Tea tree is native to Australia and is now cultivated extensively. Tea tree, and in particular its essential oil, is one of the most important natural antiseptics. Useful for stings, burns, wounds and skin infections of all kinds, the herb merits a place in every medicine chest. Its therapeutic properties were first researched during the 1920s and it is now widely used in Europe and the US, as well as in Australia.

Aromatherapy Uses and health benefits of tea tree oil:

Skin care: Abscesses, acne, athlete's foot, blisters, burns, cold sores, dandruff, herpes, insect bites, oily skin, rashes (nappy rash), spots, verrucae, warts and wounds.

Respiratory system: Asthma, bronchitis, catarrh, coughs, sinusitis, tuberculosis and whooping cough.

Genito-urinary system: Thrush, vaginitis, cystitis and pruritis.

Immune system: Colds, fever, flu and infectious illnesses such as chicken pox.