The rumor mill has recently been churning out rumors around the endangerment of Palo Santo trees, globally popular for its incense sticks. People have been asking questions whether the Palo Santo incense sticks be discontinued and taken off the market. Reed’sHandmadeIncense looked into these rumors to find the truth behind them.
BurseraGraveolens or Palo Santo is a native wild tree from Peru and Venezuela. Considered to have physical and spiritual healing properties, its wood has rooted importance in local culture, traditions, and rituals. It is in use since the Incan era and is also part of folk medicine as a remedy to rheumatism and stomach ache.
If you ever go to one of the countries with native growth of Palo Santo trees, you will find the people like to keep its wood in their homes. This may in the form of trinkets, incense woods, light shavings, etc. The locals believe that wood from these trees has the power to remove bad energy from its surroundings. It is also believed to bring good luck to the one who holds it.
You can also see the oil extracted from the wood of Palo Santo trees in use similar to that in aromatherapy. When rubbed gently on the base of the skull and the spine, the Palo Santo oil relaxes the body and mind of the person. Palo Santo incense sticks, shavings, and oil are widely used in spiritual places and yoga studios around the globe.
Its popularity and rapid development, construction, and urbanization led to the significant decline in its numbers in the early 2000s. In 2006, it was listed as “In Critical Danger” by the Peruvian government, and a ban was put on cutting live Palo Santo trees. The government only allowed ethical harvesting from dead and naturally fallen trees.
After the ban, the market for Palo Santo wood products changed dramatically. Ethical harvesters only used wood from 3-5-year-old dead or naturally fallen Palo Santo trees. This allowed the aroma causing resin in the wood to mature properly. Naturally, high-quality Palo Santo wood products were made available in the market which subsequently raised the demand.
The rise in demand led to a hike in price and offered comfortable sustenance to its harvesters. This is thought to be the main reason behind the change of its status to “Stable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in 2010. People not only nurtured the trees with ethical harvesting, but they began to discourage unethical sourcing of the Palo Santo wood.
ReedsHandmadeIncense assures that the incense sticks made from Palo Santo trees will continue to be available in the market. However, the consumers now need to be more aware and make sure your Palo Santo is ethically sourced. Ethical harvesting and sourcing is the only way we can ensure the continued existence of the Palo Santo trees.
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