Syzygium anisatum

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Syzygium anisatum
Syzygium anisatum, leaf, cultivated.
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae Division: Magnoliophyta Class: Magnoliopsida Order: Myrtales Family: Myrtaceae Genus: Syzygium Species: S. anisatum
Binomial name
Syzygium anisatum (Vickery) Craven & Biffen

Syzygium anisatum (formerly Backhousia anisata and Anetholea anisata), ringwood or aniseed tree is a rare Australian rainforest tree with an aromatic leaf that has an essential oil profile comparable to true aniseed. The leaf from cultivated plantations is used as a bushfood spice and distilled for the essential oil, and is known in the trade as aniseed myrtle or anise myrtle.

The ringwood tree has a dense crown and grows up to 45 metres. The leaves are 6-12 cm long with prominently wavey margins and aniseed aroma. Flowers are white and sweetly scented, borne in panicles. The fruit are dry papery capsules 5 mm long.

Ringwood's natural distribution in the wild is restricted to the Nambucca and Bellinger Valleys in the subtropics of Eastern Australia. Although previously known, it was only in the early 1990s that aniseed myrtle was first marketed as a bushfood spice, and in the mid 1990s cultivated in plantations to meet a boutique demand.^[1] Spice and essential oil product is supplied from plantations.^[2]

Research indicates that aniseed myrtle oil has antimicrobial activity, including on the pathogenic yeast Candida albicans.^[3]

[edit] Essential Oil

The essential oil of S.anisatum contains anethole and methyl chavicol, which impart aniseed and licorice flavours respectively.

'Aniseed myrtle' is the term originally coined by the bushfood industry to specifcally describe high quality selections of the trans-anethole chemotype (90%+) - considered GRAS (generally regarded as safe) for flavouring. These selections are propagated from cutting for consistent essential oil quality. The aniseed myrtle selections are also low in methyl chavicol and cis-anethole (less than 0.1%). Sometimes the term aniseed myrtle is also used to describe inferior product or the species in general.

[edit] References:

1. ^ Australian Native Food Industry Profile, CSIRO Sustainable Ecosystems [1]
2. ^ Suppliers of cultivated bushfoods, CSIRO Sustainable Ecosystems [2]
3. ^ Wilkinson, J.M., Cavanagh, H.M.A., "Antibacterial activity of essential oils from Australian native plants", Phytotherapy Research, Volume 19, Issue 7 , pp.643 - 646.

Floyd, A.G., Rainforest Trees of Mainland South-eastern Australia, ISBN 0-909605-57-2.