Cananga odorata - Ylang Ylang

Description and Uses

Cananga odorata (Ylang Ylang) is a tropical tree from South East Asia . It is mainly grown for its oil crops , which have a long shelf life. The crop is harvested by hand picking. It starts flowering after 2 - 5 years. The yield will be 6 kg flowers/tree/year, but in its top season there will be a yield of 10 kg flowers/tree/year. Other crop types include; timber, ornamental, oil, fuel, cosmetics, . The flower is used as spice . The flower is used as " high vitamin-C content, no medical uses, UV protection, " with Caryophyllene (3.1%/oil - 10.7%/oil) as its significant phytochemical. There is ylang ylang oil extracted by steam distillation from the tree's fresh leaf yielding 1.00%/flow - 2.25%/flow oil. The tree's wood is called ylang ylang firewood and has a density of 280 - 300 kg/m³. Regarding firewood production the tree's growing speed is fast, it's energetic value is 4200 ckal/kg and the wood's drying speed is slow. After 14 years the tree can be totally removed as it reached its commercial and ecological goal. Cananga odorata has a lifespan of 60 years.

Environmental limitations

The tree is 38 meters tall with a crown of 25 meters wide. The tree prefers a planting distance of 600 cm and a row distance of 600 cm. It is very fast growing and intolerant to shade. Cananga odorata has a deep root-system and it has symbiotic associations with the fungi (endo-mycorrhiza). It is not able to fix nitrogen with "any bacteria. The name(s) or string of bacteria include(s) "not applicable ". The tree's flower-morphology is hermaphroditic and is pollinated by moths. Cananga odorata is evergreen and not allelopathic and has no thorns.

Cananga odorata thrives in an altitude of 0 to 1800 meters above sea-level (tropical). The minimum temperature is 2°C; optimally between 20 - 27°C. The optimal rainfall is 2650 mm/year. Without irrigation the annual rainfall should be between 650 - 4000mm (L/m²). The optimal soil-pH is between 5.0 - 8.0 in a soil texture of sand. To salt it is a bit tolerant to wind tolerant and to fire intolerant.

Pests and Diseases

Cananga odorata is susceptible to the following pests: . And it's susceptible to the following diseases: (missing data) , , .

Seed Propagation

Seeds are orthodox and can be stored for 9 months. There are approximative 11000 seeds/kg. The seeds can be propagated as followed:

• (1) Store harvested seeds dry at room temperature
• (2) Soak the seeds overnight in warm water before sowing.
• (3) Remove the seeds from cold to a permanent warm temperature.