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59.12.01a

Plant names

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Ferdinand von Mueller to Eugene Rimmel, 1859-12-01 [59.12.01a]. R.W. Home, Thomas A. Darragh, A.M. Lucas, Sara Maroske, D.M. Sinkora, J.H. Voigt and Monika Wells (eds), Correspondence of Ferdinand von Mueller, <https://vmcp.rbg.vic.gov.au/id//letters/1850-9/1859/59-12-01a-final.odt>, accessed June 4, 2026

1
Letter not found. The text given here is the appendix to a paper, Rimmel (1860), given to the Society of Arts on 16 May 1860, Journal of the Society of Arts, vol. 8, No 391, pp. 525-6 (B60.05.03). Rimmel mentioned M's report in the lecture: 'Australia and Tasmania abound in fragrant flowers and aromatic plants. I have appended to this paper a very interesting report on the subject with which I was favoured by Dr. Müller, of the Botanical Gardens at Melbourne.' M's letter is introduced by 'The following is Dr. Müller's report above referred to:—'.
Melbourne Botanical and Zoological Gardens,
1st Dec., 1859.
Sir,-
In reply to your request to be furnished with information on such plants peculiar to Australia as may be regarded as practically valuable for their perfume,
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Request not found.
I have the honour to inform you that I cannot point to any plant which would supersede in odour or in yield of essential oil, any of those already in use elsewhere, but I beg to add, that many of our native plants are as yet imperfectly examined in this respect, and it is therefore very possible that, in future experiments, plants may be pointed out possessing a sufficient quantity of scented oil to render them available for distillation.
I would however, direct your attention to the great prevalence of the Myrtaceous plants in Australia, which all, without exception, are characterised by the presence of a greater or less quantity of essential oil pervading leaves and flowers. This applies not only to the huge masses of Eucalypti, constituting our principal forests, all of which yield an aromatic volatile, often, however, somewhat camphoric oil, but also to the so-called tea-trees, species of
Melaleuca

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and
Leptospermum

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, so called because the oil by which they are pervaded, render any infusion of their leaves of an aromatic, more or less pleasant taste, and they were, therefore, used by early navigators as an antiscorbutic tea. More important as perfume plants are many of the species of
Baeckea

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e and
Chamelaurica

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e,
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Chamelauciae?
embracing numerous handsome and common shrubs of the myrtle family, of which some are impregnated with large quantities of truly well­scented oil. Of the actual yield of the respective species I can, however, at present afford no accurate information.
Very many of the
Acacia

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e indigenous to this country, produce flowers of most agreeable scent, and a distillate may possibly be obtained from them, which would be useful for cosmetics; and if so, they will require much more attention, as these trees are very gregarious, and produce flowers generally in the utmost profusion. How far the plants of the rue tribe, which all are strongly odorous from essential oils, are of value for perfume distillation future experiments must prove; my impression is, however, that in themselves they furnish an oil rather useful for medicinal than cosmetic purposes, unless a small admixture of oil of a peculiar flavour is needed to the ordinary composition now in use. The rue plants, l may add, are not only plentiful, but also extremely varied in species.
The plants of the mint tribe deserve particular attention in my opinion, for their essential oil; thus three kinds of Australian mints are possessed of an exceedingly pleasant odour, very different to that of the crisp and the peppermint. There are also plants allied to the basilicon (
Plutranthus

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,
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Plectranthus?
Anisamelia

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,
5
The most probably genus within the relevant family, Lamiaceae, to be misread this way is Anisandra, of which A. glabra occurs in Australia (see B89.12.03, p. 170, under its synonym Microcorys).
Ocymum

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), which have a very agreeable scent, and undoubtedly could be advantageously distilled; but they am not, or rarely, available in Victoria, but are still largely to be found in the warmer parts of New South Wales. In the latter colony there are also several trees and shrubs of the orange tribe full of exquisite oil.
The species of
Prostanthera

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are nearly all strongly and agreeably scented; they occur in South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, and New South Wales; their oils, I do not doubt, could be cheaply obtained, but would be only useful for admixture with others.
Well-scented flowers are produced by many native shrubs, for instance,
Logania

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,
Tetrathrea

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,
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Tetratheca?
Stockhausia

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,
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Stackhousia?
Jasmine,
Alyxia

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, Heliotrope, &c., but whether it will be profitable to subject them to distillation remains to be ascertained.
Amongst the strongly odoriferous flowers, I may mention also the
Xerotis fragrans

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,
8
Xerotes?
and l may avail myself of this opportunity to contradict a rather current belief that the generality of our flowers are devoid of scent. For although we have no plant wild in Australia equal to the Rose, and several other favourite flowers in regard to scents, very many still exhale a lovely odour. The
Humea elegans

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is recommended for distillation by some naturalists of New South Wales.
The Myall wood is found rather commonly in the desert of the interior of Eastern and South-Eastern Australia, and is obtained from several species of Australian trees. Should this prove useful for the desired purpose, it could now, with steam communication, easily be obtained in large quantity from the country along the River Murray, and its tributaries.
I have the honour to be, Sir,
Your obedient servant,
FRED.
9
Ferd.
MULLER.