Volatile constituents of three Salvia species grown wild in Iran

The composition of the oils from leaves and flowers of three Salvia species (S. aethiopis L., S. hypoleuca Benth. and S. multicaulis Vahl.) has been analysed by a combination of GC and GC–MS. During the flowering period, two oils (S. aethiopis and S. hypoleuca) consisted mainly of sesquiterpenes, while in S. multicaulis oil monoterpenes predominated over sesquiterpenes. The major components of the oil of S. aethiopis were β-caryophyllene (24.6%), α-copaene (15.5%) and germacrene D (13.5%). In the oil of S. hypoleuca, β-caryophyllene (22.0%), δ-elemene (15.5%) and bicyclogermacrene (15.1%) were found to be the major constituents. α-Pinene (26.0%), 1,8-cineole+limonene (20.0%) and camphor (19.0%) were the predominant compounds in the oil of S. multicaulis. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.