The aerial parts of Ducrosia anethifolia (DC.) Boiss. were collected in the wild from Mehdi Abad (Kerman province, in southern Iran) at the flowering stage in June 2006. The material was dried at room temperature.

The 63 components of this interesting plant were identified in the oil of D. anethifolia, representing 94.0% of the oil. alpha-Pinene (11.6%), terpinolene(3.2%) and (z)-beta-ocimene (2.8%) were the main hydrocarbon components present in the oil, while decanal (54.0%), cis-chrysanthenyl acetate(3.2%) and decanoic acid (1.3%) were the major oxygen-containing constituents.

The plant materials were collected for P1: 2900 m, Ait Akak, Oukaimden, Atlas Mts, Morocco, N. Achak, A. Romane and M. Mahroug, 3 trees, ns, 12/12/2003; P2, 2200 m, Plateau of Matat, Atlas Mts, N. Achak, A. Romane and M. Mahroug, 3 trees, ns, 18/03/2003; P3: 2000 m, Foret Islane, Oukaimden, Atlas Mts, N. Achak, A. Romane and M. Mahroug, 3 trees, ns,12/12/2003. A portion of the leaves from each of the three trees (per population) were air dried for 16 days at room temperature (ca. 22 &#8451) to produce the dried leaf samples.

The oil yields from fresh leaves showed on differences among geographical sources. Air dried leaves appeared to yield more oil at the highest elevation (1.03%, Ait Lkak, 2900 m) than lower sites (0.67%, Plateau of Matat, 2200 m; 0.57%, Foret Islane, 2000 m). The essential oils from each geographic site had very similar composition in fresh versus air dried leaves. The essential oils from provenance Ait Lkak and Plateau of Matat were very similar and characterized by a high sabinene content (21.2, 35.9%), in contrast to 10.% sabinene from the provenance Foret Islane. The oil from Foret Islane had a high delta-cadinene content with 12.7%, whereas Aik Akak and Plateau of Matat contained only 0.6 and 0.8%.

One hundred grams of mature leaves were collected from 2 to 10 widely spaced trees per site and sent to Sydney for analysis as soon as possible after collection. Samples usually arrived in the laboratory within 48 h of collection. The majority of the sampling was done between December 1998 and October 1999. Seasonal trends in oil yields and composition are confounded in the data on geographic variation, but these were considered minor in the context of this study.

Chemotype 1 is comprised of E-nerolidol (74-95%) and linalool (14-30%) and is found from Sydney, north along the east coast of Australia to Selection Flat, New South Wales, with an isolated occurrence near Maryborough, Queensland. Two divisions occur in this chemotype which are based on the presence or absence of significant proportions of linalool (14-40%). Chemotype 2 contains 1,8-cineole (10-75%), viridiflorol (13-66%), alpha-terpineol (0.5-14%) and beta-caryophyllene (0.5-28%) in varying proportions and order of dominance in the oils. It is found throughout the distribution of the species, from Sydney to Papua New Guinea and New Caledonia. Within chemotype 2 there appears to be a continuous spread of oil composition without formation of any further discrete divisions as in chemotype 1. Analyses have shown that M. quinquenervia trees that occur at latitudes south of 25d S have high oil yields (1-3% w/w%, fresh leaves) and comprise chemotypes 1 and 2. North of 25d S, however, chemotype 1 does not occur and oil yields amongst the Australian populations are uniformly low (0.1-0.2%).

Plants were collected in the Inner plain, the Sharon plain and the kava valley.

The major constituent of all three oils was found to be 1,8-cineole (26.4-34.5%) followed by menthone (10.0-16.7%), pulegone (7.0-7.5%), and isomenthone (4.7-7.8%). Despite some differences in the component proportions, the plants of all three populations clearly belong to the same chemotype.