The Thicket Field Guide
Chamomile
Matricaria chamomilla
- Plant family
- Daisy family (Asteraceae)
- Part used
- Flowers
- Where it grows
- Native to southern and eastern Europe, and now grown on every continent. Ours is Egyptian-grown.
- Flavor
- Warm, honeyed, apple-floral.
- Aroma
- Sweet and apple-like.
History
The name comes from the Greek chamaimēlon, “earth-apple,” for the plant’s apple-like scent. Crush a dried flower head between your fingers and you’ll see why.
The small white-and-gold flowers go into the cup whole. Their essential oil is a surprising deep blue, colored by a compound called chamazulene.