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Received: December 2000
Revised: February 2001
Accepted: April 2001
Abstract
Essential oils of rice flower, Ozothamnus diosmifolius, were analyzed by capillary gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Flower oil contained [beta]-pinene (28.4%) and 1,8-cineole (28.2%), while the leaf oil contained [alpha]-pinene (26.0%), [beta]-pinene (11.6%) and 1,8-cineole (22.2%). Both oils had small amounts of spathulenol (4.1% and 5.2%, respectively).
Key Word Index
Ozothamnus diosmifolius, Asteraceae, rice flower, essential oil composition, [alpha]-pinene, [beta]-pinene, 1,8-cineole.
The Plant
Rice flower, Ozothamnus diosmifolius (Vent.) DC, formerly known as Helichrysum diosmifolium (Vent.) Sweet, is a commercial, horticultural plant in southern Queensland. Its white to pale pink flowers are highly prized in the Asian fresh flower market. The flowers are long lasting and have a pleasant aroma preferred by the Japanese. In the quest to satisfy this market, much of the green material cut with the flowers is presently discarded. Indeed, much of the floral material is also discarded being substandard for the stringent market requirements. This paper investigates one possible use of the discarded green material and of the unused flowers namely, essential oil production.
Previous Work
Previous extractive investigations into O. diosmifolius catalogued compounds in the roots (1,2) and the aerial parts (2). The aerial parts extracted with solvent produced obliquin derivatives, prenylated coumaric acid derivatives, a styrene...