Jun 08 2008
Helichrysum in Corsica
In the fall of 2007, I returned from an inspiring trip to Corsica and France. In Corsica I was visiting a distiller, Michele, who I have been buying essential oils from this year. It was Helichrysum season, and I had the amazing opportunity to go into the mountains with Michele and her crew and learn to harvest Helichrysum. Corsica is full of Helichrysum, growing wild in the mountains, on the beach, and being planted in the fields. It is such a beautiful plant and offers us so many therapeutic properties (skin, scar and wound healing, anti-inflammatory, emotional healing from trauma, great for headaches and pain).
There is nothing quite like the experience of meeting the distillers of these precious essential oils. All of the distillers I have met are people who love to grow plants organically, who respect and love the plant world, and who are dedicating themselves to the art and science of distilling essential oils. It is hard physical labor and they are delighted to know how much we enjoy their oils, and how deeply healing the oils are for so many people.
In France I saw an amazing field of Cornflowers! What a vibrant blue! This plant is distilled just for the hydrosol. The hydrosol is used for keeping the skin healthy and for swollen or painful eyes. It can be used as an eye drop for tired sore eyes, or as a spray for keeping the skin beautiful. As soon as I saw the plant and that amazing blue, I understood how healing this hydrosol would be.
Hi, I loved your article! I will be bicycling across Europe and around Corsica in September. I would LOVE to meet a distiller or two of Helichrysum Oil, which we have carried thru third-party sources for many years. We need this Oil in Israel, one of my home bases, to treat severe wounds and infections in a war-torn land. I would really appreciate it if you would Email me a contact person or company or two in Corsica that I could visit and possibly hook up with as a supplier, when I am there. Also any other info that will lead me to the right area in Corsica, or hints that will help me along my way there.