Electronic Journal of Biology

Effects of Phenological Stages on Quality and Quantity of Essential Oil in Kermanian Thyme (Thymus caramanicus Jalas.)

Kermanian thyme (Thymus caramanicus Jalas.) belongs to Lamiaceae family and widely used in pharmacy, cosmetics and Food industries of developed countries; it is a strong disinfectant with antioxidant. In order to determine the effects of phenological stages on herbage yield and quality/quantity of oil in Kermanian thyme, this study was conducted in research farm of Khorasgan (Isfahan) branch of Islamic Azad University in 2009-2010 years using a randomized complete blocks design with three replications. Plants were harvested in five phenological stages, i.e. in the vegetative stage, beginning of blooming, 50% blooming, full blooming and fruit set stages. Oils were extracted by hydrodistillation for 3 h, of the aerial parts using Clevenger-type apparatus. Thymol percentage was determined by GC/MS. Results showed the significant effects of phenological stages on fresh and dry herbage yield, essence and thymol yield and percentage. Mean comparison showed that 50% blooming has the highest essence percentage (1.45%). According to GC/MS analysis, thymol was the main compound of oil in all-phenological stages. The highest essence and thymol yields were obtained from fruit set stage. Therefore, it is recommended to harvest this plant in fruit set stage to gain the highest essence and thymol yield as well as fresh and dry herbage

Author(s): Ahmad Reza Golparvar

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