How to Store Lemon Verbena Oil So It Stays Bright

A freshly opened bottle of lemon verbena oil is a lovely thing: sparkling, sweet, lemony, with that soft herbal-floral heart. Keeping it that way comes down to three conditions we recommend for every bottle: tightly capped, cool and dark. Our guidance is that it typically keeps 1 to 2 years that way, and the reasons behind the three conditions are worth a minute.

Lemon Verbena Essential Oil bottle

Lemon Verbena Essential Oil

Our own Lemon Verbena Essential Oil, in sizes from 0.5 oz to bulk.

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Air, light and heat

The Tisserand Institute lists the causes of oxidation in essential oils as oxygen, light and heat, and notes that even the best quality oils deteriorate over time. That is true of citrus-type oils in general, and lemon verbena is a lively aromatic that changes when it is left open, warm or in the light. A snug cap and a cupboard away from the stove and window cover most of the risk.

Why does it matter beyond aroma? Oxidized fragrance terpenes are a recognised source of skin sensitivity. A European patch-test study of 2,411 dermatitis patients found 2.6% reacted to oxidized limonene. That was a study of one compound in clinic patients, not of lemon verbena oil, but published verbena oils do contain limonene, so it is a good reason to treat an old bottle with a little more care on skin than a new one.

Where to put it at home

The best spot is usually the dullest one. A shelf inside a cupboard, away from the stove, the kettle and the sunny window, is ideal. Avoid the bathroom, where steam and warmth come and go all day, and the car, which swings from cold to roasting in a single afternoon. If you work with your oils often, a small box or tin with a lid keeps the bottle in the dark and lets you carry everything together to your workspace.

A small amber bottle and a small cobalt blue glass bottle, both tightly closed with a black screw cap

Keep it on a stable shelf where it will not get knocked over, and put it high enough or in a place that children and pets cannot reach.

The air you cannot see

Here is the piece of arithmetic that surprises people. The bottle does not shrink as you use the oil. Take 1 oz of oil in a 16 oz bottle (about 473 ml): roughly 94% of the container is air. The same ounce in a 4 oz bottle sits in about 75% air, and in a 1 oz bottle there is almost none. So as a larger bottle empties, the oil spends more of its time with a lot of oxygen overhead, and each opening refreshes it.

Our recommendation follows directly: when the level drops, decant into a smaller airtight bottle so the oil sits snug. This is why we suggest larger buyers decant working amounts from drums and pails into smaller containers and keep the main stock sealed. Our bulk page has the details for larger orders.

Fridge or cupboard?

Cool and dark is the common ground. We also mention that refrigeration can help the top notes last longest, which suits stock you will use over a long time. If you do refrigerate, let the bottle come to room temperature before opening, so condensation does not form inside the neck, keep it in a closed container away from food, and keep it out of reach of children and pets. For a small bottle you will finish within the year, a cupboard away from heat is simpler and perfectly good.

If you make water-based mixes such as sprays, give an older one a fresh sniff before use. Our cleaning spray article covers that side.

A sensory check-in

Every few months, take a moment to open the bottle and smell it with fresh attention. You are looking for the same sparkling sweetness you noticed at the start. If it has gone flat, dull or sharper than you remember, trust your nose, and use that bottle for room scenting instead of skin. It takes thirty seconds, and it is one of the pleasures of having a bottle at home.

A common mistake: a small amber bottle with its black cap left off lying beside it

If you share the cupboard with other oils, line the bottles up with the lemon verbena at the front and the date on each label. A tidy shelf means you reach for the right one and open it only as long as you need to, which is the quiet secret of keeping any oil bright. It also makes it easy to spot, at a glance, which bottle you opened first and should use first.

Habits worth having

Storage cannot change what an oil is, and the international fragrance standard for verbena oil says it should not be used as a fragrance ingredient, citing sensitizing and phototoxic potential. Our skin line of 0.5% to 2% is our own guidance; we start low and do not call 2% safe, and our safety article compares the authorities. Keep it sealed, cool and dark, move it to a smaller bottle as it empties, and it will stay a pleasure to open.

Lemon Verbena Essential Oil bottle

Lemon Verbena Essential Oil

Lemon Verbena Essential Oil from our own shop, in sizes from 0.5 oz to bulk.

From $12.99

Shop Now →

Sources & Further Reading