- Latin name
- Pelargonium graveolens and hybrids
- Family
- Geranium family (Geraniaceae)
- Origin
- Egypt, China, Réunion (“Bourbon”), Madagascar
- Parts used
- leaves and stems
- Raw materials
- essential oil
- Extraction
- steam distillation of the leaves
- Olfactory group
- floral (rosy-green), fougère
- Position in the pyramid
- heart
- Synthetic substitutes
- citronellol, geraniol, rose oxide
“Geranium” in perfumery is not the garden geranium but a pelargonium — a relative of the one growing on windowsills. It is not the flowers that smell but the leaves: rub a leaf between your fingers and you will catch the scent.
How it smells: a rosy-green, fresh, slightly minty and lemony scent with a metallic shade. Bourbon geranium from Réunion is the richest and rosiest, Egyptian warmer and sweeter, Chinese fresher and greener.
Geranium oil contains the same molecules as rose — citronellol and geraniol — so it has long been used to support and freshen a rose note. In masculine perfumery geranium is one of the pillars of the classic fougère, together with lavender.
What it pairs with: with rose — a fresh “green rose”, with lavender and tonka — the classic fougère, with citrus and mint — invigorating compositions, with patchouli — the “dark rose”, with pepper and leather — modern masculine fragrances.
Good to know: geranium is sometimes jokingly called “the poor man's rose”: a kilogram of its oil costs many times less than rose oil, yet smells surprisingly similar.
Fragrances with Geranium
