Essential Extracts from the Islands
The farm and gardens at Kew Park boast a rich diversity of the scents, herbs and spices to be found in Jamaica. Many of our traditional herbal remedies, spicy foods and refreshers date back to the indigenous Tainos (Arawaks); others were introduced by African slaves, indentured laborers from China and India, and other migrants to the island. Even though conventional medicine is well-established in Jamaica, folk medicine is still widely practiced, particularly in the rural areas. Popular remedies include some of the herbs and spices grown at Kew Park.
Kew Park cultivates home and body products that are spa quality, and gentle enough for personal care. Our pure essential oils, room sprays and salt bath crystals are available in Allspice, Lemongrass, Grapefruit and Ortanique. A few drops of the essential oils can be added to baths, compresses, diffusers or footbaths. The sprays can be used to freshen air in a room, as a linen spray, as a yoga mat spray, or as a shoe deodorizer. The bath crystals are an excellent addition to your warm, soaking bath. Our products are used in hotels, spas and homes across Jamaica, and are exported to the US and Europe.
Allspice
The name ‘allspice’ came about because the pimento berry from which it is derived combines the flavor and aroma of cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon and pepper, all in one! Allspice is a famous remedy for indigestion and rheumatism. Used in small amounts with massage oil or in a tub, it is helpful in relieving many ailments. It can aid with the respiratory system with congestion and bronchitis; with the digestive system with flatulence, indigestion and nausea; and with the nervous system, stress.
Kew Park has been growing allspice for more than 100 years. While the ripe berries are picked and dried for cooking, we use the green leaves to produce pure allspice oil and floral waters through careful steam distillation. Kew Park Allspice Essential Oil and our other products like Room Mist and Linen Spray are used in hotels, spas and homes across Jamaica, and are exported to the US and Europe.
Lemongrass
Popularly known in Jamaica as ‘fever grass’ because it is used to make a bath to treat fevers, or when consumed as a tea it promotes perspiration, which will cause a fever to ‘break’, lemongrass is also a well-known remedy for indigestion and other stomach ailments. Lemongrass can also be used to relieve muscle pain, poor circulation, and cellulite, as well as headaches and stress.
Brought to the Caribbean from Asia, lemongrass is a popular herb for cooking and its distinctive citrus flavor is used in soups, curries, poultry, fish, and seafood dishes. Kew Park grows much lemongrass as it is an excellent crop that restores soil fertility. Leaving the roots intact, we harvest only the leaves and put them through the steam distiller within 48 hours, so as to get the maximum yield and best quality oil and floral water.
Ortanique
A cross between and orange and a tangerine, ortanique is a unique fruit, with a unique fragrance. A popular addition to Jamaica tables especially at Christmas time, we have been growing ortaniques at Kew Park for more than 50 years. In recent years, we have been distilling essential oils and floral waters from the ortanique leaves, which yields a warm, fresh, sweet orange-like aroma that is known to balance the nervous system and uplift the mind. Sweet orange can also be used for oily complexions, palpitations and bloating, bronchitis and chills, colds and flu, and constipation.
Grapefruit
Grapefruit is very high in Vitamin C and is a valuable protection against infectious illness. Grapefruit is useful in skin care to treat acne, oily skin, promote hair growth, and tone the skin. Regarding circulation and muscles, grapefruit can ease cellulite, muscle fatigue, stiffness, and bloating. It can relieve the symptoms of colds and flu, headaches, exhaustion and stress.
Distilling the Oils
Steam distillation is one method used to extract essential oils from plants. First a basin is filled with water, which is then piped into the main chamber of a distiller through a tube. In the main chamber there are two cylinders: the inner one is filled with plant material, while the outer one is left empty. As the water heats up and transforms into steam, this fills the outer chamber.
Steam and oil vapors run up thru the center tube and exit inside at the top of the condensing chamber. From there the vapors are forced downward where they encounter the cold cooling coils, causing them to condense and drip down to the bottom exit pipe. The oil settles on top of the hydrosol or floral water and they are drained out through separate tubes.
Useful Definitions
Essential oil: An essential oil is a concentrated, liquid containing unstable aroma compounds from plants. An oil is "essential" in the sense that it carries a distinctive scent, or essence, of the plant.
Essential oils are generally extracted by distillation. Other processes include expression, or solvent extraction. They are used in perfumes, cosmetics and bath products, for flavoring food and drink, and for scenting incense and household cleaning products.
Various essential oils have been used medicinally throughout history. Interest in essential oils has revived in recent decades, with the popularity of aromatherapy, a branch of alternative medicine, which claims that the specific aromas carried by essential oils have curative effects.
In using essential oils, whether in your bath or as an ingredient in massage oils or skin lotions, we suggest that you test a small amount first on your skin. If your skin tingles or a rash comes up, your skin may have a sensitivity to the essential oil, and you should wash off the essential oil and apply an inert oil such as almond or jojoba oil to soothe your skin.
Hydrosols: Hydrosols, also known as floral waters, flower waters or distillates are products from steam distilling plant materials. Hydrosols are like essential oils but in far less of a concentration.
Hydrosols contain all of the essence of the plant in every drop, just like essential oils but in a milder form; making them suitable for all manner of applications where essential oils would be too strong.