History
It was considered native to the northwestern Himalayas. It was the chief source of the commercial perfume in Europe and in Mediterranean countries.

Habitat
It is widely grown in gardens throughout India. Various types and cultivars are cultivated in a large scale in India.

Morphology Description (Habit)
It is a large scrambling or twining shrub with ribbed branches. The leaves are opposite and imparipinnately compound. In the leaflets the terminal one is somewhat larger than laterals. The lateral leaflets are sessile or shortly petiolate. The distal pair is with broad connate base, confluent with the terminal. The flowers are borne in lax axillary or terminal cymes, longer than leaves, white, often tinged with purple on the outside and delightfully fragrant. The bracts are ovate to spathulate-oblong and foliaceous. The calyx is glabrous, lobes are 5 in number and subulate. The corolla lobes are 5 in number and elliptic or obovate.

Principal Constituents
The main odorous components present in Indian oil samples were reported to be; benzyl acetate (26.3), benzyl benzoate (19.2) phytol (10.6), jasmone (8.5) and methyl jasmonate (6.3).

Toxicology
There is no adverse effect on use of this plant.

Indications
It is a high-class perfume. The bulk of the harvested flowers is used in garlands, chaplets and decorative bunches and for religious offerings. A small quantity is used for the production of hair oils and attars. The scented oil and attar from flowers are valued for their cooling effect, in skin diseases, headache and eye troubles.