Green biomass production and quality of essential oils of palmarosa (Cymbopogon martini Roxb.) with application of synthesis fertilizers and organic fertilizers

Abstract

The use of mineral fertilizers in Cymbopogon martini Roxb. (Palmarosa) crops has been implemented in order to increase biomass and essential oil yield. Palmarosa oil is rich in geraniol and geranyl acetate, molecules with high value in the cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries. Plants were obtained from the Seed Bank of the Centro Nacional de Investigación Agroindustrial de Plantas Aromaticas y Medicinales de la Universidad Industrial de Santander (UIS) (Cenivam), Santander, Colombia. Seedlings were maintained under conditions of nursery for two months and then were taken to the experimental field, in which the survival rate in the new crop conditions was calculated. The crop was carried out in the Cenivam experimental area (07° 08’ 31.68”N, 73° 07’ 06.14W; 988 m.a.s.l.), in a sandy-soil clay loam. The aim of the study was to evaluate the biomass productivity and analyze the quality and yield of the essential oil obtained of the C. martini crop under three types of fertilizers: Nutrimon® 14-14-14, mineral NPK granular fertilizer for agricultural use for land application composed of ammoniacal nitrogen 10%, nitric nitrogen (4%), assimilable phosphorus (P2O5) (14%), and water soluble potassium (K2O) (14%), for treatments, 2, 4 and 6 g/plant were applied locally; and a treatment with 400 g of organic fertilizer were applied. A complete random block design, with thirteen treatments and three harvests and each one, consisting of three plants as replications was used. Data were analyzed using analysis of variance, comparing the means by Tukey test at 5% probability. No correlations between biomass and essential oil yield, according to the type of fertilizer applied, were observed, that suggests that treatments that increased the biomass did not necessarily represent higher essential oil yield, and treatments whose essential oil yield increments were significant, not necessarily corresponded to the largest biomass. It was found that organic or green fertilizers could be ideal for these crops, as they allowed relatively high oil yields, with higher percentages of geraniol and its acetate.