EFFECT OF SOME BIO-STIMULANTS AND MICROELEMENTS ON GROWTH, YIELD, ESSENTIAL OIL PRODUCTION AND CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF SWEET MARJORAM (Majorana hortensis) PLANT

Abstract

Actosol treatments significantly increased plant height, fresh and dry weights of herb in the first and third cuts, root length, number of roots/plant, oil percentage and oil yield (at the third cut), content of chlorophyll a and carotenoids, total carbohydrates % (at the second season of third cut) as well as Fe, Mn and Zn content in dry herb as compared to the control. N and K% in dry herb were increased significantly with Actosol at high concentration, while P% was increased significantly with Actosol at low concentration as compared to the control. On the other hand, fresh and dry weights of herb in the second cut, fresh and dry weights of roots, oil yield (at the first season of second cut) chlorophyll b content (in first seasons) and total carbohydrates % (at the second cut) were reduced significantly with application of Actosol treatments as compared to the control. Foliar application of micronutrients mixture at the two concentrations significantly increased plant height at the first cut, fresh and dry weights of herb at the three cuts, root length, roots number/plant, oil yield (at the second cut ), chlorophyll a, carotenoids, N, K, Fe, Mn and Zn contents in dry herb as compared to the control. Application of the low concentration (30 ppm) significantly increased fresh and dry weights of roots and total carbohydrates % (at the third cut), while high concentration (60 ppm) caused significant increase in oil percentage and oil yield (in first season of the third cut)