Morphologic and Essential oil Profiles of Three Species from Asteraceae

In this study we aimed to evaluate the morphological traits and essential oil compositions of three members of Astreraceae (Helichrysum plicatum subsp. plicatum DC., Tanacetum vulgare L., Anthemis cretica L. subsp. albida (Boiss.) Grierson) growing wild in the semi-arid areas of Cankiri province, Turkey. Some morphological characters were reported for the first time. Essential oils were obtained by hydrodistillation, and their components were identified using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Forty eight compounds were detected for Helichrysum plicatum subsp. plicatum DC., 39 for Tanacetum vulgare L., and 15 for Anthemis cretica L. subsp. albida (Boiss.) Grierson. Although these species belong to the same family, the essential oil profiles revealed significant alterations. The dominant compounds in Helichrysum plicatum subsp. plicatum DC. were sesquiterpenes, whereas monoterpenes were the most abundant compounds in Tanacetum vulgare L. and Anthemis cretica L. subsp. albida (Boiss.) Grierson. The results indicated that the three species use different morphological and chemical processes for broad and specific adaptation.