''Syzygium anisatum'', with common names ringwood and aniseed tree, is a rare rainforest tree native to

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

, Australia. The aromatic leaves contain 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 tall. The leaves are long with prominently undulated margins and rich aniseed aroma when crushed. Flowers are white and sweetly scented, borne in panicles. The fruit are dry papery capsules around long and are white in appearance. Ringwood's natural distribution in the wild is restricted to the Nambucca and Bellinger Valleys in northeastern New South Wales.

Uses

Used as a flavouring spice and herbal tea ingredient. Although previously known, it was first sold in the early 1990s as a bushfood spice, and in the mid 1990s cultivated in plantations to meet demand. The essential oil of ''S. anisatum'' contains

anethole Anethole (also known as anise camphor) is an organic compound that is widely used as a flavoring substance. It is a derivative of the aromatic compound allylbenzene and occurs widely in the essential oils of plants. It is in the class of phenylpr ...

and

methyl chavicol Estragole (''p''-allylanisole, methyl chavicol) is a phenylpropene, a natural organic compound. Its chemical structure consists of a benzene ring substituted with a methoxy group and an allyl group. It is an isomer of anethole, differing with resp ...

, imparting licorice and aniseed flavours respectively. 'Aniseed myrtle' is the name originally coined to specifically describe high quality selections of the trans-anethole

chemotype A chemotype (sometimes chemovar) is a chemically distinct entity in a plant or microorganism, with differences in the composition of the secondary metabolites. Minor genetic and epigenetic changes with little or no effect on morphology or anatomy ...

(90%+) -

generally recognized as safe Generally recognized as safe (GRAS) is a United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) designation that a chemical or substance added to food is considered safe by experts under the conditions of its intended use. An ingredient with a GRAS d ...

for

flavouring A flavoring (or flavouring), also known as flavor (or flavour) or flavorant, is a food additive that is used to improve the taste or smell of food. It changes the perceptual impression of food as determined primarily by the chemoreceptors of ...

. These selections are propagated from cutting for consistent essential oil quality. The aniseed myrtle selections are also low in

and cis-anethole (less than 0.1%). Research indicates that aniseed myrtle oil has

antimicrobial An antimicrobial is an agent that kills microorganisms (microbicide) or stops their growth (bacteriostatic agent). Antimicrobial medicines can be grouped according to the microorganisms they are used to treat. For example, antibiotics are used aga ...

activity, including on the

pathogenic In biology, a pathogen (, "suffering", "passion" and , "producer of"), in the oldest and broadest sense, is any organism or agent that can produce disease. A pathogen may also be referred to as an infectious agent, or simply a germ. The term ...

yeast ''

Candida albicans ''Candida albicans'' is an opportunistic pathogenic yeast that is a common member of the human gut flora. It can also survive outside the human body. It is detected in the gastrointestinal tract and mouth in 40–60% of healthy adults. It is usu ...

''.

Myrtle rust

A significant fungal pathogen, myrtle rust (''

Austropuccinia ''Austropuccinia'' is a monotypic genus of rust (a type of plant pathogen) native to South America with the only species ''Austropuccinia psidii'', commonly known as myrtle rust, guava rust, or ʻōhiʻa rust. It affects plants in the family Myr ...

''), was detected in aniseed myrtle plantations in January 2011. Myrtle rust severely damages new growth and threatens aniseed myrtle production. Controls are being developed.

References

External links

View a map
of herbarium records of this species at the

Australasian Virtual Herbarium The ''Australasian Virtual Herbarium'' (AVH) is an online resource that allows access to plant specimen data held by various Australian and New Zealand herbaria. It is part of the Atlas of Living Australia (ALA), and was formed by the amalgama ...

View observations
of this species on

iNaturalist iNaturalist is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit social network of naturalists, citizen scientists, and biologists built on the concept of mapping and sharing observations of biodiversity across the globe. iNaturalist may be accessed via its web ...

See images
of this species on Flickriver.com {{Taxonbar, from=Q7663970 Bushfood anisatum Myrtales of Australia Trees of Australia Spices Crops originating from Australia Flora of New South Wales

Uses

Myrtle rust

See also

References

External links