Native to the eastern coastal area of Australia, Melaleuca alternifolia, or tea tree, is a small tree found in warm swampy areas. Today, most tea tree is grown in commercial nursery operations.
Tea tree is distilled from the leaves and twigs of the Melaleuca alternifolia.
Traditional Herbal Uses
Australian aborigines used tea tree for headaches and stuffy noses but it was Captain Cook who coined the term "tea tree" in the 1700s while using boiled leaves to prevent scurvy. Two hundred years later tea tree oil was first distilled and its medicinal properties were quickly recognized.
Even mainstream medicine acknowledges tea tree's anti-microbial action. Study after study has shown tea tree to be an effective bactericide, fungicide and insecticide. One of the most impressive studies, cited in the Journal of Family Practice, compared tea tree to a leading mainstream treatment for nail fungus and found that tea tree was just as effective as the commercial preparation.
In Chinese medicine, tea tree strengthens Qi.
Aromatherapy Uses
Aromatherapists recommend tea tree to strengthen the resolve of timid individuals struggling with feelings of helplessness. And Gabriel Mojay claims that tea tree "invigorates the heart" while building confidence.
Blending With Other Essential Oils
Tea tree's pungent scent limits its use to mainly therapeutic purposes and, as such, it's generally used as a single-note oil. However, if used sparingly tea tree can blend with other "medicinal" oils like rosemary and eucalyptus or wood oils like pine and cedar.
Tea Tree is considered a top-note.
Safety & Warnings
Until recently, tea tree was generally considered safe and non-toxic though sensitization can occur. In fact, some aromatherapy books even suggest using this oil neat (undiluted)--something aromatherapists would never recommend for any other oil, except for lavender. But recently, serious, and very controversial, allegations about tea tree's safety have been raised and some have called for a complete ban on the essential oil.
