Chamomile is known worldwide to be a calming sleep aid, a remedy to ease an upset stomach, and for its wonderful anti-inflammatory and anti-spasmolytic properties. There are, however, many types of chamomile: Roman chamomile, Anthemis nobilis; German chamomile, Matricaria recutita; true Moroccan chamomile, Tanacetum annuum. Beyond these three basic types, German chamomile can also be called Hungarian or blue chamomile, while another species of chamomile called Moroccan is actually a different variety (Ormensis multicaulis) that is grown in Morocco. Ormensis multicaulis does not have the ink-blue color of the true Moroccan chamomile that is Tanacetum annuum, also called blue tansy. Each chamomile is a different variety, however they all have similar constituents as well as some likenesses in appearance.
Roman chamomile is mainly grown in England, and there are some areas in continental Europe and the United States that also distill the oil. In 1785, Carlo Allioni, an Italian botanist, placed what we know as Roman chamomile in the genus Chamaemelum, naming Anthemis nobilis as Chamaemelum nobile, thus furthering the confusion about chamomiles.
German chamomile is...