I’m delighted to share with you a personal message from Jan Sarre-Smith, the founder of Janesce Skincare. She shares with us her thoughts on the personalities of different plants. Now in her late-80’s, Jan shows no signs of slowing down and continues to inspire us with her passion and wisdom. Enjoy.
~ Janine Tait .
Nature is a great educator! The past 40 years has been a continuous education to understand all the plants in our organic garden. I’ve learnt how every plant responds to different factors. Weather conditions, soil varieties and fertilisation all impact in a different way on each plant.
Above all of this, there’s a wonderful saying by a seasoned farmer: “The best compost a garden can have is the vibration of a gardener’s footsteps!”. In other words, plants need to be constantly cared for. Think of an isolated tree, devoid of any attention and compare it with a well-watered and nurtured tree.
I’ve realised over the years that our plants have personalities. Each plant has a different set of benefits they offer to humans. This is true whether they are used as an essential oil or as a specially prepared extract from the dried plants themselves. Here are some examples:
Lavender: With a multi-talented group of advantages, it is Nature’s Balancer. It balances your skin’s oil secretions, increasing them when the skin is too dry and calming over oily skin. It stimulates healing and calms inflammation. Lavender uplifts you when you feel down and calms you when you feel stressed.
Rose: Nature’s Feminiser. Remember the story of Cleopatra in a bath full of fresh rose petals? They increase skin humidity due to their high level of feminising nutrients. Roses are anti-inflammatory and calming to the skin. They also help counteract the negative impact of male hormone dominance on female skin.
Calendula: Of all plants, this is Nature’s Healer. It has been proven for centuries that this is an amazing flower, speeds healing of skin and reduces scarring. It is very high in vitamins A and C. Calendula has a high anti-oxidant activity. This is needed because of the high level of sun exposure they get. The flowers ‘follow the sun’ facing east in the morning and closes the day facing west. This means it can help boost your skin’s ability to protect itself from the sun too!
Chamomile: This gentle, tiny blossom is Nature’s Anti-inflammatory. Think of eczema skin or the tender skin of young babies. This is where the magic of the substance azulene in the flower does its job of calming the skin. Any swollen tissues and redness is soothed by this precious little flower.
If you are a gardener, all these plants are so easy to grow and enjoy. They can bring you so many benefits in your life. So why not start now?