Tuberose

Tuberose Polianthes tuberosa L (Sedap Malam, or Night Delicious - because the scents spread heavily at night) is native to Central America. The fragrance is strong, mysterious and seductive and Indonesians usually asociated the scents with female spirits/ghosts. It’s very popular in Indonesia as cut flowers or clustered for bride’s accessories and decoration, traditional rituals and ceremonies. Other type of tuberose flowers is edible and added to kimlo soup.

Tuberose oil is very expensive. This probably because the flower itself have a very good economic value as cut flowers, or maybe because the production process is not widely known. Unlike other essential oils, tuberose oil processed from extraction of fresh flowers, picked before the petals open and mixed with usually hexane solvent.
Tuberose oil is not normally used in aromatherapy but widely used in the perfume industry as a component of good quality perfumes and is said to have narcotic properties, although proper safety data is not available.