History of Agar wood

The history of agarwood dates back to over 2,000 years. It is an integral part of the cultural and religious landscape of Hindus, Buddhists, Muslim, Christians, Taos, Sufis, etc. In addition, it is widely used in the medicinal practices of Ayurveda, Unani, Arabic, Tibetan, Sufi and Chinese

Uses of agarwood

• Since the strong aromatic fragrance of agarwood is appealing to the senses and lifts the mood like no other, it is widely used in the treatment of mental depression.
• The followers of Buddha believe that the burning of agarwood and taking in its aroma helps one reach the ultimate stage of meditation and hence use it accordingly. In the very words of Buddha, “The aromatic fragrance of agar takes one to the stage of nirvana.”
• It has found a mention in the 8th century tomes of Sahin Muslims.
• The word ‘aloes’ has been mentioned several times in the Old Testament of Christians.
• Agar is said to be therapeutic.
• Hebrews have referred to agarwood as ahaloth or ahlim.
• In the Koh-Doh (incense ceremony) festival celebrated by the Japanese, agar enjoys the first place.
• In the Vietnam temples of Shimsho Buddhists, all the religious activities begin with the burning of agar.
• In Muslim countries, clothes worn for prayers are always smeared with agar attar.

Wood of Gods
For ages, tribals observed the production of agar, used the produce, conserved the plant variety and called it the ‘Wood of Gods’. In fact, in India’s religious and social sectors, agarbathis and oodhbathis are used more than sandalwood.

Medicinal Raw Material

In the traditional medicines of south-eastern parts of the world and the Arab countries, agarwood has been used as the main ingredient. It is widely used in the treatment of respiratory, stomach and heart-related problems, and in aromatherapy. The vast spread of agar oil and incense burner shops in many rich nations of the world, including Arab countries, illustrates the use of agarwood smoke and oil in the treatment of sexual disorders. In China, Chen-Xiang medicinal agarwood is widely sold. Wine and liquor manufactured with the use of agarwood as an ingredient are used for medicinal purposes.

Agar oil and agar incense as raw materials for cosmetics

The strong and dense aromatic fragrance of agar oil lifts our spirit like no other. Because of this quality of agar, its popularity is unequalled. No other natural aromatic and essential oil even comes close to the reputation agar enjoys. Agar oil is widely used in Arab countries as agar attar. They also use agar as the base oil in the manufacture of new perfumes. Since agar oil in its pure form is non-alcoholic, it is widely preferred by Muslims. Globally, over 500 perfumes have agar as one of their ingredients. There is a great demand for agar oil in the Gulf countries too as no alternative synthetic oil equal to superior grade agar oil has been manufactured till date

Young Aquilaria trees in the natural forest of Kelantan ( Malaysia )  are being used to test our agarwood inducing methods. Older Aquilaria trees are not used and they remain to provide seed for the next generation of trees

Agar oil and agar incense as raw materials for cosmetics
The strong and dense aromatic fragrance of agar oil lifts our spirit like no other. Because of this quality of agar, its popularity is unequalled. No other natural aromatic and essential oil even comes close to the reputation agar enjoys. Agar oil is widely used in Arab countries as agar attar. They also use agar as the base oil in the manufacture of new perfumes. Since agar oil in its pure form is non-alcoholic, it is widely preferred by Muslims. Globally, over 500 perfumes have agar as one of their ingredients. There is a great demand for agar oil in the Gulf countries too as no alternative synthetic oil equal to superior grade agar oil has been manufactured till date

One of the few large Aquilaria trees remaining in Malaysia. Trees such as this serve to supply seed for plantations. Cultivated agarwood will help to protect endangered old growth trees since agarwood can now be produced as a crop in young plantation grown trees.

Aquilaria Malaccensis trees grow in the tropical rainforests of Asia and produce agarwood inside the tree. Old growth trees are rare due to extensive harvesting by collectors of agarwood during past centuries.

 

Old growth Aqulairia Malaccensis  tree growing in the tropical forests of Kelantan ( Malaysia ).

Traditional methods to increase the production of agarwood
It is possible to damage the agarwood tree trunk artificially to allow fungi to infect the tree. This is a common practice among agarwood planters. This operation is generally done just before the onset of winter when a 30% deep cut is made on the tree trunk with the help of a sharp knife. The cuts made in this manner allow fungal infection to begin and reach the inside of the tree trunk. This method is successful in a cool environment where the soil is rich in naturally occurring fungi.

Harvesting of agarwood

Factors such as the age of the tree or the size of the tree trunk cannot decide the harvest time of commercially grown agarwood. Agarwood trees can be harvested only when the production of the aromatic trunk is complete and the tree starts drying up. Generally, when agarwood is grown as a commercial crop, harvesting has to be done at a specified time for certain trees, making it a constant operation.

On an average, if commercially grown agarwood trees catch fungal infection when they are 5-6 years old, then they are ready for harvest around their 10th year. Going by this timeframe, returns from agarwood trees can be expected 8 – 10 years after they are planted. 

Regeneration of agarwood tree

Agar seedlings develop at the base of harvested agar trees. These seedlings grow very fast, depending on the prevailing atmospheric conditions around them and their root development. Since the area is already rich in fungi, the infection of the regenerated tree is much faster, promising planters very good returns. However, if the roots have been infected, then regeneration is not possible

Artificial Inoculation

Though a particular breed of agarwood is selected on the basis of its colour, fragrance and harvest time, fungal infection can be expected only in about 40% of the trees. However, artificial fungal inoculation facility is now available, making all the trees yield agarwood.
In commercial agarwood cultivation, it has now become possible to yield agarwood even from 6 -7-year-old (sometimes even younger) trees by drilling artificial holes in their trunks and infecting them with fungi collected from old agar trees. Since it has been established now that this is a profitable operation, many organizations have been doing this by acquiring international patents.

The process of fungal inoculation

About 1-10 cm deep holes are drilled up to the xylem of agarwood trees in specified spots and their trunks are injured. Holes are dug in such a manner that there is enough space for air circulation. Though the size of the holes is immaterial, care should be taken to see that the injury spreads and the holes don’t get covered. Pipes made out of Plastic or Natural material can be inserted into these holes to ensure that they remain open. On an average, about 40 – 90 holes are drilled on one tree trunk, at a distance of 5 cm from one another. Once the spread of injury is ascertained, fungi should be released into the tree trunk, forcing the tree to start resin production. Either the fungi collected from old agarwood trees are collected and released into experimental plants or processed difco yeast, sodium bisulfite, ferric chloride, etc., are introduced in place of natural fung