Variation in productivity and essential oil composition of aromatic grasses grown in mid-hill conditions of the Western Himalayas

Improper handling degrades the quality of the produce and causes economic losses. Thus, to study the effect of post-harvest handling on essential oil content and chemical constitutions, different experiments were conducted on two aromatic grasses. The first experiment was conducted on lemongrass crop using three accessions (A1, A2, and A3) and three storage times (0, 24, and 48 h), the second experiment was conducted on palmarosa crop with five harvesting dates (12 October, 27 October, 10 November, 25 November, and 10 December) and three storage time (0, 24 and 48 h). The essential oil percentage of the major compound of lemongrass (citral) was recorded significantly higher in accession A1, while 46.49% higher EO content was recorded when processing the biomass after 48 h of storage as compared to 0 h. Significantly higher (93.84%) increase in essential oil content of palmarosa was recorded on the 25 November harvesting date, while 112.69% higher EO content was recorded for storage of 48 h than 0 h. The major chemical compound geraniol attained the highest percentage (88%) on the 10 December harvesting date and storage time of 48 h recorded 85.78% higher EO content than 0 h. The degradation of constituents, rearrangement, and disappearance results in variations in essential oil composition. Harvesting at proper maturity and quality stages with longer storage time of the plant resulted in quality essential oil when compared to early harvest and shorter storage time in both aromatic plants.

Graphical abstract

Harvesting at proper stages with longer storage time resulted in quality EO of aromatic grasses