Yarrow

Habitat & Origin

Yarrow (Achillea millefolium) is a robust meadow herb native to Europe and large parts of Asia, well adapted to temperate climates of North America as well. It thrives in sunny, moderately nutrient-rich soils along dikes, hay meadows and rough verges, where its fine, feathery leaves and white or soft pink flower clusters are a familiar sight. For herbal use, the aerial parts — flower tops with a bit of leaf — are harvested in early to mid-summer, when the umbels are fully open but still fresh in colour. The stems are cut and dried loosely in bundles or on racks to preserve the resinous, silver-green herbal quality. At Maison Tisane we select yarrow based on fine leaf texture, bright flower colour and a dry, clean aroma: no yellowed heads, no coarse woody pieces, ensuring a cup that remains elegant and exact.

Active compounds

Yarrow contains essential oils, bitter sesquiterpene lactones and flavonoids that together provide its characteristic herbal and lightly bitter structure. These components give the cup a dry, elegant backbone on which floral and citrus accents shine.

Ayurvedic approach

In Ayurvedic energetics, yarrow holds a refined, almost silvery herbal quality: cool enough to soften Pitta, aromatic enough to guide Kapha, but dry and lightly bitter, calling for attentiveness with Vata. In European tradition, yarrow was known as “soldier’s herb,” associated with sharpness, alertness and field clarity. Energetically it carries this same image — a refining, lightly astringent tone that orders and sharpens the flavour landscape.

Flavour profile & Blending

Precautions