Essential oils of seven Stachys taxa from Croatia

Abstract The essential oils of Stachys alpina L., Stachys officinalis (L.) Trevis., Stachys palustris L., Stachys recta L. subsp. recta , S. recta L. subsp. subcrenata (Vis.) Briq., Stachys salviifolia Ten., and Stachys sylvatica L. were obtained by hydrodistillation and analysed by gas chromatography (GC) and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS). Sesquiterpene hydrocarbons were the main group of constituents of all taxa, except S. alpina , which was rich in oxygenated sesquiterpenes. S. alpina and S. palustris had a significant aldehyde fraction and a high amount of alcohols. Some differences in the essential oil composition of two subspecies of S. recta ( S. recta subsp. recta and S. recta subsp. subcrenata ), growing under almost identical conditions, have been found.