Broom

Broom is a warm, honeyed floral note from the yellow flowers of Spanish broom (Spartium junceum), sometimes also linked with common broom (Cytisus scoparius). It is a floral material with hay-like, slightly green and ambery facets, used in perfumery mainly as a rare absolute, known in French as genêt.

What does Broom smell like?

Broom absolute smells rich and sunny: honey and beeswax, dry hay and a green, slightly herbaceous edge, with a faint grape-like or floral sweetness beneath. It is warmer and drier than mimosa and more hay-like than orange blossom, closer in spirit to a meadow in full sun. Synthetic broom accords are often lighter and sweeter than the natural absolute.

Where Broom comes from

Spanish broom grows wild across the Mediterranean. The flowers are collected in late spring and solvent-extracted to make a concrete and then an absolute, produced historically in southern France and Italy and today in very small quantities.

  • Also known as: Genêt, Spanish broom, weaver's broom
  • Fragrance family: Floral
  • Type: Natural and synthetic
  • Main origins: Southern France, Italy and other Mediterranean areas
  • How it's obtained: Solvent extraction of flowers to a concrete and absolute

Broom in perfume history

Broom absolute was once a standard material in Grasse and in classic French perfumery, used for warmth and diffusion in chypres, fougères and floral bouquets. The plant also has symbolic value: the Plantagenet dynasty is often said to take its name from the Latin for broom, planta genista.

Broom in modern perfumery

Because natural broom is rare and costly, it now appears mostly in niche and artisan perfumes, while mainstream fragrances use accords based on honey and hay notes. It is valued for adding a golden, sunny glow.

How Broom wears and what it pairs with

Broom sits in the heart and has good tenacity, fading into a honeyed, hay-like drydown. It pairs with mimosa, orange blossom, jasmine, lavender, immortelle, beeswax, tonka bean and oakmoss substitutes.

Safety and regulation

Broom extracts may contain linalool and other EU-declarable allergens above labelling thresholds.

Fragrances with Broom