EUCALYPTUS TREE
Eucalyptus is an
evergreen tree. It grows to about 300-480 feet when it matures, its cultivated
in moist valleys because it needs a lot of water to survive.
The name eucalyptus was coined by a French
botanist named Charles- Louis l’heritier. Charles –louis coined the word from Latin
“eu” meaning “well” and “calyptus”
meaning “covered” when put together it means,” well covered” well describes the
structure of the eucalyptus tree. Eucalyptus tree is known to be one of the
fastest growing trees in the world.
Eucalyptus is a native
of Australia, and in Australia alone, over 500 species have being identified
and named by many researchers. Some
species come from countries like Chile, South Africa, China, Spain, Portugal
and Russia.
A BRIEF HISTORY OF
EUCALYPTUS
The aborigines of Australia
have used eucalyptus for thousands of years for medicinal purposes but, it was
in 1770 that, extensive research began to really study the medicinal properties
of eucalyptus. This research was carried out by leading botanists, such as;
Charles- Louis l’heritier, Joseph banks, Daniel solander and James cook, just
too name a few. Joseph Banks, Daniel solamder and James cook, toured Australia,
collecting specimen of species of eucalyptus, identifying and naming the
species they collected.
In the 19th
century another botanist in Australia, by name Ferdinand von Mueller. He also
discovered and named more species of eucalyptus.
EUCALYPTUS OIL
A eucalyptus globule is
the most commonly used eucalyptus specie for essential oil extraction, another
commonly used specie is eucalyptus radiata. Eucalyptus oil is extracted form
eucalyptus leave through steam distillation. It takes over 100 pounds of
eucalyptus leaves to produce just 2 pounds of eucalyptus oil. Eucalyptus oil is
clear and colorless and has a suiting scent.
The active component in
eucalyptus oil is- eucalyptol. Eucalyptol is a strong antiseptic and analgesic.
Eucalyptus oil is very medicinal, it’s a remedy for a host of illnesses which
range from malaria, bronchitis, flues sinusitis and meningitis.
Eucalyptus oil has a
lot of benefits, but, even with these benefits professional advice is required
for effective use. This is; because eucalyptus oil is know to cause skin
irritation if not appropriately used.
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