Volatile compounds emitted by rose cultivars: Fragrance perception by man and honeybees

Moshe Shalit, Sharoni Shafir, Olga Larkov, Einat Bar, Dalit Kaslassi, Zach Adam, Dani Zamir, Alexander Vainstein, David Weiss, Uzi Ravid, Efraim Lewinsohn*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

29 Scopus citations

Abstract

Petals of 11 rose cultivars were analyzed by solvent extraction for the presence of key scent volatiles. Two different cultivars - 'Fragrant Cloud', a very fragrant cultivar, and 'Golden Gate', a non-fragrant cultivar - were further analyzed by the headspace technique during flower opening. The 'Fragrant Cloud' headspace is composed of a variety of volatiles, including monoterpene alcohols, acetates, and terpene hydrocarbons, while the 'Golden Gate' headspace is composed mainly of orcinol dimethylether, a compound that is scentless to the human nose but that is perceived by honeybees, as judged by proboscis extension experiments. In both cultivars, the level of volatiles increased during flower development, while the ratio of different major volatiles remained constant.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)245-255
Number of pages11
JournalIsrael Journal of Plant Sciences
Volume52
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - 2004

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
This work was supported by Israel Ministry of Sciences, Culture and Sport grant no. 1410-2-00, by U.S.-Israel Binational Agricultural Research and Development (BARD) grant no. US-3437-03, and The Hebrew University Intramural Research Fund Basic Project Awards.

Keywords

  • Geraniol
  • Headspace
  • Honeybees
  • Orcinol dimethylether
  • Proboscis extension
  • Rose
  • Scent
  • Solvent extraction
  • Volatiles

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Volatile compounds emitted by rose cultivars: Fragrance perception by man and honeybees'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this