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 Dalbergia sissoo I MUST Have You!

The gorgeous tree Dalbergia sissoo – pic via http://www.mswn.com

While searching for supplies of Rosewood essential oil – Aniba roseaodora, I found this!

Called Indian Rosewood, it

“is an evergreen rosewood tree, also known as sisu, sheesham, tahli, Tali and also Irugudujava. It is native to the Indian Subcontinent and Southern Iran. In Persian, it is called Jag. It is the state tree of Punjab state (India) and the provincial tree of Punjab province (Pakistan).” Wikipedia

I’m a bit excited because I didn’t know an essential oil was produced from this tree and it’s the first essential oil that I know of that comes from a plant in the “Fabaceae” family and the Dalbergia genus. This family is the legume or pea family of trees, and is the 3rd largest family of plants on earth. It is found in tropical and subtropical climates and is widely distributed in Pakistan and India, Iraq, Afghanistan and even Kenya and Tanzania.

The leaf and pod of Sissoo

The scent is quite similar to Rosewood, and what makes this essential oil so important is that Aniba roseaodora is still under threat, and supplies of the oil and wood are severely limited. To read more about Rosewood see my article “Rosewood – A Story of Ecology and Conservation”. While we are waiting for sustainable Rosewood trees to mature, this Indian Rosewood can be the savior.

The most information I can find out about the typical analysis of the essential oil of Indian Rosewood is that it is high in linalool, which is found in many plants and essential oils including lavender, basil, cinnamon and palmarosa just to name a few. It usually lends a floral scent to an oil, but of course that is an over simplification. So we can assume this Indian Rosewood is relaxing and could be used in place of traditional Brazilian Rosewood.

The scent is a little spicier than Rosewood, but has very similar sweet, rosey notes too.

The heartwood – pic via wood-database.com

I’ve also found an interesting database for woods which includes Dalbergia sissoo, which  lists lots of other Dalbergia plants too. Many of the other related species are from tropical climates all over the world. Check it out here.

I have also found an article on the various medicinal uses of the plant which include:

* using the crushed leaf in boiling water to remove dandruff – Pakistan

* leaf juice used for eye and skin ailments in Ayurveda

* again the juice of the leaf proved to be anti-inflammatory and analgesic

Check out more info “DALBERGIA SISSOO DC AN IMPORTANT MEDICINAL PLANT”.

I am reluctant to give you recipes until I’ve used the oil myself, but in the meantime, get excited! I’m looking forward to talking more about this oil in the future.

Thanks scent lovers!