Each 1g contains: Tincture, equiv. fresh juice: Calendula officinalis flowering herb 10mg; Hypericum perforatum, flowering herb 16.7mg; Infusion, equiv. dry: Calendula officinalis, flower 13.5mg; Hypericum perforatum, flowering herb 13.5mg; Oil extract, equiv. fresh: Hypericum perforatum, flower 30mg; Oil extract, equiv. dry: Calendula officinalis, flower 22.5mg; in a base containing natural vegetable oils and beeswax, fragranced with Lavender essential oil.
Adults/Children: Clean the wound with Weleda Hypercal Healing Lotion and/or water. Apply a small amount of Hypercal Healing Cream two to three times daily and if necessary cover with a dressing, or as directed by your health care professional. For external use only.
Please note:
A sumptuous sea of flowers in white and pink – the annual blossoming of almond trees is a real feast for the eye. For over 4,000 years, people have been cultivating this graceful tree with its precious stone fruits. It feels particularly at home in the Mediterranean, in California, but also in East and Central Asia. The nature of the almond is shown in a harmonious relationship between the healthy, all-protecting shell on the outside, protecting a robust kernel, rich in oil and nutrients, on the inside.
The almond is full of minerals and vitamins. It provides unsaturated fatty acids, high quality protein and on top of that, tastes delicious. So it is probably no surprise that the almond scores high in skin care. Nowadays, our largest sensory organ, the skin, is exposed to all sorts of hardships: environmental influences, stress and an unbalanced diet among them. That’s why it can become sensitive, dry and irritated. Almond oil is one of the most valuable skin care oils for helping to soothe irritated skin, enveloping it with a protective layer.
As the oil from the almond is similar in structure to the outer lipid layers of the skin, the skin can absorb its ingredients very well. The very high content of unsaturated fatty acids is not only healthy for the heart and brain but also strengthens the hydro-lipid mantle of the skin and protects it from water loss. The vitamin E in the almond is a known antioxidant that fights free radicals and thus counteracts the ageing process of our skin. Irritated skin is well protected and can recover and find its way back to natural beauty.
The sunny yellow arnica plant thrives in natural mountain meadows and calcium-poor peat soils. The earliest recorded reference to this plant comes in the writings of the 12th century sage and healer Hildegard of Bingen. Arnica’s delicate flowers seem slightly dishevelled and fragile – as if a breath of wind could carry them away. In fact arnica is a very vigorous plant, which grows up to 40 centimetres tall, yet easily survives strong mountain wind. This external resistance is a clear indication of the strong structural forces that arnica carries.
About 150 pharmaceutically active ingredients are found in arnica’s flower clusters. Among these are valuable and effective substances such as flavonoids, carotenoids, sesquiterpen lactones and precious essential oils. The fine silica content gives the arnica structuring and shaping forces and helps to regenerate tissue after blunt injuries such as bruises, bumps or contusions. In the 18th century, arnica was often used for the treatment of ailments such as gout, rheumatism, varicose veins and phlebitis. In modern times extracts from arnica have been shown to have an antiseptic effect and they promote blood circulation, relieve pain and speed up the healing process. These uses and others are frequently reviewed and clinically well-documented. Due to these characteristics, arnica is also called the ‘The guardian and healer of muscles and bruises’.
Just as birdsong heralds the spring, the young leaves of the birch show the freshness, vitality and light of new growth, making this slender tree with its white grained bark a real symbol of spring. Between May and June, the birch pushes out strong growth, full of ingredients that also give new impetus and energy to our own systems.
Associated with the beautiful feathered Norse goddess Freya, the birch was ordained a sacred tree and enjoyed a virtuous reputation in the popular belief of German and Slavonic people. Bringing a birch tree to the village, as a symbol of the awakening spring, is a custom that has survived to this day – the birch maypole can be found in many village or town squares in Germany in the spring. Bachelors would traditionally present a decorated birch tree to their beloved – perhaps a symbol to keep her healthy and beautiful.
Birch sap was known as a beauty and strengthening remedy to the Germans and was used against fever and stomach ailments, while a decoction of birch leaves was used to treat skin diseases and wounds. In Northern Europe and Russia, birch was known to help in weight reduction – valuable substances such vitamin C activate natural fat burning. The flavonoids in birch, when taken internally, also detoxify and help in cell protection, by stimulating metabolic activity and transporting excess water from tissues. This diuretic effect was traditionally known as a ‘spring cure’.
Weleda birch products include rejuvenating spring drinks and body treatments which smooth and refine skin.
The calendula plant, known affectionately as marigold, pot marigold, or common marigold is an essential feature of healing and ornamental gardens, as well as a popular garden flower. Hardly any other plant is as versatile and effective, which is why we have been cultivating it for its healing powers in our medicinal gardens for more than 80 years.
Calendula was not only popular as a medicinal plant. The radiant, sunny and vigorous flowers were also common as an ornamental plant among the Greeks and Romans, Indians and Arabs. The golden dye of calendula has long been used for fabrics, foods and cosmetics and in Europe, where the plant was introduced in the late Middle Ages, it quickly established itself as a welcome addition to food and as a medicinal plant.
Calendula’s energetic and vibrant growth combines the elements of water and heat fire, with a warming, scented resin found in its lush, moisture-rich leaves and stems. The bright yellow, orange and red flowers of calendula are real sun traps, absorbing large amounts of light and warmth. The active compounds of calendula combat inflammation and promote the formation of new tissue while its carotenoids, flavonoids and essential oils strengthen the skin against external influences. Calendula is therefore particularly valued for its vibrant, restorative powers, which have a protective and defensive effect on healthy skin structures. Equally, it has a soothing, uplifting effect on skin that has become unbalanced – dry, inflamed or stressed.
Due to the plant’s calming and uplifting character, calendula is great for the delicate skin of new-borns and toddlers. Particularly in babies and young children, the skin forms a warming and protective layer with fat stores to ensure the healthy function of internal organs. But young skin can’t adapt to sudden changes in temperature on its own. Baby skin needs additional support in the form of loving care, clothing and warming treatments. This is where the soothing extracts of calendula come in, helping to develop the resilience and protective role of young skin.
With such strong regenerative and protective capabilities, calendula is playing a key role in many of our products. You will find tinctures and oil extracts of this radiant plant in about 30 of our natural and organic cosmetics and medicines, and not surprisingly for over 50 years the marigold has been the lead plant for our baby care range.
It’s common knowledge that this bitter fruit is literally full to the brim with vitamin C. Lemon juice has been proven as a home remedy for colds, with its defensive effect. Hot lemon with honey refreshes and gives new strength and the more mature a lemon is, the more intense the fruit acid and the more it unfolds its astringent, clarifying and refreshing effect, giving you new vitality – from the inside as from the outside.
The scent is unmistakable. It acts as a wake-up call to our senses, gives us clarity and ease – the fresh aroma of lemon is as invigorating as its vibrant colour. The strong essential oils of citrus infuse the entire plant. Not only do the small white blossoms smell wonderful, but precious essential oils are also found in the peel, the flesh and even in the characteristically oval-shaped leaves.
The lemon tree is also bursting with vitality – the evergreen, medium-sized tree is the only tree that blossoms and produces fruit simultaneously almost all year round. In a single year, a tree can yield up to 1,000 kilos of lemons.
The lemon has kept its reputation as a high-yielding crop for centuries. Originating in North India, the lemon tree had already crossed the globe in the Middle Ages. Today, it is cultivated from China to Spain, thriving best on fertile soil with a generous supply of sunlight. And it really does not like the cold – the thermometer should at least show 15 to 30 degrees Celsius. Under good conditions, lemon trees can then grow to a stately century old.
This is why we use lemon’s abundant, overflowing energy for our products. The essential oils and pure natural juice of the fruit have proven to be important components of pharmaceuticals and toiletries. For our Citrus Body Care range we only use bio-dynamically grown lemons from the Samalita Cooperative in Sicily, which has been cultivating lemons for decades. Its sugar content, acidity and vitamin quantity are particularly high. The precious essential oils of our lemons not only maintain and care for our skin, but also our mind – its intense fragrance awakens the spirits and puts us in a good mood for the day ahead.
Although it grows on unpromising, dry and compacted soil, the evening primrose’s beautiful blossoms open up rapidly and completely, within a few minutes as dusk falls. They stay open for the entire night and the following morning, large golden blossoms illuminating the darkness of their surroundings and emerging beaming out of the darkness at dawn. In her growth and blossoming, the evening primrose connects the old day with the new.
The evening primrose (oenothera biennis) originates in North America and was used by the Native Americans as a nutritional and medicinal plant. It was often used as a tea, in hot water, to heal wounds, skin problems and other ailments.
The oil from evening primrose seeds contains high concentrations of essential linoleic acid and y-linolenic acid, which our body produces for itself less and less with increasing age. Both fatty acids play a considerable role in the epidermis and are absolutely essential for formation of the skin barrier. Evening primrose seed oil protects the skin against moisture loss, removes rough patches and promotes cell growth and regeneration.
At a later stage in life, women often enter a period of re-orientation. After being involved in everyday life for decades and being fulfilled by its organisation, women may now seek new mental-spiritual dimensions. Just like the evening primrose has freed herself from the usual rhythm of the plant world, by coming into bloom as night falls, the mature woman detaches herself from her previous everyday life and seizes emerging opportunities. She puts her trust in her experience and intuition to lead her life as an distinctive individual with her own role and tasks to achieve.
The evening primrose works with the woman who has reached this stage of life, supporting the skin’s ability to allow her character to emerge. It offers to mature skin, which can tend to dryness, substances and impulses which stimulate the metabolism and support the development of unique, individual radiance.
Iris has a long history as an admired ornamental plant, but its qualities as a medicinal plant have also been known since ancient times. Iris even received royal honour – she graces the famous coat of arms of the French royal House of Bourbon. For us, iris has also proven itself over many years with an extraordinary ability: its vigorous rootstock can retain moisture so well that iris plants remain balanced even in periods of extreme wet or drought.
Iris carefully maintains water balance through a constant process of generating, collecting, retaining and storing moisture, with water-retaining mucilage and absorbent substances such as sugar and starch in the rhizome (root). Yet at the same time the structure of the leaves and stem is such that the iris copes well at times of too much water, thanks to its simple, austere, streamlined and upright shape and the unique architectural design of its flowers.
So the iris is an ideal model for the skin when it comes to regulating moisture content, and it’s because of these characteristics that iris serves the skin of young adults so well. Where normal, healthy, young skin is silky soft, firm, rosy, not too oily and not too dry, it’s because of a perfect balance between optimal moisture and a flawless appearance. But our life story is full of changes around the age of 20 – young adults stand on their own feet, test life in all its facets and gain new experiences. These times of change are also often reflected in the skin, particularly during the intensive years of experimentation between 21–28. During this life phase the skin is often subject to extreme situations and as a result can be tender and dry, unclean and prone to inflammation.
Here’s where we find parallels to the iris: humans have a superior ability to balance regenerative and degenerative functions in every organ. Likewise, thanks to the iris’s substantial moisture-creating and shaping forces, it is a true master of balancing extremes. The iris’s beauty, radiance and longevity depend on its extraordinary ability to balance, by adding or withholding moisture as required. In combination with jojoba oil and soothing witch hazel, it regulates the skin healthily, so moisture content can balance and young skin regains its naturally beautiful appearance.
Little else is so instantly relaxing as the scent of lavender. Its deep blue flowers contain essential oils that are used to bring delicious aroma to 50 Weleda products.
Images of lavender often show the endless, violet fields of French Provence, but there is another important growing area in Europe, which has been supporting the large-scale cultivation of lavender for centuries. The tiny country of Moldova, between Romania and Ukraine, has only 34,000 square kilometres of land, but is blessed with a warm, dry climate and the fertile black soil which allows vineyards and orchards to thrive on a large scale. This perfect growing climate formed the foundation of Moldova, once known as one of the world’s largest producers of essential oils. With the end of the Soviet Union in 1992 many acres of lavender disappeared as the population tried to learn the operation of free trade. Since then a lot has changed in this small country: old traditions have been revived and lavender cultivation has taken on a new lease of life.
Lavender belongs to the plant family Lamiaceae. It’s a distinctive small, rounded shrub with forked and erect branches and numerous small, purple flowers. The leaves are narrow in shape and vary in colour from grey-green on the upper sides to a furry, white underside. The genus has 25 species, of which, in alternative medicine, the following are used: true Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia), spike lavender (Lavandula latifolia), butterfly lavender (Lavandula stoechas) and lavandin (Lavandula hybrida).
A British development expert and a Moldovan agricultural engineer initiated the largest organic farming project for lavender in the country and were astounded at how quickly the project grew. One reason for the burgeoning development is certainly cooperation with Weleda, which started in 2005. The close collaboration with Weleda and the prospect of lasting cooperation gave additional impetus to the project. “200 farming families are now involved and the organic lavender growing area has expanded to about 200 acres,” says the British development expert.
Once new plants are put in the ground, three years have to pass before the first major harvest – but under favourable conditions the plant can be harvested for up to thirty years. The first plants were ready to harvest in 2005 and since then, each year from late June to mid-July, the workers cut the mature flowers by hand with sickles – a labour-intensive job needing commitment and close attention.
The collected lavender is processed immediately, without even leaving the field, in a mobile distillation unit for essential oils. This requires engineering knowledge, care and sensitivity. A team of four is permanently on duty as the harvest progresses, receiving containers filled with lavender flowers, which are then connected to the mobile boiler and its steam cycle. The distillation process takes about one hour and from every 100 kg of lavender flowers just one kilo of oil is extracted.
The essential oil is then ready to be transported away from the field in barrels, which are sealed immediately. To ensure high quality it is particularly important to store the valuable lavender oil in a cool place before exporting it to Weleda.
Modern research has shown that elements within the essential oil have a direct soothing effect on the central nervous system, helping relaxation and promoting healthy sleep. Restlessness, difficulty falling asleep, tension, cramps, indigestion or problems with the heart and circulation can be regulated more easily with lavender. This explains why, even in ancient times, lavender was very popular for its relaxing and calming effect.
But through Weleda’s Moldovan partnership lavender has another positive effect: the local partner benefits from our vast experience in analysis of essential oils and the raw material procurement. Since we’ve been working together, production and harvesting has been optimised and solutions for many minor problems have been found. For instance, Weleda is helping to find a decent, environmentally-friendly solution for the composting of distillation residues. “It is a situation of mutual give and take”, confirm the local partners. “Only together can we develop the desired quality.”
The economic and social boost that the project gives to the rural region is noticeable after ten years. For the farmers, lavender cultivation has become an integral part of their income, and because of the partnership the village school has been extensively renovated. To celebrate Weleda’s 90th birthday, we took part in building a health and welfare center in the local town of Minceni. It’s just one example of how Weleda’s partnerships grow both our important raw materials and the communities that produce them.
Long forgotten, millet has been restored to its rightful place as a miracle of nutrient richness. It’s a native of hot regions, with a long, slender, smooth stalk and linear growth entirely designed to absorb cosmic light, solar rays, air, and extreme heat. In nature, exposure to such extreme light and dry air would normally result in withering, but to protect itself from drying out, millet creates a protective silicic acid layer, most noticeable in the husks. It’s this special facility which gives millet extraordinarily strong preservative and protective powers.
The anthroposophical principle is dedicated to preserving a state of health, and according to this principle, millet works for the health of our hair. Minerals and trace elements such as silicon, iron and magnesium are as important to our body as they are to the millet, as building blocks for our skin, hair and joints.
Healthy hair – regardless of age, gender, colour or thickness – is characterised by a strong shape, a natural sheen and ease of combing, because the oil and moisture content is in balance. If we already have healthy, normal hair condition, then millet enhances the protective and structuring properties of this beautiful state. Healthy hair shines naturally, thanks to smooth cuticles that reflect light easily. Extracts of Millet husks also support resilience and gently maintain healthy hair and scalp. That’s why we use these extracts for our shampoo.
In age-old wisdom, oats are known as a grain that gives humans power. When it comes to harvest-time, oats – native to northern climes – are the last crop to be brought in from the fields, using the extra time to absorb and store sunlight, air and heat.
The element of water is of great importance to the life energy of oats. Because of its powerful root system and long growing time in the fields, oats absorb large volumes of water from the soil, taking in valuable silica in liquid form as they grow. In comparison with other cereal types, oats’ intense powers of absorption of the two extremes (heat and water) and their ability to combine the two are unique. The process is a prerequisite for all nutritional and metabolic processes in a living organism, and oats are outstanding at the job.
The flow of water travels more intensively through the whole plant than it does in wheat or millet, for example, and that’s what makes oats special. High volumes of mineral-based silicic acid, phosphorus and iron are carried into the distinctive ‘beards’ of the ripening ear.
These natural substances in oat extract can be harnessed and used to help the normal structure of the hair and scalp to be rebuilt. This is how oats, structuring and restoring, support the hair in its primary task of protecting, warming and enveloping the human organism. If hair texture is dry and damaged, the active ingredients of oats reduce hair breakage and split ends by smoothing the cuticles of the hair. Once the hair’s surface is smooth and undamaged, it reflects the light best. The result is naturally shiny and smooth hair.
In many cultures the pomegranate has been familiar for thousands of years. Originating from the ancient Persian Empire, which included modern-day Greece, Turkey, Iran and Iraq, it is still primarily cultivated in the Mediterranean, in the Middle East and India. In these cultures the fruit has been seen as a symbol of beauty, fertility, sensuality and strength since ancient times. The plant itself can reach quite a respectable age – some specimens are over 200 years old. In recent years the fruit of the pomegranate has been re-discovered for cooking and new cosmetics.
Precious pomegranate seed oil has antioxidant and regenerative properties because of its high content of polyphenols. These naturally-occurring phytochemicals act as an excellent scavengers of free radicals, which are known to be responsible for accelerating ageing in skin and cells. Pomegranate seed oil revitalises skin cells so that the skin is tightened and smoothed in a natural way. Its many positive properties have also recently been confirmed by numerous scientific studies.
Pomegranate’s highly invigorating and revitalising effect on the skin is enhanced because the growth processes of the plant don’t happen consecutively, with recognisable breaks between phases. Instead they flow into each other, overlapping and happening simultaneously – just like our human life phases.
From the age of 40 we benefit most from the positive properties of the pomegranate. At this life stage, we look back on our experience and are able to recognise who we are, and who we are not. But as we grow older our skin changes – its vitality diminishes, the regeneration processes slow down and hardening tendencies can no longer be automatically counter-balanced overnight.
It’s at this time that the pomegranate can provide a valuable service. It mediates between the young and mature opposites, allowing them to flow into one another, developing a framework for dynamic and regenerative effects on the individual. So the pomegranate’s seed oil stabilises and relaxes the skin in times of transition, bringing inner and outer beauty into harmony and encouraging us to look towards the future with serenity.
Rosemary is a hardy plant, but with a poetic name. Ros marinus comes from Latin and means ‘dew of the sea’. In ancient times, rosemary was dedicated to the gods, especially the Greek goddess of love, Aphrodite, which is why it was also considered a symbol of love. The plant is at home in the coastal regions of the Mediterranean, from Portugal to the Ionian Islands. Evergreen and low-growing, it loves hot, dry locations, but if need be can resist extreme cold. Temperatures of down to -20 degrees do not seem to harm it.
Although the ancient Greeks valued it as a symbol and cult plant, they seem to have known little about the healing powers of rosemary, with virtually no evidence of practical uses in their writings. It wasn’t until the Middle Ages that the many good qualities of rosemary essential oil were discovered. Rosemary has strong warming abilities, helps digestion and stimulates circulation and nerves. It is also able to alleviate rheumatism and migraine, and rosemary oil also has an antiseptic effect. As a bath additive, it has proved itself in the treatment of infected or poorly healing wounds and even in ointment form it can be absorbed well and to good effect.
We use extracts from rosemary for our care products and medicines to stimulate heat balance and circulation. The intense fragrance lifts the spirits and works against fatigue. It can be used internally – for example, as a tea – but also externally as an oil or infusion.
Stubbornly clinging to the rocky soil as its thick roots penetrate barren ground, the sea buckthorn is a survivor and pioneer which needs little to flourish. Throughout its entire growth cycle, sea buckthorn demonstrates an ability to combine vitality and life force. This is also reflected in the root system, spreading up to a radius of 12 metres. It can thrive in sparse, almost hostile, porous soil without taking any nourishment from the ground, easily mastering such challenging growing conditions.
But sea buckthorn asks for one essential: sunlight. The defensive bush with its hard, pointed leaves and numerous spines is a real sun-worshipper. Bright, golden-red, berries absorb the radiance of the sun and take strength from it, converting the rays into valuable vitamins. These hard-to-harvest fruits are much more than just pretty to look at: as versatile powerpacks of vitamins they strengthen the human body from the inside as well as from the outside.
Resilience is the most obvious characteristic of sea buckthorn. The bright berries contain an exceptionally high content of vitamin C, but also contain Vitamin B12 (cobalamin), which is especially important for vegetarians. Particularly during the cold and low light season, our immune system benefits from the stored sunlight in the berries, which helps to revitalise the system’s self-regulation, easily absorbing natural biological vitamins. This, in turn, helps boost general energy levels and the immune system.
And sea buckthorn is also a real beauty expert. The rich oil from the seeds and pulp protects skin and strengthens its barrier function. A high content of linoleic and linolenic acid, palmitoleic acid and vitamin E soothes skin irritations. The carotenoids that give the sea buckthorn oil its orange-red colour and the plant’s special relationship with light, air and warmth make sea buckthorn particularly suitable for preventing sun damage to the skin, and for helping to repair skin already damaged by the sun. It prevents skin from drying out and supports healthy interplay of energies within the skin. In our sea buckthorn skin care range, we celebrate this universal talent for life and vitality.
With upright stems and typical compact spikes, wheat is often considered as the essential grain. Also described as the ‘cereal of the centre’. It stands poised between cosmos and earth, exemplifying the balanced interaction between all the elemental forces – earth, water, air and fire. This results in a particularly rich formation of substance and silicic acid.
Wheat is one of the oldest cultivated plants in human history, behind only corn for widespread cultivation. Getreide, the German word for cereal, was written as gitregidi in Old High German, meaning ‘possession’, ‘yield’ or ‘that which is carried’. The yield is most strongly epitomised in wheat, not only internally – in nutritional quality – but also with externally demonstrated quantity. The stalk can carry several times its own weight in ears without leaning away from the centre.
In the wheat plant it seems that all the powers that could have contributed towards excess, growth habit and form have been suppressed and redirected into balanced mediating functions. The self-restraint of wheat, in favour of a balanced interaction of all elementary forces, facilitates great richness in the ripe grain. It’s particularly rich in wheatgerm oil, linoleic and linolenic acid and vitamin E, which acts as an antioxidant.
Since all the wheat’s ingredients are in harmony, wheat germ oil has an important blood flow-promoting effect for the scalp and encourages firmness and elasticity. At the same time nourishing, building materials (vitamin E and lecithin) are a real treat for the hair structure. The polyunsaturated fatty acids of wheat germ oil can also help to promote the development of cells in the hair root, working naturally against hair loss. Wheat germ oil harmonises the anabolic and catabolic processes of the scalp: Excessive dandruff is slowed down and the scalp will return to the normal healthy balance, so important for beautiful hair.
With this wealth of properties, we have selected wheat as an ideal leadplant for structure and balance. If the scalp is out of balance, the wheat’s harmonising effect brings fast relief. It’s a simple formula: healthy scalp = beautiful hair.
The white mallow’s beneficial properties are show in its botanical name. Althaea derives from the Greek and means ‘curing’. White mallow was used as a healing plant in ancient times in China, Syria, Egypt and Greece, and was probably brought to Central Europe only in the Middle Ages to coincide with the beginning of settled agriculture. Nowadays it is cultivated on salty soils in coastal regions.
At first glance, it is a rather delicate plant, but the white mallow can withstand lack of water and heat easily. Gel-like substances in the roots and flowers protect the plant from drying out and the high concentration of mucilaginous substances in the roots makewhite mallow calming, soothing, emollient, protective and moisturising. Its gentle, almost white flowers blushed with pink and its delicate fragrance have a very calming and soothing effect on the senses, completely unlike other blooms with vibrant colours and intense fragrance.
For exactly these reasons, the white mallow is ideal for baby care. Delicate, sensitive and immature baby skin has to undergo a process of development and learning during the first years of life. It needs a soft protective and warming layer, and no unnecessary fragrances to bring the skin out of balance. The white mallow binds moisture in the delicate skin of babies and stimulates development of the skin’s own protective forces to keep them from harmful environmental influences.
In conjunction with pansy, which is soothing and healing, our white mallow range demonstrates its protective properties particularly well. In addition, coconut oil and sesame oil nourish the skin intensively. Even for neurodermitic and acutely sensitive baby skin, the irritation-free ingredients are highly suitable.
It’s no wonder that the rose enjoys almost legendary status among flowers – even the ancient Babylonians cultivated rose blooms to produce scented ointments from their petals. In early China roses were specifically grown in terraced plots, as they knew about their regenerating effect. At the time of the great Emperor Charlemagne, people used rose petals for gargling and for healing baths, while distillation of precious rose oil was probably invented in Persia. The essential oil was considered extremely valuable as its recovery was – and is – enormously costly. It takes three million flowers to produce one litre of rose oil. Today there are countless varieties and scents, with approximately 150 species of wild rose, almost two-thirds of them from Asia.
The inner values of rose plants are just as significant – and they are particularly strong in their wild forms. The wild rose easily keeps its balance between smoothness and robustness, demand and adaptability. When cultivated, roses externalise their vitality and image of harmony through their singular beauty and bewitching scent. Wild roses, on the other hand, internalise their life forces and develop the inner essences which create valuable rosa mosqueta seed oil.
With its many thorns, the wild rose reins itself in, restraining the impulses that urge growth outward. In this way an inner balance is formed. The demonstration of this harmony lies in the fruit of the wild rose – the rosehip is in particular ‘wrapped up’ in its seeds.
Our skin’s health also benefits from the roses’ balancing skills. The core rosa mosqueta oil soothes and smoothes the skin, while the scent of damask rose harmonises the mood. We use the wild rose variety rosa mosqueta and her red rosehip fruit in our skin care line for Wild Rose Face and Body. The seed oil of rosa mosqueta is one of the most effective oils to smooth the skin. Especially after the age of 30, when the skin is becoming gradually more demanding and dry, the strength of our Wild Rose Skin Care range takes effect.
