Comparative survey on the essential oil composition from the seeds and flowers of Foeniculum vulgare Mill. from Kerman province

This study was designed to examine the chemical composition of the essential oil of Foeniculum vulgare Mill. (apiaceae). The chemical composition of the essential oil from seeds and flowers of F. vulgare from Kerman province, Iran was obtained by the hydrodistillation method, analyzed by gas chromatography and gas chromatography mass spectrometry. Twenty four compounds, accounting for 99.75% of the total oil with 2.75% oil yield were identified in the essential oil of the seeds. The main constituents of the essential oil were trans-anethole (49.64%),Fenchyl acetate (14.21%), estragole (8.67%), fenchone (6.37%) and limonene (4.23%). Twenty six compounds, accounting for 98.28% of the total oil with 1.96% oil yield were identified in the essential oil of the flowers. The main constituents of the essential oil were trans-anethole (55.68%), Fenchyl acetate (11.56%), estragole (6.87%), fenchone (4.43%) and limonene (3.18%).   Key words: Foeniculum vulgare Mill., trans-anethole, essential oil composition, gas-chromatography/mass-spectrometry (GC/MS).