Chemical composition of the essential oils of chemotypes of Pimenta racemosa var. racemosa (P. Miller) J. W. Moore (Bois d'Inde) of Guadeloupe (F.W.I.)

In Guadeloupe, three kinds of plants that have the botanical name of Pimenta racemosa var. racemosa (P.Miller) J. W. Moore (Myrtaceae) can be found. They differ from one another by the smell of their leaves : smells similar to those of clove, lemon and anise. An analysis of the essential oils of each type shows differences concerning their physical characteristics and their chemical compositions ; in two chemotypes, major amounts of phenolic ethers (eugenol, chavicol, estragole, methyleugenol) were observed whereas the third one mainly contains acyclic oxygenated monoterpenes such as geranial and neral