Composition of Essential Oils and AntifungalActivity of Hedychium cultivars

The genus Hedychium, which belongs to the Zingiberaceae family, consists of about 80 perennial monocotyledonous species. The most widely known and cultivated Hedychium species is H. coronarium (“White Butterfly”, “Butterfly Ginger”, or “Butterfly Ginger Lily”). Hedychium species are grown as ornamentals for their attractive foliage, diverse and showy flowers, and sweet fragrance. They are also widely cultivated for their perfume essences. Scents range from the rich gardenia-like fragrance of H. coronarium to scents reminiscent of citrus, clove, and even coconut. Essential oils from rhizomes of H. bousigonianum, H. coccineum, H. elatum, H. flavesens, H. flavum, H. forrestii and H. thyrsiforme with 11 hybrid Hedychium species were analyzed by GC-FID and GC-MS techniques and evaluated with their antifungal activity against the plant pathogenic fungus Colletotrichum, which causes anthracnose diseases worldwide. The majority of essential components in all Hedychium oils was found as monoterpene constituents such as: 1,8-cineole: (13–42%), linalool (9–56%), α-pinene (4–14%), β-pinene (8–31%) followed by sesquiterpene constituent in three Hedychium hybrid such as: (E)-nerolidol (19–20%).