• Botanical Name: Rhododendron anthopogon D. Don
• Family: Ericaceae
• Flowering and fruiting: May-July
• Parts Used: Leaves and flowers
• Distribution: The plant occurs throughout Nepal as alpine shrubberies in open slopes and gregarious areas at an altitude 3000-4800m.
• Method of Extraction: Steam Distillation

Description:

An evergreen, strongly aromatic shrub-let to 60 cm to 1 m tall. Leaves simple, alternate, short stalked, oval to ovate, 2.5-4 cm long, densely scaly beneath and aromatic characteristic smell when crushed. Flowers white or yellowish tinged with pink, 4-6 in compact terminal clusters. Fruits capsules, about 3 mm long, encircled by persistent calyx.

Specification of Anthopogon
1. Organoleptic Properties
Appearance	Fluid liquid
Color	Pale yellow
Aroma	Sweet herbal, faint basamic
2. Physico-chemical Properties
Specific gravity	0.8630 to 0.8804 at 150C.
Optical rotation	[-] 10.05º to [-] 32.9º at 15º C
Refractive index	1.4785 to 1.4881 at 150C.
Acid number	1.54 to 4.06
Ester number	5.40 to 25.92
Ester number after acetylation	8.23 to 45.78
Solubility	Soluble in 95% alcohol
3. Chemical constituent:
Leaves give ursoleic acid and quercetin. Leaves produce aromatic oil containing ?- and ?-pinene, d-limonene, 3-cyclohexene, linalyl propanoate, butanoic acid, caryophyllene, copaene, caryophyllene oxide, guaiol, ?-selinene 2- nephthalenemethanol and naphthalenamine.
4. Uses
Leaves are aromatic, stimulant and also administered to produce sneezing. Its decoction is used in cold, cough and chronic bronchitis.