Wallflower.
Latin—Cheiranthus Cheiri; French—Giroflé; German—Levkojenblüthen, Goldlack.
The wallflower, a well-known biennial garden plant belonging to the Order of Cruciferæ, according to recent experiments yields a very fine odor to certain substances and may be employed in the manufacture of quite superior perfumes. The preparations usually sold as wallflower, however, are not made from the flowers of this plant, but are mixtures of different odors.
Wintergreen.
Latin—Gaultheria procumbens; French—Gaulthérie; German—Wintergrünblätter.
This herbaceous plant, indigenous to North America, especially Canada and the Northern and Middle United States, where it grows wild in large quantities, has a very pleasant odor due to an essential oil and a compound ether which can also be produced artificially. The odor of wintergreen serves chiefly for scenting fine soaps.
Ylang-Ylang.
This plant, Unona odoratissima, indigenous to the Philippine Islands, contains an exceedingly fragrant oil. It is brought into commerce from Manilla.
Owing to climatic relations, it is impossible for the perfumer to procure all the above-enumerated substances in the fresh state; many of them he is forced to purchase through the drug trade, and he should bear in mind to give the preference always to the freshest obtainable goods. At times it is not possible to utilize the materials at once for the extraction of the odors and they must be kept for some time. The vegetable substances should always be stored in an airy, not over dry room; and the material should be often inspected. If a trace of mouldiness shows itself, the material must be worked at once, since, if the mould is allowed to go on, the fragrance will suffer and may be destroyed altogether.
The aromatic substances here enumerated are those which have actually found general employment in perfumery; but the list is not complete, since every aromatic plant can be used for the extraction of its odor. Of course, this is connected with some difficulties, but even in the present state of our knowledge they can all be overcome. When a new odor has been prepared, the art of the perfumer consists in ascertaining by many experiments those substances which harmonize with it; for with few exceptions the finest grades of perfumes are not single odors but combinations of several which are in accord.
Even among our domestic plants there are numerous finds to be made by the perfumer, and in this respect we refer particularly to some very fragrant kinds of orchids in our woods and to the delightful odor of the lily of the valley. As to the latter, a perfume is met with in commerce under this name, but its odor bears no resemblance to that of the flower.