Razi Herbal Medicenes Research Center, Lorestan University of Medical Sciences, Korramabad, Iran; Department of Horticultural Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture, Lorestan University, PO Box 465, Korramabad, Iran.
J Sci Food Agric. 2014 Mar 30;94(5):905-10. doi: 10.1002/jsfa.6334. Epub 2013 Aug 22.
Using proper growing medium is known to be an effective way to improve crop growth and yield. However, the effects of growing media on geranium essential oil have scarcely ever been examined in detail. In this research, the effects of different growing media (soil, sand, pumice, perlite and perlite + cocopeat) on growth, oil yield and composition of geranium were studied.
Growth was significantly improved in soilless-grown plants compared with soil-grown plants. Oil yield of soilless-grown plants (except for pumice) was about threefold higher than that of soil-grown plants. The increase in oil yield was correlated with higher leaf dry weight (r² = 0.96), as oil content was not affected. The citronellol/geranium ratio of oil was clearly affected by growing media, ranging from 5:1 in soil culture to 3:1 in soilless culture. The latter is acceptable for perfumery.
Compared with soil, soilless media could produce higher yields of high-quality geranium oil that fits market requirements. Growth, oil yield and composition of plants grown in sand (a cheap and abundant growing medium) were not significantly different from those of plants grown in perlite and perlite + cocopeat.
使用合适的生长介质已被证实是一种有效提高作物生长和产量的方法。然而，生长介质对天竺葵精油的影响却鲜有详细研究。本研究探讨了不同生长介质（土壤、沙、浮石、珍珠岩和珍珠岩+椰糠）对天竺葵生长、产油量和成分的影响。
与土壤种植相比，无土栽培的植株生长明显改善。除浮石外，无土栽培植株的产油量约为土壤种植植株的三倍。产油量的增加与叶片干重的增加呈正相关（r²=0.96），而油含量不受影响。油中的香茅醇/天竺葵醇比例明显受生长介质影响，从土壤培养中的 5:1 到无土培养中的 3:1。后一种比例适合用于香水。
与土壤相比，无土栽培介质可生产出更高产量、符合市场需求的高质量天竺葵油。在沙（一种廉价且丰富的生长介质）中生长的植物的生长、产油量和成分与在珍珠岩和珍珠岩+椰糠中生长的植物没有显著差异。
