The nose
How they smell
A stillroom is a nose as much as a cup. Crush a leaf. These are the scents of this cupboard — petal, hay, camphor, lemon, musk.
27 plants
Warm spice
Cinnamon
Cinnamomum verum
Warm, sweet, spicy, and woody like bark. Dry and aromatic — not the sugar of a bun, the wood of the stick.
Camphor & pine
Rosemary
Salvia rosmarinus
Fresh pine, wood, and camphor, herbaceous, with a mild citrus or minty undertone. Clean, invigorating, resinous — the needle by the door.
Camphor & pine
Thyme
Thymus vulgaris
Earthy, minty-herbaceous, slightly spicy or peppery, a little camphor. Clean, resinous — the Mediterranean garden in a pinch.
Camphor & pine
Sage
Salvia officinalis
Earthy, warm-herbaceous, slightly minty or camphorous, with a musky or woody note. Pungent and grounding — the leaf of the roast and the gargle.
Camphor & pine
Bay
Laurus nobilis
Camphoraceous and a little medicinal — eucalyptus, pine, wood, a quiet pepper. Stronger when crushed or heated in the pot.
Mint-cool
Peppermint
Mentha × piperita
Cool, fresh, mentholated, and penetrating, with herbal-green notes. Sharp and clean. The steam is half the plant.
Citrus & lemon
Lemon balm
Melissa officinalis
Fresh lemon-citrus with a soft minty, herbal undertone. Bright, tart-sweet, and green when crushed.
Petal
Rosehip
Rosa canina
The flower of this plant is the classic sweet rose — powdery, rich, or honeyed by variety, with soft fruity, spicy, or green nuances. The hip is quieter: fruit and tea-leaf.
Anise & seed
Basil
Ocimum basilicum
Sweet-peppery, herbaceous, and slightly minty or clove-like. Some leaves add licorice, anise, or a citrus edge.
Petal
Lavender
Lavandula angustifolia
Fresh floral-herbaceous with a soft sweetness and a mild camphor or woody-balsamic undertone. Clean, slightly green.
Mint-cool
Spearmint
Mentha spicata
Cool and green like mint, but sweeter and less piercing than peppermint. A kinder menthol — jelly, leaf, a summer porch.
Petal
Violet
Viola odorata
Sweet, powdery, a delicate floral with a soft fruity or green note. It seems to vanish as you smell it — the nose tires of ionones, then comes back.
Camphor & pine
Lad's love
Artemisia abrotanum
Sharp camphor, lemon-camphor, sometimes tangerine. Pungent and clean in moderation; a heavy handful can fill a room.
Citrus & lemon
Lemon thyme
Thymus citriodorus
Thyme’s earthy, minty-spicy base with a bright lemon-citrus lift. Fresh, a little sweet-floral, and waking.
Citrus & lemon
Lemon verbena
Aloysia citrodora
Bright, sharp, clean lemon — more leafy and green than peel — herbal, slightly floral. Sparkling when you bruise a leaf.
Hay & vanilla
Life everlasting
Pseudognaphalium obtusifolium
Sweet, aromatic, maple-syrup or hay when crushed. Strongest when dried, or on a warm day in the field.
Green pot
Lovage
Levisticum officinale
Intense celery — green, vegetal, a little bitter — spicy and earthy, like a seasoning leaf. Stronger and more complex than celery or parsley.
Mint-cool
Oswego tea
Monarda didyma
Aromatic, minty, and bergamot- or oregano-like, with a spicy edge. Fragrant when crushed — citrus-herbal, the bee-balm smell of midsummer.
Earth & musk
Patchouli
Pogostemon cablin
Earthy, woody, musky, damp-soil, with a sweet, slightly chocolatey, wine-like or camphor undertone. Richer and smoother when the leaf has aged.
Petal
Rose geranium
Pelargonium graveolens
Rosy-floral with green, minty, citrus-lemon, and a slightly spicy herbal edge. Sharper and less purely sweet than true rose.
Anise & seed
Sweet cicely
Myrrhis odorata
Strong, sweet aniseed and licorice — anethole in the leaf. Aromatic and pleasant the moment you crush it.
Warm spice
Sweet fern
Comptonia peregrina
Sweet, spicy, aromatic — cinnamon, maple, warm cereal, or mild clove, with a woodsy green. Released when the fronds are brushed or crushed.
Warm spice
Sweet marjoram
Origanum majorana
Warm, sweet, a mild herbal-spice with a soft floral or piney undertone. Gentler and sweeter than oregano.
Hay & vanilla
Sweet vernal grass
Anthoxanthum odoratum
Sweet hay with vanilla or coumarin, especially when cut or dried. Fresh and aromatic — the smell of a meadow after the scythe.
Anise & seed
Tarragon
Artemisia dracunculus
Distinct anise and licorice (estragole) with a green-herbal, slightly bitter or celery freshness. Sharp and aromatic.
Hay & vanilla
Wild vanilla
Carphephorus odoratissimus
Sweet vanilla from the leaf, especially when wilted or dried. Aromatic, lasting, the old scenting-leaf of a tobacco pouch.
Hay & vanilla
Woodruff
Galium odoratum
Little smell when fresh. Wilted or dried it becomes sweet vanilla and fresh hay — coumarin — grassy-sweet and lasting. The May-wine leaf.
Traditional kitchen and folk use only. This is not medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. If you are pregnant, nursing, on medicine, or unwell, ask a clinician before drinking anything as a remedy.