The Grow Your Own Challenge

Posted: 26 Jan 2012 in Blog Beauty is on the inside... what's inside your moisturiser?!

Soil Association organic certification not only ensures that your products don’t have nasty chemical ingredients such as parabens, it also means that farmers have used organic methods when growing the active ingredients that cleanse, moisturise and reinvigorate your skin. From lavender and chamomile to rose geranium and calendula all these ingredients are farmed using techniques that utilise nature rather than science to produce a healthy crop.

Rolling fields with bustling hedgerows and fields left to grow wild for butterflies, bees and native wildflowers all help to support a balanced system. Soil Association certified producers have a hugely positive impact on the environment and our native flora and fauna, so this year we’ll be bringing you all you need to know about organic farming methods and how they impact on the skin care products you buy. We’ll be visiting some of our producers to see what techniques they are using and why, and how independent certification by the Soil Association guarantees you that the products you buy have been grown, processed and packaged in a sustainable way.

The Challenge

For the Challenge we’re asking you to join us for an exciting year of growing some of your own ingredients that can be used in skin care. These plants can be grown simply to add a new twist to your garden and help to encourage wildlife to thrive or for you to have a go at making your own treatments at home and to help you and your children discover what goes into the products you buy.

You can follow us as we help a local community group incorporate these plants into their garden. We’ll also be transforming a typical small city garden into a wildlife friendly skin care haven, showing you how you can incorporate these plants into a variety of spaces using organic growing methods.

No matter what the size of your garden this is a brilliant way to discover what really goes into your skin care products. We’ll bring you the low down on the organic methods being used by farmers and give you tips on how to use these organic methods in your own garden.

For example Calendula (Pot Marigold) is a beautifully versatile plant. It’s great for using in skin care but is also a fantastic companion plant, helping to keep little bugs away from your veggies!

Let us know how you’re getting on throughout the year via our blog, Facebook, Twitter or simply send us an email – we’d love to hear from you!

We’ve chosen these top 5 plants for you to have a go at growing organically;

English Lavender:

This is a very common plant which can be found in many gardens. It is a beautiful purple colour and gives off a wonderful fragrance but is also brilliant for bees. There are many types of lavender and we’ve chosen the English variety for its abundance of flowers and fragrance. Lavender can be grown in pots or can also be used as hedging providing a great corridor for wildlife to shelter under when travelling through your garden.

Use in skin care – Lavender’s relaxing and soothing oil is great for muscular aches, headaches and insomnia and is also a brilliant all-round first aid remedy.

Chamomile:

We’ve chosen Chamomile for it’s wonderful use in skin and hair products. It’s easy to grow and produces a lovely daisy like flower. It can be grown as a lawn substitute as it is a mat-forming plant, which is great for wildlife to hide in. If you don’t want your Chamomile to spread try growing it in a large pot. 

Use in skin care – Chamomile has antiseptic and anti-inflammatory properties and is often used for treating stings and acne.

Calendula:

Otherwise known as Pot Marigold, Calendula is a lovely bright orange flower that is a perfect companion plant for any garden. Use it as a pretty pot plant or plant it next to your vegetables as a natural pest control to keep away little bugs.

Use in skin care – Calendula has antibacterial properties and helps protect the skin from sun damage. The oil is often used for chapped skin and lips and insect bites and stings.

Geranium:

The plant that is used in skin care is actually called Pelargonium which is different to the common geranium found in lots of gardens. We’ve chosen the leaf-scented variety which has a whole variety of different scents available covering citrus scents to peppermint, nutmeg and apple among others. The one we’re after is the rose-scented variety which is a little trickier to grow than the other plants on our list but is a pretty plant with cream edged leaves and pink flowers.

Use in skin care – Geranium is most commonly used for its rose scent and can be found in a number of different skin care products as well as perfumes.

Lemon Balm:

A wonderful refreshing scent and also great for use in teas, cold drinks and in salads or puddings, this easy to grow herb is very versatile. Lemon Balm is a perennial so it will keep growing year after year and bees are attracted to the flowers. Although not commonly used in commercial skin care products, we have chosen this herb as its scent has very similar properties to lemons and lemon grass which are often used in skin care products, therefore giving you the lovely lemon scent without the difficultly of growing a lemon tree!

Use in skin care – The lemon scent produced by the leaves can be used as an insect repellent for little biting bugs.  

Your Comments