boegoe

buchu

buchu, in Afrikaans “boegoe”, is a Fynbos shrub with aromatic leaves that possess medicinal qualities. There are over 150 buchu species, and two of them refer to well-known, medicinal and commercially grown types – betulina and crenulata, with the genus agathosma.

buchu serrata, growing wildly on a farm that lies close to my heart.

Indigenous to the Cape region in South Africa, the earliest known people to use buchu was the native San and Khoi-Khoi. Buchu is a Khoi-Khoi word and means “dusting powder”, and this buchu powder they made from its dried leaves was generally stored in tortoise shells. They applied the powder to their skin, and also chewed on the leaves.

The early Cape colonists steeped buchu sprigs in vinegar, boegoeasyn and in brandy, boegoebrandewyn, and used it for a collection of ailments ranging from stomach to kidney and bladder problems. It was also used to clean and disinfect wounds.

Steeping tea from the leaves is still popular today, and buchu tea is widely available. It was first exported to Britain in the 1700’s - back then it was known as “nobles tea” throughout Europe, as it was a costly product only the rich could afford.

Being incredibly fragrant, its scent emanates from the oil glands under the leaves and can be smelled a couple metres away. The essential oil is extracted through steam distillation and its odour profile is quite complex – it smells sweet, green, herbaceous-woody, fruity and floral all at once. I detect a faint yellow peach note from the crenulata. Agathosma essentially means “good fragrance”, but its scent is rather divisive; some find it wonderfully pleasant whereas others cannot stand it. Buchu oil is also extensively used in blackcurrant flavourings.

Buchu is packed with potent antioxidants, an array of bioflavonoids and vitamins. It is antiseptic and fights bacteria, viruses, fungi and inflammation, restoring your skin and body’s cells for optimal function. A power plant to say the least.

Buchu is one of the key ingredients in our nourishing skin butter and Beard & Body Balm, which you can view here.

Sources:

1, 2, 3, 4, 5,