Lemon myrtle plant (Backhousia citriodora) leaves were dried at three different drying temperature conditions (30, 40, and 50 C) in a fluidized bed dryer. The retention of the principal volatile compound, citral, was analyzed in dried products obtained at these three drying conditions. The changes in the color parameters L à , a à , b à of leaves were also analyzed. More than 90% of citral was retained at 50 C drying temperature, whereas the retention at 30 and 40 C was 81 and 85%, respectively, suggesting that higher temperature is beneficial to achieve higher retention of volatiles. However, in terms of the color, all the color parameters were changed maximum at 50 C drying temperature unfavorably, suggesting that the higher temperature drying causes more degradation of the pigment. Blanching of the leaves in hot water at 80 C for 1 min prior to drying did not result in any improvement in volatile retention or color.