Citronella

Citronella oil is pressed from Cymbopogon grasses — two species in particular, one native to Sri Lanka, one to Java. Both have spent centuries in Asian traditional use before the oil became familiar across Europe as one of the great summer scents.

The fragrance opens sharp and immediately lemony, almost biting. Give it a moment and the green, grassy undertone arrives — the smell of stems and open air rather than fruit. It settles warm and woody, and the dry-down is where citronella earns its reputation for feeling outdoor and alive. In the room it reads as fresh, clean, and expansive.

Summer is its natural season, and that is no accident. The tradition has long kept citronella near open windows, verandas, and garden furniture — the associations with the open air and the season that asks most of us to be outside. In the mood vocabulary it sits squarely in Energy and Focus: a scent that asks the attention to stay alert and present rather than drifting.

The tradition's quiet suggestion: give the scent a role in a practice. A few drops in a diffuser an hour before a summer project begins, or a candle lit at the start of a morning that needs intention behind it. The repetition builds the association over time — the scent becomes a cue, and the cue becomes a rhythm.

Below: our catalogue's citronella in the summer register — essential oils, candles and incense for the open window and the warm evening.