds and are considered inorganic. Other than those just named, little consensus exists among chemists on precisely which carbon-containing compounds are excluded, making any rigorous definition of an organic compound elusive. Although organic compounds make up only a small percentage of Earth's crust, they are of central importance because all known life is based on organic compounds. Living t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rose Oil
Rose oil (rose otto, attar of rose, attar of roses, or rose essence) is the essential oil extracted from the petals of various types of rose. ''Rose ottos'' are extracted through steam distillation, while ''rose absolutes'' are obtained through solvent extraction, the absolute being used more commonly in perfumery. The production technique originated in Persia. Even with their high price and the advent of organic synthesis, rose oils are still perhaps the most widely used essential oil in perfumery. Components Two major species of rose are cultivated for the production of rose oil: * ''Rosa damascena'', the damask rose, which is widely grown in Bulgaria, Syria, Turkey, Russia, Pakistan, India, Uzbekistan, Iran and China * ''Rosa centifolia'', the cabbage rose, which is more commonly grown in Morocco, France and Egypt. The most common chemical compounds present in rose oil are: citronellol, geraniol, nerol, linalool, phenyl ethyl alcohol, farnesol, stearoptene, α-pinene, β ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Massage Therapy
Massage is the manipulation of the body's soft tissues. Massage techniques are commonly applied with hands, fingers, elbows, knees, forearms, feet or a device. The purpose of massage is generally for the treatment of body stress or pain. In European countries, a person professionally trained to give massages is traditionally known as a masseur (male) or masseuse (female). In the United States, these individuals are often referred to as massage therapists, because they must be certified and licensed as "licensed massage therapists". In professional settings, clients are treated while lying on a massage table, sitting in a massage chair or lying on a mat on the floor. There are many different modalities in the massage industry, including (but not limited to): deep tissue, manual lymphatic drainage, Medical massage, medical, sports, Structural Integration, structural integration, Massage#Swedish_massage, Swedish, Thai massage, Thai and trigger point. Etymology The word comes ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aromatherapy
Aromatherapy is based on the usage of aromatic materials including essential oils and other aroma compounds, with claims for improving psychological and physical well-being. It is offered as a complementary therapy or as a form of alternative medicine, the first meaning alongside standard treatments, the second instead of conventional, evidence-based treatments. Aromatherapists, people who specialize in the practice of aromatherapy, utilize blends of supposedly therapeutic essential oils that can be used as topical application, massage, inhalation or water immersion. There is no good medical evidence that aromatherapy can either prevent, treat or cure any disease. Placebo-controlled trials are difficult to design as the point of aromatherapy is the smell of the products. There is disputed evidence that it may be effective in combating postoperative nausea and vomiting. History The use of essential oils for therapeutic, spiritual, hygienic and ritualistic purposes goes ba ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Absolute (fragrance)
Used in perfumery and aromatherapy, absolutes are similar to essential oils. They are concentrated, highly aromatic, oily mixtures extracted from plants. Whereas essential oils are produced by distillation, boiling or pressing, absolutes are produced through solvent extraction, or more traditionally, through enfleurage. Production First, plant material is extracted with a hydrocarbon solvent, such as hexane, to yield a concrete. The concrete is then extracted with ethanol. The ethanol extract is cooled (e.g., to −15 °C) to solidify waxes, and cold filtered to yield a liquid extract. When the ethanol evaporates, an oil—the absolute—is left behind. Traditionally, the absolute was obtained by enfleurage, where the resulting pommade was extracted with ethanol to yield the absolute. Character and use Some raw materials are either too delicate or too inert to be steam-distilled and can only yield their aroma through solvent extraction. Examples of these are jasmine a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Distillation
Distillation, or classical distillation, is the process of separation process, separating the components or substances from a liquid mixture by using selective boiling and condensation, usually inside an apparatus known as a still. Dry distillation is the heating of solid materials to produce gaseous products (which may condense into liquids or solids); this may involve chemical changes such as destructive distillation or Cracking (chemistry), cracking. Distillation may result in essentially complete separation (resulting in nearly pure components), or it may be a partial separation that increases the concentration of selected components; in either case, the process exploits differences in the relative volatility of the mixture's components. In Chemical industry, industrial applications, distillation is a unit operation of practically universal importance, but is a physical separation process, not a chemical reaction. An installation used for distillation, especially of distilled ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Perfume
Perfume (, ; french: parfum) is a mixture of fragrant essential oils or aroma compounds (fragrances), fixatives and solvents, usually in liquid form, used to give the human body, animals, food, objects, and living-spaces an agreeable scent. The 1939 Nobel Laureate for Chemistry, Leopold Ružička stated in 1945 that "right from the earliest days of scientific chemistry up to the present time, perfumes have substantially contributed to the development of organic chemistry as regards methods, systematic classification, and theory." Ancient texts and archaeological excavations show the use of perfumes in some of the earliest human civilizations. Modern perfumery began in the late 19th century with the commercial synthesis of aroma compounds such as vanillin or coumarin, which allowed for the composition of perfumes with smells previously unattainable solely from natural aromatics. History The word ''perfume'' derives from the Latin ''perfumare'', meaning "to smoke through". ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Geraniaceae
Geraniaceae is a family of flowering plants placed in the order Geraniales. The family name is derived from the genus ''Geranium''. The family includes both the genus ''Geranium'' (the cranesbills, or true geraniums) and the garden plants called geraniums, which modern botany classifies as genus ''Pelargonium'', along with other related genera. The family comprises 830 species in five to seven genera. The largest genera are ''Geranium'' (430 species), ''Pelargonium'' (280 species) and ''Erodium'' (80 species). Description Geraniaceae are herbs or subshrubs. The ''Sarcocaulon'' are succulent, but other members of the family generally are not. Leaves are usually lobed or otherwise divided, sometimes peltate, opposite or alternate and usually have stipules. The flowers are generally regular, or symmetrical. They are hermaphroditic, actinomorphic (radially symmetrical, like in ''Geranium'') or slightly zygomorphic (with a bilateral symmetry, like in ''Pelargonium''). The calyx a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Geranium
''Geranium'' is a genus of 422 species of annual, biennial, and perennial plants that are commonly known as geraniums or cranesbills. They are found throughout the temperate regions of the world and the mountains of the tropics, but mostly in the eastern part of the Mediterranean region. The palmately cleft leaves are broadly circular in form. The flowers have five petals and are coloured white, pink, purple or blue, often with distinctive veining. Geraniums will grow in any soil as long as it is not waterlogged. Propagation is by semiripe cuttings in summer, by seed, or by division in autumn or spring. Geraniums are eaten by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including brown-tail, ghost moth, and mouse moth. At least several species of ''Geranium'' are gynodioecious. The species ''Geranium viscosissimum'' (sticky geranium) is considered to be protocarnivorous. Name The genus name is derived from the Greek (''géranos'') or (''geranós'') ' crane'. The English name ' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
