Myroxylon pereirae / Balsam of Peru / Leguminosae (Pea family)

Information

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Scent

The odor is the typical balsamic, rich, sweet, cinnamic benzoic, soft and very tenacious, showing an increasing vanilla note on drying out.

Aromatic Properties

Peru balsam has outstanding staying power and is one of the best fixatives for use in aromatherapy essential oil blends.

Contents

50-65% essential oil comprised mainly of benzyl benzoate, benzyl cinnamate, cinnamyl cinnamate, free benzoic and cinnamic acids, vanillin, farnesol, styrene, nerolidol and coumarin

Synergic Combinations

Peru balsam blends well with Cinnamon, Clove, Heliotrope, Labdanum, Musk, Patchouli, Petitgrain, Rose, Sandalwood, Ylang-Ylang, floral bases, oriental bases, powder type perfumes and numerous types of sweet and heavy blends.

Health Warnings

Peru Balsam should not be applied to the skin as it may cause an allergic reaction in some individuals.

Plant Description

A large and beautiful tree with a valuable wood like mahogany, and a straight smooth trunk; the last is coarse grey, compact, heavy granulated and a pale straw colour, containing a resin which changes from citron to dark brown; smell and taste balsamic and aromatic. Leaves alternately, abruptly pinnate, leaflets two pairs mostly opposite, ovate, lanceolate with the end blunt emarginate; every part of the tree including the leaves abounds in a resinous juice. The mesocarp of the fruit is fibrous, and the balsamic juice which is abundant is contained in two distinct receptacles, one on each side. The beans contain Coumarin, the husks an extremely acrid bitter resin, and a volatile oil; a gum resin, quite distinct from the proper balsam, exudes from the trunk of the tree and contains gum resin and a volatile oil; the tree commences to be productive after five or six years, and continues to yield for thirty years; the flower has a fragrance which can be smelt a hundred yards away.

References

Balsam of Peru, A Modern Herbal, by Maud Grieve
Myroxylon, Wikipedia