Today I picked up Helichrysum (Helichrysum italicum), not to be confused with Helichrysum gymnocephalum and this had an aroma that I had not yet encountered on my “Language of Scent” exercise. I was thinking: Earthy? Balsamic? Sweet? A little cool? After doing some research I found that others describe it smelling like tea and honey, which I agree with. I think for my own purposes, I’m going to classify “tea” as earthy and ”honey” as sweet. So I describe Helichrysum italicum as earthy, sweet, and slightly cool.
I read that it’s called the Curry Plant because it smells like curry but I don’t agree!
UPDATE (two hours later...) Now I am wondering if that "earthy" smell is actually agrestic. I think so. Agrestic is defined as "relating to the country; rural or rustic," and essential oils from this olfactive family include tobacco and hay. I definitely get a tobacco vibe. I think that "tea" scent is actually wet leaves, which is earthy, but not soil-earthy. So maybe wet hay? I think I am changing my classification to agrestic, sweet, and slightly cool.
