Melaleuca ericifolia Steam distilled from the leaves and twigs, from Australia. Also known as Lavender Tea Tree and Swamp Paperbark.
Aroma: Rosalina has a pleasant floral woody scent compared with lavender and rose, with fresh camphoraceous back notes. A middle note with a gentle aroma.
Description: Rosalina is a tall, erect, bushy evergreen with grayish, papery bark. The leaves are soft, alternate and narrow, and the flowers are white to cream coloured. Rosalina trees grow in the swampy lowlands of Tasmania, Bass Strait Islands, Victoria and New South Wales.
Common Uses: Rosalina has been used for millennia in the traditional medicine of the Koori and Pallawa, especially effective in treating acne, boils, tinea and herpes. Rosalina comes from the same family as Tea Tree Melaleuca alternifolia and offers many of the same attributes. Rosalina is useful against infection, especially respiratory infections of children where a mild soothing scent diffused in the room is best. According to Dr. Daniel Penoël, rosalina's capacity to soothe worries, calm headaches and irregular heartbeats and reduce stress in the nervous, respiratory and digestive systems is almost unparalleled in any other single oil. Cooling, calming and grounding. Used as a topical antiseptic. Used in place of lavender, or tea tree, eucalyptus or niaouli.
Constituents: linalool 39.2%, 1,8-cineole 27.3%, α-pinene 5.2%, aromadendrene 2-4%, α-terpinene 1-4%, limonene 1-5%, para-cymene 1-4%, terpen-4-ol 0.5-4%, viridiflorol 0.2-3%, ß-pinene, terpinolene, terpinenol, viridiflorene, alpha-terpinene, alpha-terpineol.
Cautions: Dilute before use; for external use only. May cause skin irritation in some individuals; a skin test is recommended prior to use. Contact with eyes should be avoided.
Photo By Dinkum (Own work) [CC0], via Wikimedia Commons