The oils ofcommerce are known as European French or Sweet Basil, Egyptian, Reunion orComoro and to a lesser extent Bulgarian and Java basil oils (Heath 1981). There are several types of basil oil in international commerce, each derivedprincipally from different cultivars or chemotypes of sweet basil. Two minor components of theessential oil of sweet basil, juvocimene I and II, have been reported as potentjuvenile hormone analogs (Nishida et al. These properties can frequently beattributed to predominant essential oil constituents, such as methyl chavicol,eugenol linalool, camphor, and methyl cinnamate. 1984) or which have antimicrobialproperties (Ntezurubanza et al. Extracted essential oils have also been shown to containbiologically-active constituents that are insecticidal (Deshpande and Tipnis1977, Chavan and Nikam 1982, Chogo and Crank 1981), nematicidal (Chatterjee etal. The essential oils of basil extracted via steam distillation from the leavesand flavoring tops are used to flavor foods, dental and oral products, infragrances, and in traditional rituals and medicines (Guenther 1949, Simon etal.
While there are many cultivars (Simon and Reiss-Bubenheim 1987),little information is available on the essential oil compounds responsible forthe plant's flavor and fragrance. Sweet basil ( Ocimum basilicum L.), a common garden herb, is cultivatedin the United States for culinary purposes as a fresh herb and as a dried spice( Fig. Taxonomy is furthercomplicated by the existence of chemotypes or chemical races within the speciesthat do not differ significantly in morphology. The morphological diversity within basilspecies has been accentuated by centuries of cultivation with great variationin pigmentation, leaf shape and size, and pubescence.
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Interspecific hybridization and polyploidy, common occurrences withinthe genus, have created taxonomic confusion and challenges, yet very little hasbeen published on basil taxonomy which follows the International Code ofBotanical nomenclature (Tucker 1986). Plants have square stems,fragrant opposite leaves, and whorled flowers on spiked inflorescences (Darrah1980). Ocimum contains between 50 to 150 species of herbs andshrubs from the tropical regions of Asia, Africa, and Central and South America(Bailey 1924, Hortus III 1976, Darrah 1980). INTRODUCTIONThe genus Ocimum, (Lamiaceae formerly Labiatae), collectively calledbasil has long been recognized as a diverse and rich source of essential oils( Table 1). Simon (eds.), Advances in new crops.Timber Press, Portland, OR.īasil: A Source of Essential Oils * James E. Basil: A Source of Essential Oils Index | Search | Home | Table of Contents
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