Fun fact : bitter orange trees are a source of not one essential oil but two, one of which is petitgrain, the subject of today’s essential oil spotlight here on The Good Oil Daily – and it’s a beautiful tonic for the spirits.
Essential oil of petitgrain (Citrus aurantium) is obtained by steam distillation of the leaves and twigs of the bitter orange tree. Neroli essential oil is an absolute extraction from the flowers. By the way, bergamot (the distinctive note in Earl Grey tea) is also from a bitter orange tree, but its specific species is Citrus aurantium bergamia or Citrus bergamia. Bergamot essential oil is cold pressed or vacuum distilled from the rind of the fruit. Look for furocoumarin-free bergamot oil like the one produced by Young Living to minimise its sun-sensitising effects.
Back to petitgrain and neroli, as you’d expect with two oils with this shared botanical DNA, they have common traits.
Citrus oils in general are liquid happiness (the healthy kind, not the ‘getting sozzled’ kind) and all of them are awesome for uplifting and creating a cheerful vibe. If in doubt as to what to put in your diffuser, especially when the family is home for the night, reach for a citrus oil and you’ll all enjoy a contented and relaxed vibe.
Young Living Citrus Fresh™ essential oil blend is my favourite for this. Young Living has deftly combined orange, tangerine, grapefruit, lemon, mandarin with the sweet refreshment of spearmint to make these citrus oil scent notes sing together even more harmoniously. Please click here to order: search for Citrus Fresh by name when you’re in the shopping cart.
Focusing back in on petitgrain and neroli citrus oils, both wonderfully uplifting and help you feel relaxed and at ease. Given they are both from the same tree, let’s take a look at their chemistry – their key constituents – and see if they are similar, too.
Petitgrain is high in linalyl acetate (40 to 55%), linalol (up to 30%) with alpha-terpineol, geranyl acetate and geraniol making up the balance of its next highest constituents.
Neroli is higher in linalol (28 to 44%) and includes a good dash of limonene (up to 18%). It does include linalyl acetate as well (petitgrain’s highest constituent) but at a much lower ratio of between 3 and 15%.
Linalol is an alcohol (energising, cleansing with a sweet floral aroma), whereas linalyl acetate is an ester (releasing, balancing and settling). It’s this ester that makes up almost half of petitgrain’s chemistry with linalol closely behind it, helping us to see how it can be both uplifting and relaxing at once.
So let’s hone in on petitgrain now, which interestingly is not included in any Young Living blends (at the time of writing) but instead, is available as a single essential oil.
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Way, way back in time before it was steam distilled from the leaves and young tender twigs of the bitter orange tree, petitgrain was extracted from green, unripe fruit instead, from the size of a pea to a cherry. This is how its name (French for ‘little grain’) came about.
There are several variants of petitgrain with more specific monikers to help distinguish exactly from whence they’ve come. Most petitgrain essential oil comes from Citrus aurantium amara and sourced from Paraguay, though other countries produce bitter orange trees for this purpose as well, including France, Morocco, Italy, Spain and Egypt.
Petitgrain is wonderful as an all-rounder tonic for the spirits, being uplifting and revitalising while also peaceful and relaxing. When you’re seeking clarity, apply a drop or two to your left palm, gently rub it in circles with your right fingertips then bring your palms to your nose and deeply inhale. It feels very comforting and smells amazing.
Dilution is only needed in cases of highly sensitive skin but do follow the usual guidelines for safe use of authentic essential oils and dilute with a lovely carrier oil like Young Living V-6 Enhanced Vegetable Complex, jojoba or sweet almond oil if needed or if you’d like to apply petitgrain essential oil to larger areas.
You can also inhale Young Living Petitgrain essential oil directly from the bottle, apply to your chakras (especially lovely before meditating or a yoga session) and diffuse it for a beautiful prelude to sleep.
Please ensure you are choosing a brand with complete transparency from seed to seal, such as Young Living. You can learn in this short video why we only ever recommend and choose Young Living oils and love them so much!
This will also connect you up with The Good Oil Team for our personal support and coaching. We'd love to help you on your journey to vibrant well-being the natural way!
Any questions? Please get in touch via our Contact page.
