abstract the essential oil of mytrus communis l. floral buds from tunisia was analyzed by gc and gc/ms. thirty-seven compounds were identified, representing 98.7% of the total oil. the major constituents were described as -pinene (48.9%) and 1,8-cineole (15.3%). the antioxidant activity of the obtained essential oil was investigated by means of -carotene bleaching (bcb) test and free radical scavenging assay using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical (dpph). results showed that myrtus communis l. floral buds essential oil has a significant antioxidant effect when tested by each method respectively. the strong antioxidant activity of the studied oil can be attributed to the high content in hydrocarbon monoterpenes and oxygenated monoterpenes.