Bursera graveolens, known in Spanish as palo santo ('sacred wood'), is a wild tree native to the Yucatán Peninsula and also found in Peru and Venezuela.

[2] Bursera graveolens is found in the seasonally dry tropical forests of Peru, Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador,[3] and on the Galápagos Islands.

To reforest, the transplant method is used, which consists of determining an area of the forest with an overpopulation of the same species to extract the trees that are very close to each other.

[12] Palo santo is common today as a type of incense, which gives off an aroma reminiscent of baked apples or burnt sugar.

Today, palo santo oil may be applied to the body (such as at the base of the skull or on the spine) to increase relaxation,[12] similar to aromatherapy.

In Peru, a shaman, or medicine man, reportedly lights palo santo sticks and the rising smoke will enter the "energy field" of ritual participants to "clear misfortune, negative thoughtprints, and 'evil spirits'".