Cananga odorata, commonly known as ylang-ylang (), Macassar oil tree, perfume tree or cananga, is a species of plant in the custard apple family Annonaceae. It is native to areas from Indochina to northeastern Australia, and has been introduced to many other regions. It is valued for the essential oil, also called ylang-ylang, which is extracted from the flowers. Ylang-ylang is one of the most extensively used natural fragrances in the perfume industry.
Description
Cananga odorata is a fast-growing evergreen tree reaching up to in height, usually with a straight cylindrical trunk. The compound evergreen leaves are pinnate; the leaflets are ovate and pointed and with wavy margins. They measure up to long and wide with 8–11 pairs of lateral veins. The inflorescences occur in the leaf axils or on the branches, and take the form of a or . The very fragrant flowers are held on stems up to long. They have a small green calyx and six yellow petals up to long. The pollen grains are large (up to 107 μm), and shed as permanent tetrads.
Taxonomy The species was first described as Uvaria odorata in 1785 by Jean-Baptiste Lamarck, and published in the book Encyclopédie Méthodique. In 1855, British botanists Joseph Dalton Hooker and Thomas Thomson transferred it to the current genus in their book Flora Indica.
The genus Cananga is placed in the family Annonaceae, subfamily Ambavioideae, with sister genera Ambavia, Cleistopholis, Cyathocalyx, Drepananthus, Lettowianthus, Meiocarpidium, Mezzettia and Tetrameranthus. Cananga contains only two species, the subject species and Cananga brandisiana.
Two varieties are recognised: C. odorata var. fruticosa, and the autonym C. odorata var. odorata.
Etymology The name Cananga is derived from the Malay word kananga. 'Ylang-ylang' is the Spanish spelling of the Tagalog name for the tree, . A common mistranslation is 'flower of flowers'.
Common names In English, it is also called perfume tree, Macassar oil tree, or fragrant cananga. It is called *kanaŋa in Malay, Ngaju Dayak, Makassarese, Sundanese, Old Javanese, Buruese and Manggarai.
Polynesian names include mataoi or motooi (Cook Islands), mohokoi (Tonga), mosooi (Samoa), motooi (Hawaii), and mokosoi, mokasoi or mokohoi (Fiji). Other traditional names include sampangi (Telugu).
Distribution and habitat The plant is native to Vietnam, Thailand, Peninsula Malaysia, Borneo, Java, Sumatra, Sulawesi, the Lesser Sunda Islands, the Philippines, New Guinea, the Solomon Islands and the Australian state of Queensland. It has been introduced to other tropical parts of Asia from India to Taiwan, as well as parts of Africa, central America and the Caribbean.
It grows in full or partial sun, and prefers the acidic soils of its native rainforest habitat. Ylang-ylang has been cultivated in temperate climates under conservatory conditions.
Ecology Its clusters of black fruit are an important food item for birds, such as the collared imperial pigeon, purple-tailed imperial pigeon, Zoe's imperial pigeon, superb fruit dove, pink-spotted fruit dove, coroneted fruit dove, orange-bellied fruit dove, and wompoo fruit dove.Frith, H.J.; Rome, F.H.J.C. & Wolfe, T.O. (1976): Food of fruit-pigeons in New Guinea. Emu 76(2): 49-58. HTML abstract The Sulawesi red-knobbed hornbill serves as an effective seed disperser for C. odorata.
Uses The essential oil is used as a perfume, often for soap making. The perfumes are oriental- or floral-themed. Ylang-ylang blends well with most floral, fruit, and wood scents. The aroma of ylang-ylang is described as "sweet, floral, balsamic, green, spicy, animal, woody, waxy, leathery".
In Indonesia, ylang-ylang flowers are spread on the bed of newlywed couples. In the Philippines, its flowers, together with the flowers of the sampaguita, are strung into a necklace (lei) and worn by women and used to adorn religious images.
Ylang-ylang's essential oil makes up 29% of the Comoros' annual export (1998).
Ylang-ylang is grown in Madagascar and exported globally for its essential oils.
Ylang-ylang essential oil is one of the basic ingredients of macassar oil.
Ylang-ylang essential oil
The fragrance of ylang-ylang is rich and deep with notes of rubber and custard, and bright with hints of jasmine and neroli, thus it is sometimes described as heavy, sweet, and carries a slightly fruity floral scent. The essential oil of the flower is obtained through steam distillation of the flowers and separated into different grades (extra, 1, 2, or 3) according to when the distillates are obtained.
Ylang-ylang essential oil contain the following:Manner, Harley and Craig Elevitch,Traditional Tree Initiative: Species Profiles for Pacific Island Agroforestry (2006), Permanent Agricultural Resources, Honolulu, Hi.
Linalool Germacrene Geranyl acetate Caryophyllene p-Cresyl methyl ether Methyl benzoate
The following sesquiterpenes are also found: caryophyllene, germacrene, and (E,E)-α-farnesene. The related cananga oil has a similar composition but much greater concentrations of aryophyllene.
See also Artabotrys hexapetalus, a related plant which produced a similar essential oil Jasminum sambac, the Arabian jasmine, another plant widely used in perfumes Domaine Ylang Ylang
References
Further reading Elevitch, Craig (ed.) (2006): Traditional Trees of Pacific Islands: Their Culture, Environment and Use. Permanent Agricultural Resources Publishers, Honolulu. Manner, Harley & Elevitch, Craig (ed.) (2006): Traditional Tree Initiative: Species Profiles for Pacific Island Agroforestry. Permanent Agricultural Resources Publishers, Honolulu. Davis, Patricia (2000): "Aromatherapy An A-Z". Vermilion:Ebury Publishing, London.
External links
Ylang ylang uses in perfumery