Abstract: Recent progresses in studies on the relationship between environmental factors and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emission from plants are reviewed. The article covers three groups of VOCs: (1) isoprene which is a C5 hydrocarbon that is produced in chloroplast and released directly into atmosphere, (2) monoterpene s which are a family of C10 cyclic and acyclic hydrocarbons that are produced and stored in specialized structures (e.g. resin channel, oil gland) from which they are emitted into atmosphere through stomata and (3) oxygenated VOCs which are volatilized into atmosphere in a variety of forms, eg. alcohols, aldehydes, ketones, esters and organic acids, with the emphasis on isoprene and monoterp enes, including (1) mechanics of biosynthesis and emission of VOCs from plants, and (2) the effect of environmental factors(e.g. air temperature, light intensity, drought stress, soil nutrient, carbon dioxide and air humidity ) , developmental phases of leaves，mechanical damage and herbivore damage on biosynthesis and emission of VOCs.