Even if you’re not a plant person or an herbalist, you’ve probably already worked with lavender in some context. Maybe you use bath care products with lavender, maybe you put lavender essential oil in a diffuser, or maybe you’ve even rubbed some Herbes de Provence on some chicken. You probably also know lavender to be the “relaxation” herb. But did you know that lavender has so many more applications than that? This lavender monograph is going to get into it.
In this lavender monograph, we are going to get into lavender’s tastes, energetics, medicinal plant parts, herbal actions, body systems affinities, constituents, and cautions. Then, we’re going to talk about which conditions are indicated for lavender, how to prepare it, and which herbs to pair with it. Plus, you’ll get to download the free lavender monograph in PDF format so you can reference it whenever you need to.
Disclaimer
This article is for educational purposes only and shouldn’t be used as a replacement for medical attention or diagnosis. It’s recommended to talk to a doctor before beginning any herbal regimen, especially if you are taking pharmaceutical medication. Because every body is different, the following information may or may not apply directly to you.
Lavender (Lavendula spp.)
Just like other members of the Lamiaceae family (aka the mint family), lavender is a potent aromatic herb and is recognized by most, even non-plant-people. It’s a Mediterranean plant and has been documented usage in Ancient Egypt (if fact, it’s known lavender was used to perfume mummified corpses!) There are hundreds of varieties of lavender but we most commonly work with English, French, and lavandin varieties.
Lavender Monograph
In this section of the lavender monograph, we are going to go over lavender’s tastes, energetics, medicinal plant parts, herbal actions, body systems affinities, constituents, and cautions.
Energetics & Tastes
Lavender has a distinct floral (and in my opinion, soapy) aroma to it. It’s sweet and aromatic. It tastes quite bitter and is overall warming, drying, and relaxing.
Medicinal Plant Parts
We primarily work with lavender flowers but you can also work with the leaves.
Herbal Actions
In this part of the lavender monograph, we’re going to get into its medicinal properties.
Antispasmodic
On contact with many tissues (specifically muscle, nerve, and lung tissue), lavender creates a deep relaxation effect.
Rubefacient
When applied directly to the skin, lavender stimulates blood flow to the area creating redness and warmth.
Antimicrobial
Lavender kills off pathogens on contacts and helps deter infections.
Antiseptic
Lavender can be used when cleaning out or healing wounds and it will help prevent an infection.
Anti-inflammatory
Lavender’s stimulation of blood movement creates a soothing action wherever lavender is applied.
Analgesic
Applying lavender to the skin can help relieve pain in the skin and musculature underneath. Also, the aroma of lavender can help relieve damp tension-related headaches.
Vulnerary
When applied to a wound, lavender helps stimulate scabbing, healing, and new cell growth.
Carminative
When taken internally, lavender stimulates blood movement in the GI tract warming up the core.
Cholagogue
Because lavender is very bitter, when taken internally, it helps stimulate the liver the produce bile and, therefore, helps aid the digestion of fats.
Anticatarrhal
Lavender tea, steam, aroma, and tincture help break up phlegm and mucous in the nose and throat.
Nervine
Lavender has a variety of ways it acts on the nerves to soothe and uplift the emotional body.
Anxiolytic
Lavender, both internally and externally, can help relieve or prevent the symptoms of anxiety.
Sedative
Both the aroma of lavender and lavender tea help move the nervous system into a parasympathetic (rest and digest) state.
Exhilarant
Lavender has a light and uplifting quality to it that helps lift you up out of a stagnant emotional state, making you feel lighter and more blissful.
Body Systems Affinities
In this part of the lavender monograph, we’re going to talk briefly about the body systems lavender has the most effect on.
The Nervous System
Lavender works directly on the nervous system to create most of its relaxing effects (it is nervine after all!) This includes its anxiolytic, sedative, and exhilarant properties. These effects are most powerful when taking lavender internally, but we can receive similar effects by just smelling this plant.
The Digestive System
When we drink lavender tea or take lavender tincture, we receive a host of benefits in our digestive systems. Its antispasmodic effect soothes cramps and spasms in the GI tract, its bitterness increases bile secretions and helps the body break down fats, its carminative effect warms the core and further aids digestion, its anticatarrhal effect breaks up mucous in the throat and stomach, and its vulnerary effect aids in the healing of wounds throughout the GI tract, especially in the intestines.
Notable Constituents
- volatiles (linalyl acetate, linalool, borneol, cineole, geraniol, nerol, myrcene)
- flavonoids
- rosmarinic acid
- ursolic acid
- coumarins
- tannins
Cautions When Working with Lavender
Lavender is extremely drying. If you have a dry constitution, lavender may not be the herb best suited to your needs (if you don’t know if you have a dry constitution, try working with lavender for a few days. If you quickly begin feeling like your body has become a desert or you just become very uncomfortable in your skin, you likely have a dry constitution). Even if you have a damp constitution, be careful not to overdo it. Working with a lot of lavender over a long period of time can dry anyone out too much.
Working with Lavender
Now that we understand the herbal actions of this herb, let’s talk about which conditions lavender is indicated for.
Burns & Skin Wounds
My herbalism teachers at CommonWeath Holistic Herbalism have had serious success working with lavender for burns. They tell a story about a friend of theirs getting a third-degree oil burn on their hand in a backcountry setting. They cleaned the burn and dressed it with lavender essential oil diluted in honey and, after a year, there isn’t even a scar left behind. Not only is lavender a great herb for burns, but it will help clean, heal, and protect any kind of skin wound.
Acne & Skin Care
Lavender is included in so many beauty care products, not just because it smells great, but because of its effect on the skin. As mentioned above, lavender can help clear up wounds, but it can also help clear up other skin blemishes like pimples, redness, blackheads, etc. Lavender stimulates blood flow to the skin which helps nourish it and creates a glow. Plus, lavender can help stimulate hair growth in balding areas of the scalp.
Tension in the Muscles
Both internal and external applications of lavender can have a serious relaxant effect on the muscles. Internally, lavender has a more systemic and general relaxing effect while applied topically it is more targeted and potent. If you’re dealing with a pull, strain, or spasm, some diluted lavender essential oil over the area can help calm those muscles down.
Agitation, Tension, & Anxiety
Similar to lavender’s relaxing effect on physical tension in the body, it can also help relieve emotional or energetic agitation and anxiety. Over and over, I find that the physical effects of an herb are mirrored in the emotional and energetic effects in our bodies. Similarly to the above, lavender can help our emotional bodies when we take it internally, apply it topically, or inhale its aroma. Lavender has also been known to help soothe the agitation caused by dementia.
Agitation-related Insomnia
Sometimes, tension and agitation can keep up awake at night. Agitation-related insomnia is unfortunately super common, but there’s lots we can do about it. Some lavender spray on your pillow or a pouch full of lavender flowers by your bed can help soothe some of that agitation and get you to sleep more peacefully. Of course, if you’re dealing with insomnia, it’s more impactful to have a toolbox of solutions that help get to the root of the problem. But lavender can be a part of your overall strategy!
Emotional Stagnation
Because of its stimulating exhilarant effects, lavender can help pull us out of stuck and stagnant emotional states, like those associated with depression. There is no one sized fits all solution to depression because depression has so many causes. However, if your depression symptoms make you feel emotionally stuck or frozen inside yourself, lavender can help create some gentle movement.
Indigestion, Bloating, Gas, & Colic
Lavender tea can help out with a host of digestion issues. Because of its intense bitterness, lavender helps stimulate bile secretions and therefore helps the body break down fats. Its carminative effect soothes the GI tract of cramps and spasms. Its vulnerary effect aids in the healing of wounds in the GI tract. And its stimulating effects ease gas and bloating.
Asthma
Inhaling the aroma of lavender essential oil has a relaxant effect on lung tissue. This relaxant effect helps open up constriction caused by asthma. Of course, lavender essential oil isn’t a replacement for an emergency inhaler, but it can help keep away more serious symptoms from occurring or be a temporary solution to buy you some time.
Preparing Lavender
There are so many ways to prepare this gorgeous herb.
Lavender Tincture
Working with lavender tinctures can be a little intense. Lavender tincture is very bitter and potent. I like to include lavender in a nervous system relaxation or bedtime blend. You can also include lavender in bitters blends to promote digestion and relaxation in the digestive organs.
Lavender Tea
It isn’t recommended that you drink a whole quart of lavender tea daily for an extended period of time (but you can try it and you’ll see why!) Lavender is extremely bitter and drying and will quickly make your body feel like a desert, especially if you already have a dry constitution. Instead, you could try drinking lavender in a tea blend with other floral or relaxing herbs. Just a little bit of lavender in almost any tea blend turns it into a sweet treat.
Lavender Essential Oil
Lavender is well-known for its potent scent and is a commonly used essential oil. Working with the essential oil is a great way to receive its relaxing effects on the nervous system and tense muscles. Lavender essential oil is a great addition to room sprays, homemade disinfectants, after-sun sprays, face steams, baths, and more.
Be careful: applying essential oil directly to the skin isn’t recommended. This is because lavender essential oil (and most other essential oils) is so potent that it can cause a sensitization effect and cause you to become allergic to it over time. If you want to apply lavender essential oil to your skin, it’s best to dilute it into a carrier oil of about 10-20 drops per oz.
Lavender Infused Honey & Wine
Infusing lavender into honey is my favorite way to work with this lovely herb. Adding some lavender-infused honey to a cup of floral tea livens up the experience. Plus, lavender-infused honey is a great addition to a first aid kit because it’s great for wounds and burns. Working with it in this way helps disinfect the wound, decrease inflammation, increase the rate of healing, and prevent scarring.
Lavender Body Care Products
Lavender is one of the most commonly used herbs in body care products (in fact, roughly 75% of cleaning and hygiene products contain lavender). There are so many applications for lavender beauty care products: sugar scrubs, steams, baths, soaps, soaks, and more. All of these applications deliver lavender’s healing benefits to the skin and relaxing benefits to the muscles.
Lavender Digestive Bitters
Although lavender isn’t the first herb that comes to mind when you think about digestive bitters, it is distinctly bitter. This bitter quality stimulates bile production similarly to other more known digestive bitters. Plus, because it tastes great, lavender bitters make excellent ingredients in cocktails, especially those with gin.
Lavender in Food & Drink
I love making lavender cookies and other desserts. It is such a lovely plant to make any baked good, smoothy, or lemonade into a beautiful, floral mouth vacation. Although this is an excellent way to add more lavender into your diet (and a great way to sneak a hint of relaxation into your day) it isn’t the best mode of transport if you’re looking to get lavender’s more serious benefits.
Lavender Spice Blends
Lavender is a popular herb to include in fancy herb blends and meat rubs like Herbes de Provence. Similarly to the above, this is a great way to include more lavender into your diet but it isn’t the best way to work with it medicinally.
Lavender Herbal Pairings
Not only do these herbal pairings taste great together, but they also emphasize each other’s herbal actions.
- Wood betony
- Chamomile
- Catnip
- Skullcap
- Rose
- Tulsi
- Rosemary
- Blueberry
- Lemon
- Orange
- Cinnamon
- Cardamom
- Allspice
- Lemongrass
Sourcing Lavender
Growing lavender yourself is the best way to create a deeper relationship with the lavender plants and to ensure high-quality herb material. For some people, growing lavender can be a little challenging, but if you know what you’re doing, growing lavender is actually pretty easy. Lavender likes hot, dry, and sunny environments. If you have some space like this where you are, you can buy seedlings from a nursery to grow there. You can also try growing lavender from seed, just be sure to keep them in a warm place until they’re ready to plant out.
If that’s not an option for you, I recommend looking into a local herb farm to buy your lavender from. Herb farms are more common than ever and can be found nationwide. By purchasing your herbs from a local herb farm, not only are you ensuring high-quality products (most of the time) but you’re also supporting your local economy. You can also try buying from a local herbal apothecary.
If you’re looking to buy your herbs online, I recommend checking out Mountain Rose Herbs. This company sells the best quality dry herbs I’ve seen, plus they have a system of checks and balances to make sure their practices are environmentally and socially responsible. Here, you can buy lavender flowers, lavender essential oil, and more.
Free Lavender Monograph PDF
More Herbal Monographs
Want to learn about more herbs? In my online Materia Medica, you will find all of the herbs I have written about. Here, you can click on any herb you want to learn about and you’ll get a thorough herbal monograph that’s always being updated, just like this one. Plus, you can download the free monograph for every herb! Learn more here.
The Best Herbalism Books
There are hundreds of herbalism books available on the market. A quick Google search can be really overwhelming! Especially when the top search results from Amazon and Goodreads seem to be unreliable.
In this article, I’ve gathered all of my favorite herbalism titles in one place to share with you. If you don’t know where to start, that’s ok! The books are organized by type and I’ve written descriptions to let you know which I suggest in which situations. Plus, all of the books here are trustworthy, so you can follow your curiosity and pick which books stand out to you!
Summary: Lavender Monograph
If you kept lavender in the relaxation box, I hope you understand now how many roles this herb can play! In this lavender monograph, we talked about lavender’s energetics, tastes, medicinal plant parts, herbal actions, body affinities, constituents, and cautions. Then, we went over which conditions are indicated for lavender, how to best prepare this herb, and which herbs to pair it with. Plus, you downloaded the free lavender monograph for you to reference at any time.
What are your favorite ways to work with lavender? Is there anything you’re excited about trying? Personally, I love baking cookies with lavender!
Put your thoughts in the comments below, I would love to hear from you!
A cool breeze and deep roots <3
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