Composition ofHelichrysum italicum (Roth) G. Don fil. subsp.italicum essential oils from Corsica (France)

The components of essential oils of Helichrysum italicum subsp. italicum growing in Corsica were investigated by the combination of GC and GC–MS. In a first part, nine commercial and laboratories-prepared samples were analysed and Corsican oils were found to contain neryl acetate as predominant compound, with amounts from 15.8% (from plants in stage of early shoots) to 42.5% (in full flowering period). In a second part, we sampled Helichrysum italicum subsp. italicum from three locations over the growth cycle of the plant. Significant variations were observed in the concentration of the main constituents, pointing out a chemical composition of oils produced from plants in early shoots (higher amounts of ketones and β-diketones) different from that obtained from samples harvested in the stages of flowering (higher contents of neryl acetate). Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.