Constituents of the Essential Oil of<i>Heteropyxis natalensis</i>

Abstract

ABSTRACT The essential oil of Heteropyxis natalensis Harv. (“lavender tree,” family Heteropyxidaceae) from Zimbabwe was analyzed and found to contain more than 90% of monoterpenes (hydrocarbons and oxygenated compounds). The composition is strongly dependent on the season. The oil produced in the summer contained (E)-β-ocimene (29%), linalool (25%), myrcene (8.5%), 1, 8-cineole (9.5%), p-mentha-1(7), 8-diene (6%) and limonene (6%), whereas the oil produced in the winter was richer in 1, 8-cineole (40%) and limonene (21%), lower in (E)-β-ocimene (6%), myrcene (4%) and p-mentha-1(7), 8-diene (1.5%), and very low in linalool (1%).