The Coolest Beauty Ingredients Really Do Grow On Trees

Sure great skin doesn’t grow on trees, but as it turns out, great skin care ingredients just may. From rhamnose to pine extract to tea tree oil, some of the coolest beauty products on the market are formulated with ingredients sourced from nature. In honor of the season when evergreens reign supreme, we rounded up a list of a few skin care ingredients that really do “grow on trees” and can be found in formulas that provide great skin care benefits!

As a brand that formulates many of its products with mineralizing thermal water from French volcanoes, Vichy knows a thing or two about the power of Mother Nature when it comes to beauty. Thankfully they turned to the great outdoors—and more specifically the Silver Birch tree—to discover an ingredient called rhamnose. Rhamnose is a sugar extracted in its purest form from trees such as the Silver Birch, and can be found in the formulas of Vichy’s Liftactiv collection. Try: 

• Liftactiv Supreme
• Liftactiv Serum 10 Supreme
• Liftactiv Night

Pine Bark Extract 

Pine trees aren’t just reserved for decking the halls during the holidays, they’re also the source of pine bark extract, our next cool beauty ingredient. Pine bark extract—which is often sourced from French maritime pine bark or Scotch pine—is said to have antioxidant properties that can help to give you a gorgeous, glowing appearance. Scotch pine can be found in the formula of Kiehl’s Brightening Complex—one of the complexes you can choose from as part of the customized Apothecary Preparations experience.

Cinnamon Bark Extract 

Cinnamon is good for so much more than simply adding a little fall flair to your next pumpkin spice latte. Cinnamon is found in the dried bark of cultivated trees—who knew?!) Find it in the formula of Kiehl’s Blue Herbal Gel Cleanser—a great option for anyone looking for a cleanser for blemish-prone skin as it is also formulated with salicylic acid. 

White Birch Bark Extract 

This bark extract, derived from the Betula alba (or the white birch tree) is believed to have antioxidant and astringent properties. It can be found in many skin care formulas including Decleor’s Harmonie Calm Soothing Milky Cream. 

Ruscus Aculeatus Extract 

Say that five times fast… or better yet, call it by its other name, Butcher’s Broom. While admittedly a shrub in Western Europe and not a tree, an extract of this herb can be found in SkinCeuticals’ AOX+ Eye Gel formula. According to the SkinCeuticals website, “this formula ingredient helps reduce the appearance of puffiness caused by swelling.” 

Tea Tree Oil 

Whether you love it or hate it, there’s no denying where tea tree oil comes from—The Body Shop sources theirs from tea tree plants grown organically in the foothills of Kenya. The brand’s Beauty Botanist and Skincare.com consultant Jennifer Hirsch tells us “The tea tree leaves are meticulously hand harvested, ensuring that only leaves (and the best leaves) are used in the steam distillation of this pure leaf essential oil.” Tea tree oil is known to have a soothing property and is found in The Body Shop’s Tea Tree Skin Clearing collection.