Potpourri as a Sustainable Plant Product: Identity, Origin, and Conservation Status1

Abstract

Potpourri as a Sustainable Plant Product: Identity, Origin, and Conservation Status. While displays of decorative dried plant material are popular in homes in Europe and North America, knowledge regarding potpourri ingredients is limited. This study examined the identity, diversity, origin, economic sources, and sustainability of such ingredients used in the United Kingdom (UK). Research at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, commencing in 1990 and involving 1,000 samples of individual potpourri ingredients from 12 UK manufacturers and traders, revealed 546 different ingredients, representing up to 455 species, 289 genera, and over 100 families. Despite the wide taxonomic spread, several distinct plant part–family groups contributed the most potpourri ingredients: i.e., fruits from Arecaceae, Fabaceae, Malvaceae, Pinaceae, Poaceae, and Rutaceae; seeds from Fabaceae; leaves from Arecaceae, Fabaceae, and Poaceae; inflorescences from Asteraceae; as well as stems from cane, pith, timber, and pole wood. The vast majority of ingredients imported from Asia, especially India, were byproducts from crops and wild harvested species used by the Indian herbal healthcare industry. Global conservation assessments are lacking for 80% of wild collected Indian potpourri species, and those that have assessments are mainly abundant and widespread in ruderal or wetland habitats and of Least Concern (IUCN 2013), except Pterocarpus marsupium and P. indicus (Fabaceae), which are vulnerable globally, and Calamus andamanicus (Arecaceae) and Oroxylum indicum (Bignoniaceae), which are vulnerable nationally within India. A further eight, primarily medicinally traded species, are regarded as threatened within individual Indian states. Additional unique potpourri ingredients were sourced from Thailand, but only about one-tenth of study samples were from Africa, Middle East, Europe, America, and Australia. Temporal studies of potpourri ingredients could reflect changes in the use and abundance of species in other trades such as medicines, food, and materials.