Monarda fistulosa/Purple Bee Balm/Canadian Bergamot Monarda didyma/Scarlet Bee Balm/Canadian Bergamot

pH purple 4.1–4.3     pH scarlet 4.2–4.5

Aroma and Taste Monarda fistulosa has a slightly citrus, acidy start, a green herbaceous middle, and a floral, deep-geranium finish owing to its geraniol content: an intriguing aroma that could be a lovely perfume on its own. The taste is dramatically different from the odor: sharp and spicy, mildly analgesic when undiluted. It retains an element of the floral, which comes out more when diluted. M. didyma is much more analgesic on the tongue than M. fistulosa, causing a distinct tingling sensation with a slight heat. Otherwise, there is the same slight floral edge to the taste but no geranium qualities.

Stability and Shelf Life Quite stable. Easily lasts up to two years and is usually not prone to bloom.

Properties and Applications The monardas are traditional healing plants of the Native Americans, and chemical analysis reveals that they are almost identical to two of the thyme chemotypes, M. fistulosa resembling thyme CTgeraniol and M. didyma resembling thyme CT thymol. U. K. research into M. citriodora shows that it is a thymol-carvacrol type. As the thymes are not native to the geographic regions where bee balm grows, it is easy to see why these plants were popular and useful. As early as 1569 Spanish botanists recognized Monarda as a medicinal plant of the New World, and by the 1700s it was quite common throughout Europe and valued as a source of thymol. The smell of the fresh leaves is close to that of the expressed oil from the Italian bergamot orange, hence one of its common names.

Use exactly as you would the corresponding thyme hydrosols, although I tend to choose M. didyma for analgesic effects as well as antiseptic properties, for instance in mouth and dental care. M. fistulosa is more diuretic and useful for treating fungal infections.

Myrica gale/Sweet Gale/Bog Myrtle

pH 3.7–3.8

Aroma and Taste A relative of bayberry, sweet gale has a subtler, less distinct fragrance, more on the untamed side. It is complex, bittersweet, herbaceous, and wet, with only an undertone of the bayberry spice so popular in potpourris and candles. The flavor is much sweeter than the fragrance, bordering on floral, very refreshing and light, with a slight green edge and a tiny bit of spice that is felt more than tasted at the back of the throat when consumed undiluted. The spiciness disappears completely in dilution and the flavor is sublime.

Stability and Shelf Life Quite stable. Although this is a relatively new hydrosol, to date shelf life seems to be in the two-years-plus range.

Properties and Applications This is one of the most powerfully energetic of the waters. I have dubbed it the WWW (World Wide Web) of hydrosols owing to its ability to connect so many different levels, people, places, and things at one time. Sweet gale grows in clean, flowing water, and its red-and-yellow roots form a dense complex mass, allowing the plants to communicate directly with each other both chemically and by contact. Native Americans used it as a tea for communal dreaming, and the hydrosol has shown itself very powerful for lucid dreaming, meditation, group and distance healing, working with crystals, and all forms of energy work.

On the physical level it is a respiratory antiseptic, helping to loosen phlegm in the lungs, a boon for both dry and wet cough. Astringent to the digestive system, it promotes peristalsis in the bowel while calming gastric spasms and helps alleviate noninfectious diarrhea. A variety of sweet gale was a replacement for hops in old Swedish and British beer recipes, and the hydrosol makes a refreshing and thirst-quenching beverage. Interestingly, this is one of the least diuretic hydrosols despite its pH value, and it is a good choice for those wishing to flavor their waters daily.

The essential oil has been used in experimental treatments for cancer and tumor reduction and is showing great promise. Franchomme and Penoel recommend it for this purpose in L’Aromathérapie exactemente. We are now trying the water in a few cases, and I would consider this an important phytotherapy adjunct to any cancer treatments, whether allopathic or “alternative.”

A daily intake of fifty milliliters diluted in water during mosquito and blackfly season is said to work wonders as a bug repellent; I have found it somewhat effective for this purpose when applied topically in synergy with fleabane (Erigeron canadensis). It is wonderful in cooking, particularly with wild food: fiddleheads, mushrooms, game, and venison.

AVOID during pregnancy and lactation and in children less than two years old.