DETERMINATION OF SOME AGRONOMICAL CHARACTERISTICS AND ESSENTIAL OIL VARIATION IN DIFFERENT LOCAL Ocimum basilicum L. ECOTYPES UNDER SEMI-ARID CLIMATIC CONDITIONS

Abstract

The study aimed to determine agronomic characteristics and essential oil components of different basil ecotypes in semi-arid climatic conditions of South Eastern Anatolia, Diyarbakir, Turkey. Two-year harvest data about fresh and dry herb yield, dry leaf yield, essential oil content and its components from the plants of year 2015 and 2016 was analyzed in this study. Essential oil components were detected by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). The resulting outcomes demonstrated that both ecotypes and harvests had important effects on fresh and dry herb, dry leaf yield and essential oil contents of sweet basil. The highest dry leaf yield was noted from green leafy ecotypes and from second harvest stage. Twenty-three constituents were detected in the essential oil of O. basilicum ecotypes. The main components of basil essential oil were linalool, methyl chavicol, neral, geranial and methyl cinnamate that differed according to ecotypes and harvests during experimental years 2015 and 2016. Purple leafy basil ecotypes were determined as linalool rich, while greenish leaf ecotypes were abundant in methyl chavicol. Silbe - green ecotype contains higher neral and geranial levels than the other ecotypes. It was concluded that basil plant could be grown successfully and harvested two or more times to prefer for maximum dry leaf yield and essential oil contents under semi-arid climatic conditions.