ABSTRACT
Cananga odorata Hook. fil. et Thomson, commonly known as kenanga, ylang-ylang, canang odorant and cananga, is an evergreen medium-sized tree growing 10-30 meters in height. Its flowers blossom throughout the year and are very fragrant. The cananga is native to Malaysia and Indonesia, but is now naturalized to most of the larger Paciffic Island groups, northern Australia, Thailand, and Vietnam. The tree has long been cultivated on a large scale in southeast Asia and some islands of the Indian Ocean, mainly Madagascar and the Comoro Islands, for the production of essential oil from the flowers. Ylang-ylang oil is mainly used for fine fragrances, but also for other cosmetics including soaps and skin lotions and detergents. Ylang-ylang oil ‘extra’ is a clear mobile liquid with pale yellowish to darker yellow color, which has an intense exotic, somewhat jasmine-like, floral odor with an aromatic woody note in the background.
