Geranium

April 9, 2009

Hi Everyone

I am looking for the chemical constituents of pelargonium odoratissimum. All my

sources give them only for pelargonium graveolens. Are there any differences

between them? What are they?

Your help will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Anne

April 9, 2009

At 04:59 AM 4/9/2009, you wrote:

>Hi Everyone

>

>I am looking for the chemical constituents of pelargonium odoratissimum.

>All my sources give them only for pelargonium graveolens. Are there any

>differences between them? What are they?

>

>Your help will be greatly appreciated.

>

>Thanks

>Anne

Google brings up an abstract:

http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/76502605/abstract?CRETRY=1 & SRETRY=0

Research Article

Composition of the essential oils of Pelargonium odoratissimum, P.

exstipulatum, and P. × fragrans (Geraniaceae) and their bioactivity

Maria Lis-Balchin 1 *, Gerhild Roth 2

1School of Applied Science, South Bank University, London, SE1 0AA, UK

2Institute of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Pharmacy Centre, University of

Vienna, Althanstrasse 14, A 1090 Vienna, Austria

email: Maria Lis-Balchin (<lisbalmtlisbalmt)

*Correspondence to Maria Lis-Balchin, School of Applied Science, South Bank

University, London, SE1 0AA, UK

Keywords

Pelargonium exstipulatum (Cav.) L'Herit.; P. odoratissimum (L.) L'Herit.;

P. × ragrans; Geraniaceae; composition; gas chromatography - mass

spectrometry; essential oils; pharmacology; antibacterial activity

Abstract

The volatile oils of the leaves of two Pelargonium species, P. exstipulatum

(Cav.) L'Herit. and P. odoratissimum (L.) L'Herit. (Geraniaceae) and a

hybrid, P. × fragrans, were obtained by steam distillation and the chemical

components were identified by capillary GC and GC-MS. Methyl eugenol was

high in P. odoratissimum and P. × fragrans; fenchone and limonene was

common in all three, whilst thujene and

-pinene were high in P. exstipulatum and P. fragrans, showing that the

probable parents of the latter were P. exstipulatum and P. odoratissimum.

Pharmacological activity on smooth muscle in vitro showed that all three

had a post-synaptic spasmolytic effect, which was mediated via cyclic AMP

in P. odoratissimum and P. × fragrans. Microbiological activity against

Staphylococcus aureus, S. epidermidis, Proteus vulgaris and Bacillus cereus

was similar for P. odoratissimum and P. × fragrans, and resembled that of

commercial geranium oil. The results suggest that these essential oils

could be used as relaxant agents in aromatherapy products and as novel

antimicrobial agents in food preservation or household products. Copyright

Since 1995 - supplying Aromatherapy and Healthcare Professionals

Website: http://www.naturesgift.com

Blog: http://naturesgiftaromatherapy.blogspot.com/

April 10, 2009

ATFE2 , Marge Clark <marge wrote:

>

> At 04:59 AM 4/9/2009, you wrote:

> >Hi Everyone

> >

> >I am looking for the chemical constituents of pelargonium odoratissimum.

> >All my sources give them only for pelargonium graveolens. Are there any

> >differences between them? What are they?

> >

> >Your help will be greatly appreciated.

> >

> >Thanks

> >Anne

>

> Google brings up an abstract:

>

> http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/76502605/abstract?CRETRY=1 & SRETRY=0

>

> Research Article

> Composition of the essential oils of Pelargonium odoratissimum, P.

> exstipulatum, and P. × fragrans (Geraniaceae) and their bioactivity

> Maria Lis-Balchin 1 *, Gerhild Roth 2

> 1School of Applied Science, South Bank University, London, SE1 0AA, UK

> 2Institute of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Pharmacy Centre, University of

> Vienna, Althanstrasse 14, A 1090 Vienna, Austria

> email: Maria Lis-Balchin (<lisbalmtlisbalmt)

>

> *Correspondence to Maria Lis-Balchin, School of Applied Science, South Bank

> University, London, SE1 0AA, UK

>

> Keywords

> Pelargonium exstipulatum (Cav.) L'Herit.; P. odoratissimum (L.) L'Herit.;

> P. × ragrans; Geraniaceae; composition; gas chromatography - mass

> spectrometry; essential oils; pharmacology; antibacterial activity

>

> Abstract

> The volatile oils of the leaves of two Pelargonium species, P. exstipulatum

> (Cav.) L'Herit. and P. odoratissimum (L.) L'Herit. (Geraniaceae) and a

> hybrid, P. × fragrans, were obtained by steam distillation and the chemical

> components were identified by capillary GC and GC-MS. Methyl eugenol was

> high in P. odoratissimum and P. × fragrans; fenchone and limonene was

> common in all three, whilst thujene and

>

> -pinene were high in P. exstipulatum and P. fragrans, showing that the

> probable parents of the latter were P. exstipulatum and P. odoratissimum.

> Pharmacological activity on smooth muscle in vitro showed that all three

> had a post-synaptic spasmolytic effect, which was mediated via cyclic AMP

> in P. odoratissimum and P. × fragrans. Microbiological activity against

> Staphylococcus aureus, S. epidermidis, Proteus vulgaris and Bacillus cereus

> was similar for P. odoratissimum and P. × fragrans, and resembled that of

> commercial geranium oil. The results suggest that these essential oils

> could be used as relaxant agents in aromatherapy products and as novel

> antimicrobial agents in food preservation or household products. Copyright

>

> Since 1995 - supplying Aromatherapy and Healthcare Professionals

> Website: http://www.naturesgift.com

> Blog: http://naturesgiftaromatherapy.blogspot.com/

>

Hi Marge

The link didn't work for me and I'm not sure what the rest of this means.

Unfortunately I am confused. The workbook the college provides for distance

learners has many mistakes in it so I am trying to utilise other sources which

haven't got the information I need and further my searching of the web has

produced a lot of contradictory information.

Thanks for your help

Anne

January 24, 2010

At 03:45 AM 1/22/2010, you wrote:

>So far I don't find P. asperum at all, so

>you've given me a new botanical to include. In the garden, there are many

>species, however, these are not primary to essential oil production.

talk to Art Tucker, Marcia...

I remember back in 2006 I sent him a sample of Egyptian Geranium...

pelargonum graveolens... to be analyzed... with the analysis he sent his

comments:

" The composition of the oil corresponds from the expected natural variation

of Pelargonium ×asperum ‘Rosé’ oil. No adulteration was detected. Odor

quality is good. "

of course I wrote back " WHAT? It's supposed to be graveolens...have they

gone and changed the name again? " to which he wrote:

>Dear Marge,

>This is all covered in The Big Book of Herbs (Interweave Press, 2000), and

>I also wrote a comprehensive article in the 2005 Herbarist. We do not

>cultivate the true P. graveolens but rather a hybrid of P. radens x P.

>capitatum. This has been know in the scientific literature for the past

>20 years but the horticulturists apparently don't read any science!

>Art

at which point I debated changing our labeling and our website to reflect

the accurate terminology... and realized that people are going to be

looking for the graveolens, and will not necessarily stick around long

enough for me to tell them that it's 'the same thing'... so I go on

continuing the misnomer...

Since 1995 - supplying Aromatherapy and Healthcare Professionals

Website:

http://www.naturesgift.com Blog:

http://naturesgiftaromatherapy.blogspot.com/

Facebook:http://www.facebook.com/NaturesGift

January 24, 2010

Hi Marge,

Thanks for this. I have great respect for Art, however, P. capitan IS

already a hybrid of P. graveolens, so the information he gave you gives me

pause. This would mean further hybridization with P. radens, which

(although I'm not sure yet) is probably yet another hybrid of P. graveolens.

As I dig deeper into databases, predominant P. asperum information is found

in the global compendium of weeds and other databases that keep track of

invasive plants, and its primary habitat is New Zealand, NSW, Victoria and

around greater Australia where it is quite invasive. Is it so invasive that

it already has spread across Australia after cultivating it there? Or is it

identified as a native invasive wild species? And, I have found no

information to see it is cultivated there, so is this not the same as the

cultivar in oil-producing areas?

Guenther begins his section on Geranium oils with . . . " The taxonomy of the

plants which are cultivated in various parts of the world for the production

of commercial geranium oil has been a matter of much controversy. " Oh

great. This was 1942, and he further states, " Geranium has now become a

rather vague horticultural term which has no relation to the botanical term

Geranium. " He mentions no hybrid of P. asperum, and back then the primary

botanicals in production were:

P. graveolens, P. roseum, P. radula, P. capitatum, P. odoratisimum, P.

fragrans and P. terebinthinaceum. He also mentions that neither the true P.

odoratissimum nor P. fragrans is suitable for cultivation for oil

production, however, we see producers today using those nomenclatures.

At least he agrees that P. roseum is a synonym for P. graveolens, although

he says " probably " .

We'll see where further digging will get us. Obviously going to take some

time and as you see, lots of cross checking.

Be Well,

Marcia Elston, Samara Botane/Nature Intelligence

http://www.wingedseed.com <http://www.wingedseed.com/>

http://www.wingedseed.blogspot.com <http://www.wingedseed.blogspot.com/>

http://www.aromaconnection.org <http://www.aromaconnection.org/>

" We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give. " — Winston

Churchill

_____

ATFE [ATFE ] On Behalf Of Marge

Clark

Saturday, January 23, 2010 9:14 PM

ATFE

Re: geranium

At 03:45 AM 1/22/2010, you wrote:

>So far I don't find P. asperum at all, so

>you've given me a new botanical to include. In the garden, there are many

>species, however, these are not primary to essential oil production.

talk to Art Tucker, Marcia...

I remember back in 2006 I sent him a sample of Egyptian Geranium...

pelargonum graveolens... to be analyzed... with the analysis he sent his

comments:

" The composition of the oil corresponds from the expected natural variation

of Pelargonium ×asperum ‘Rosé’ oil. No adulteration was detected. Odor

quality is good. "

of course I wrote back " WHAT? It's supposed to be graveolens...have they

gone and changed the name again? " to which he wrote:

>Dear Marge,

>This is all covered in The Big Book of Herbs (Interweave Press, 2000), and

>I also wrote a comprehensive article in the 2005 Herbarist. We do not

>cultivate the true P. graveolens but rather a hybrid of P. radens x P.

>capitatum. This has been know in the scientific literature for the past

>20 years but the horticulturists apparently don't read any science!

>Art

at which point I debated changing our labeling and our website to reflect

the accurate terminology... and realized that people are going to be

looking for the graveolens, and will not necessarily stick around long

enough for me to tell them that it's 'the same thing'... so I go on

continuing the misnomer...

Since 1995 - supplying Aromatherapy and Healthcare Professionals

Website:

http://www.naturesg <http://www.naturesgift.com> ift.com Blog:

http://naturesgifta <http://naturesgiftaromatherapy.blogspot.com/>

romatherapy.blogspot.com/

Facebook:http://www.facebook <http://www.facebook.com/NaturesGift>

..com/NaturesGift

January 24, 2010

http://www.nda.agric.za/docs/rose_geranium.pdf

The journal of Economic Botany also has a good article, but you have to

pay a fee to obtain it in PDF form.

I would take the Zaire reference as top shelf, since the Dept. of

Agriculture is involved, and that South Africa is the ancestral home to

this Genus. They've been studying it since year one of its economic

production. Part 1 Sec 6 addresses the confusion in taxonomy a bit. The

references at the end of the article are pretty comprehensive.

The morphology and scent profile mean the most to me, a perfumer. If the

plant structure, esp. the flower and the scent are what I want, then

it's the one I want. I grow this plant, and have for over 30 years, and

have seen the name of it, like that of Roman Chamomile, morph and go

back and forth in popular usage.

All my best,

http://NaturalPerfumers.com

on FB http://bit.ly/iamja

Guild on FB http://bit.ly/1jP5lB

January 24, 2010

Thanks for your input and reference here, Anya. I am a member of the SEB

and have most journals over the past 12 years. As a member I also have

access to the database, so I'll definitely be looking to them. It's

primarily the taxonomy databases I've been searching, but the reference you

have attached certainly gives us additional pieces to the puzzle when it

comes to essential oil production, even if it confuses other information

already gleaned.

Point: The Zaire reference starts out with . . . " Pelargonium cv. rosé,

commonly called rose geranium, is a hybrid species that was developed from

crossing P. capitatum with P. radens. " You no doubt saw Marge's post when

she inquired of Art Tucker, who stated that P. asperum is a hybrid species

developed from crossing P. capitan with P. radens. So, here we have another

hybrid, P. cv. Rose, and P. capitatum as well as P. capitan (which are

probably the same, however, another definitive pursuit to clarify). And, to

boot, each hybrid has been given different Latin binomials themselves.

Sheesh . . .

This resource probably does answer the question of where geranium 'bourbon'

is coming from (at least one area) beyond the small amount still being

produced in Reunion, however, so another good piece to the puzzle. The P.

cv. Rose is called a bourbon by the S. African producers, who also call it

rose geranium. Other sources equate " Rose " Geranium with Geranium Bourbon,

so that may help distinquish between the two common names of rose geranium

and geranium. It also has a great deal of good information for growing

practices, pests, disease, solarization and the general conditions for

healthy cultivation.

Plant morphology is an invaluable study and compendium of definitions for

definitively identifying species and habitat. It would be extremely helpful

to the new gardener wishing to grow aromatic plants, since so many nursery

cultivars are mis-named, and it's my experience that some nurserymen are

also ill-informed when it comes to taxonomy. Maybe with 30 years growing

experience with geraniums, you might see a paper on this as something you

might tackle at some point.

Be Well,

Marcia Elston, Samara Botane/Nature Intelligence

http://www.wingedseed.com

http://www.wingedseed.blogspot.com

http://www.aromaconnection.org

" We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give. " — Winston

Churchill

________________________________

ATFE [ATFE ] On Behalf Of Anya's

Garden Perfumes

Sunday, January 24, 2010 2:08 PM

ATFE

Re: Re: geranium

http://www.nda.agric.za/docs/rose_geranium.pdf

<http://www.nda.agric.za/docs/rose_geranium.pdf>