25 May 2013

Lavender - The Lovely and aromatic herb


Here's the next post on my favorite 'Lavender'.  Lavender which is well known for its fragrance is indigenous(native) to the mountain regions and can be grown in gardens or fields.This fragrant herb is native to Africa, southern Europe, the Mediterranean region, southwest Asia and southeast India. But now it is widely cultivated all over the world for its aromatic nature. Despite its aroma, the other notable feature is the color of its flower . one of my favorite color indeed. It gives you a pleasant sight while seeing its flowers in bloom over in the garden or a field. It is also well known in biblical times as 'spikenard'. As I seen somewhere in the web, I came to know that the first use of this name 'Lavender' for a color term in English was used in 1705. Lavender has a great history for its healing properties. It symbolizes elegance, silence and spirituality. You can read the meaning of Lavender here : http://www.lavender-flower.net/




The lavender herb grows at its best when it has a good exposure to sunlight. Lavender is well known for its scent right from ancient times. Lavender is cultivated for its dried flowers and oil. It is believed that smelling the lavender flowers or the extract from the flowers which are made into oil can be used to relax the body and mind which produces a soothing effect. Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) belongs to the family Lamiaceae. It has 39 species. Lavender Lavender herb has green leaves and long spikes which bears the purple-blue flowers. The flowers usually bloom from June to September.

Types of Lavender :

                      ~Lavandula angustifolia (English Lavender)
                      ~Lavandula dentate (French Lavender) and
                      ~Lavandula stoechas (Spanish Lavender)

In India, Lavender cultivation can be well suited in Himalayas, but it is being experimented all over India. Near the manasbal lake, north of Sringar lavender is grown in a filed of 50 hectares by a woman, Dr Gazalla Amin. Click here for more on it - http://www.indianexpress.com/

Here are some cultivation process :
http://www.buzzle.com/


Here's the picture of world's largest Lavender garden. Located at Tasmania (South to Australia)

Numerous hidden values of Lavender :

                There are numerous values and uses of Lavender. It has various commercial, medicinal,culinary uses and above all for healing purposes. It's essential oil is widely used in making scents, perfumes for its aroma.

             ~ Lavender oil is used for antiseptic and anti-inflammatory properties. It is nicknamed as 'first aid in a bottle' for its multiple medicinal properties. Lavender was used in World war I and II when there was scarce in medicines.
             ~ It is used for relieving the muscular aches, sprains, stress, anxiety and many more.
             ~ It is used to treat insomnia, stomach problems, infections, poor vision, nerves disorder and dizziness and used in aromatherapy.
             ~  It is believed that the smell of lavender gives you tranquility and it eases you of depression and stress.
            ~ On the commercial front, Lavender is mostly used to make perfumes which are quite unique from other. It aroma increases the mental activity and removes you from nervous problems.
            ~ On the culinary front, candies are made from the Lavender flowers and they are used in making cakes. Since the Lavender flower has nectar in abundance, it attracts more bees which gives honey.They are also used in salads and for decorative purposes. Lavender herbal tea made of its flowers is used to promote sleep and to cure nervous disorders and stress.
            ~ Most importantly it is used in healing process like relaxing the mind and body. It is said that Lavender seeds or flowers placed under a pillow gives some relaxing and tranquil experience.
                            

Pictures courtesy : Internet

I was quite surprised and delighted to know about these valuable and hidden qualities of my own favorite Lavender and happy to share this with you all.

Thanks for reading.
Have colorful and Blessed days ahead. :)

35 comments:

  1. this post is Lavenderish !! :)
    very informative post Thanks for sharing those links !

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    1. Thanks a lot Mysay :) Thanks for the visit.

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  2. Very informative post. Thank you.

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  3. I love lavender Sushmitha. Thank you for the post The lavender field looks gorgeous. Looking forward to more

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    1. Thanks Sonia :) Will try my best in future :)

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  4. The lavender colour is too good. I wish I could directly visit a lavender field and see the splendour for myself! It's good to know that lavender has so many other uses, instead of just being a decorative flower. I should try keeping lavender flowers below my pillow sometime! :)

    Destination Infinity

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    1. Ya it is a delight to watch the lavender :) Try it and share your experience Rajesh ! Thanks for the visit :)

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    2. Your Rahul Dravid blog is hanging my browser when I try to visit it. You might want to remove certain heavy elements from the homepage, in order to make it lighter and load faster. Not sure if the problem is with the videos...

      Destination Infinity

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    3. Oh ! sure will check it and resolve as soon as possible. Thanks for the information :)

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  5. i dint know lavander was present in southeast india.! that was an info to me..: and i love the lavandor scented candles.. they are just great!..:)

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    1. Yep, their scent is familiar than their medicinal values. Thanks for the visit Sahi :)

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  6. Well, I don't know about the benefits of Lavender - Happy enough to enjoy the beauty which is beneficial enough :)

    Narendranath

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    1. Thanks for the comment and visit. Keep visiting :)

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  7. Thanks for sharing such an informative post and for your lovely comment!

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    1. Your welcome and thanks for the comment :)

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  8. Informative Post . . . I also love lavender.

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    1. Thanks :) Good to know that you too like it.

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  9. Quite Informative... "smell of lavender gives you tranquility and it eases you of depression and stress." - Great to know yar. Keep sharing the hidden facts.

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    1. Thanks Deepak :) Sure will try my best :)

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  10. Replies
    1. Indeed it is a beautiful color ! Thanks Debopam :)

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  11. a magical one .. very informative ..
    wish to eat a candy / cake tat r made from lavender flower ;)

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    1. Thanks Sugi :) yep, me too wish the same :)

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  12. Really Informative... My favorite color is lavender.. thanks for sharing hidden values of lavender.

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  13. My favourite room fresheners usually involves lavender. Nice to read about them. Good informative article.

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  14. I really love that color <3 one of my favorites :) Thanks for sharing this lavendary post with us :)

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  15. I love Lavender oil! Check out my article on Lavender Oil Benefits:

    5 Benefits of Lavender Oil

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    1. Thanks for the visit Arpita :) I have checked your post and it was so informative :)

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  16. Great post.... So much data behind lavender... Informations increases the beauty of lavender in the readers view....

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