Fabulous Flora

Knowst thou the land where the lemon trees bloom, Where the gold orange glows in the deep thicket's gloom, Where a wind ever soft from the blue heaven blows, And the groves are of laurel, myrtle and rose? (Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship)

Botanical scents, just like animal scents, can also be synthesized. Synthetic vanilla (vanillin) was first created in 1890, ionone (a synthetic violet scent) was created in 1893 and synthetic camphor (think mothballs) in 1896. Natural botanical oils, however, are made from a variety of plant sources: not only the plant's petals, leaves and stems, but also its roots, fruit rinds, seeds, branches...even sap! Whenever you touch a petal or leaf and smell an odor on your fingertip, you have found that plant's essential oil. The essential oils in jasmine and honeysuckle are found in their flower petals; the oils of lavender, rosemary and patchouli are found in their leaves; vetiver oil is located in its roots; lemon, orange and bergamot oils are located in the outer skins of their fruit; the oils of frankincense (a.k.a. olibanum) and myrrh are found in the sap (gum resin) of the Boswellia carteri and Commiphora myrrha trees, respectively.

For some plants, these oils are a weapon against predators. Rosemary and lavender never suffer from aphid infestation; camphor repels moths and sandalwood is impervious to termites. Some oils are so strong they are combustible when placed near a flame, such as orange oil and the oil of the "gas plant" (Dictamnus alba). So be careful the next time you peel an orange by candlelight!

Some of the strongest-smelling floral scents—jasmine, lily, hyacinth and honeysuckle—bloom at night. This is because these flowers rely on moths for pollination. Many of these flowers are also white, which reflects the moonlight, thus assisting the moth on his vol de nuit. In fact, 15% of all aromatic blooms are white. Of course, there are also the red and pink-petaled flowers, which represent 9% of all aromatic blooms—these colors are favored by day-flying butterflies. Bees, however, prefer yellow, purple and blue-petaled flowers. Like moths, bees also have tremendous olfactory acuity. Not all flowers rely on bees and moths for pollination, however. The largest flower in the world, the Sumatran amorphophallus, a plant that can grow as high as six feet, relies on flies for pollination. Its secret attractant: the odor of rotting flesh! Yum, yum!

Next >>