Bernard Pasquier, Gilles Figuérédo and Jean-Claude Chalchat*

Abstract: The seeds of two populations of oregano (O. cordifolium) harvested in Cyprus were sown at a research station in France. The resulting plants were planted in triplicate in a Fischer block design. The oils, which were produced by hydrodistillation, were analyzed by GC and GC/MS. The oils were found to be rich in α-terpineol (45.9-55.7%) of homogeneous composition irrespective of their origin or replicate.

Ietswaart (1) drew up a detailed botanical classifi cation of oregano species. The chemical compositions of several of Origanum species have been determined, e.g., Baser and Duman (2-9), Skoula et al. (10), Tümen et al. (11), Valentini et al. (12), Arnold et al. (13), Ravid and Putievsky (14), Akgül and Bayrak (15), Fischer et al. (16), Vera and Chane-Ming (17), Pino et al. (18), Melegari et al. (19), Chalchat and Pasquier (20). Origanum cordifolium is a very rare oregano found in a few parts of a mountainous massif in the west of Cyprus. It grows on stony soils in ravines, gorges and pinewood understories at altitudes between 500 m and 1500 m. In the wild it can reach a very large size but grows very slowly in the nursery. It is a prostrate creeper and is fragile, being prone to rot. In temperate climates it is sensitive to even mild winter conditions. It is weakly scented and fi nds use as an ornamental pot plant appreciated for its long drooping leafy stems ending in very long infl orescences with large colored bracts.