| Abstract (croatian) | The leaves of Lippia citriodora Kunth. (Fam. Verbenaceae) are used as a
source ofVerbena oil. True Verbena oil is distilled from L. citriodora, whereas
the so-called »Spanish verbena oil« or »thyme lemon oil« from Thymus hyemalis
Lange (Lamiaceae).
Verbena oil is a mobile, greenish yellow liquid, with reminds of lemon
odor. Oil is used in perfumery and for flavoring liqueur, Verbena oil is produced
in very small quantities and its price is very high, therefore the usual
commercial vervain is a compound oil of the same chemical proportions as
natural true vervain oil (9). Physical and chemical constants are given in
Table 1.
The chemical composition of L . citriodora oil has been examined by different
authors who reported that neral and geranial were the major constituents.
The other constituents were: methyl heptenone, limonene, dipentene, 1,8-cineole, linalool, terpineol, bomeol, nerol, geraniol, cedrol, P-caryophyllene,
ar-curcumene, caryophyllene oxide.
The essential oil produced from cultivated Aloysia triphylla in Cordoba
(Argentina) was examined by capillary GC/MS (12). The results show that
the volatile compounds are different from those previously reported. A triphylla
oil was found to contain myrcenone, a-thujone, lippifoli-1(6)-en-5-one
and limonene as the major components.
The authors believe that this change in chemical composition of the oil
could be the result of a successive cultivation of the plants year after year
in the same controlled environment.
The composition of the essential oil issued from the water steam distillation
of the herb Lippia alba (Miller) N.E.Brown with the yields of 0,57%
and 0,68% of the plant material gathered in spring and autumn respectively
has been analyzed. The major constituents identified by GC were (-)-piperitone
(36,72%), (+)-limonene (34,20%) and 1,8-cineole (9,81 %) (17).
The essential oil of Lippia graveolens H.B.K. (Mexican oregano) was produced
by steam distillation of samples collected in the State of Jalisco (Mexico).
A combination of physical and chromatographic analyses was used to
determine the quality of the oils produced and to quantify thymol, the major
component in this species (18).
Lippia grandifolia Hochst et Walp. is the essential oil-containing plant
in Kenya. The plant is traditionally used as a tea substitute. The essential
oil was obtained from leaves by hydrodistillation. GLC and GC/MS analysis
revealed that the major constituent was linalool (46,1%) (19). |
