72 



The oil which comes over first is richest in geraniol and citro- 

 nellal (these two together constitute the "total geraniol" or better 

 total alcohols ") as the following table shows : 





Sp. gr. at 27 



Rotation 



" total geraniol " per 



Fraction I ... 



0.875 



-30 



87.2 



2 ... 



0.875 



-40 



82.5 



3 •■• 



0.880 



-50 



77.3 



4 ••• 



0.883 



-70 



77.3 



Further, the geraniol content " increases from the first to the 

 third leaf and then diminishes. De Jong also states that, as a rule 

 Java citronella oil of commerce is soluble in three parts of 80 to 90 

 per cent. Andropogon Nardiis, Ceylon, is recommended to planters 

 having poor soil, which they wish to occupy. A corresponding set of 

 determinations was made with this plant, and the results may be 

 summarised thus : 



Leaf 



No. I 

 2 

 3 

 4 

 5 

 6 



Yield from 

 300 leaves 

 C. C. 



1.9 

 3.4 

 2.9 

 2.5 



Yield from 

 100 gms. of 

 leaves C. C. 



5-9 

 3.7 

 2.0 



2.0 



Rotation 

 of oil 



-r 8' 

 -3° 20' 

 -3° 8' 

 -3' 40' 

 -3° 12' 

 4° 20' 



" Geraniol 

 content" 

 per cent. 



85.9 

 86.3 

 81.3 

 83.0 

 81.3 

 74.8 



The yield of oil is therefore smaller and the quality rather poorer 

 than that from^the Java grass, but the Ceylon oil of commerce, 

 according to de Jong, contains only from 50 to 70 percent, "geraniol." 



The cultivation of lemongrass is carried on much in the same 

 way as with citronella. The data obtained in the course of the investi- 

 gation of the grass as grown in Java were as follows : 



Number of 



Yield from 



Yield from 



Citral content 



Leaf used 



300 leaves C.C. 



100 gms. of 



per cent. 







leaves C.C. 



099 

 1.29 



T.09 



0.95 



0.91 



2.12 

 1.20 

 0.96 

 0.83 

 0.78 



78.1 

 79.4 

 77.0 

 80.5 

 80.0 

 82.5 



