Effect of levels and types of organic, biological, and chemical fertilizers on morphological traits, yield, and uptake rate of elements in Satureja mutica

• Published in: Industrial crops and products 2022-07, Vol.181, p.114763, Article 114763
• Main Authors: Asadollahi, Amaneh, Abbaszadeh, Bohloul, Torkashvand, Ali Mohammadi, Jahromi, Marzieh Ghanbari
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Essential oil; Medicinal plants; Nitrogen; Savory
• ISSN: 0926-6690; 1872-633X
• DOI: 10.1016/j.indcrop.2022.114763

Satureja species are of great economic and medical importance due to their high content of essential oils and use in food, cosmetics, and pharmaceutical industries. Due to the domestication and introduction of Satureja mutica cultivars, for the first time and the lack of comprehensive research on its cultivation, the need for research on the nutritional needs of this plant and the introduction of suitable fertilizer treatments that can be used by farmers is important. This experiment was carried out in 2018 and 2019 in field conditions using randomized complete blocks with three replications and 21 treatments in the Research Institute of Forests and Rangelands. The results of mean comparisons of fertilizer treatments (mean of two years) showed that the highest plant height, with 88 and 80 cm, was related to cow manure treatments of 30 and 60 tons per hectare, respectively. The highest flowering shoot yield, with 4427, 4266, and 4113 kg ha−1, was obtained from N50P25K25 + vermicompost10 and N50P25K25 + cow manure60 and N50P25K25 + cow manure30 treatments in the second year, respectively. The lowest yield of the flowering shoot (849 kg ha−1) belonged to Pseudomonas putida treatment. The highest leaf yield, with 2556 and 2441 kg ha−1, was obtained from N25P25K25 + vermicompost10 and N25, P25, K25 +cow manure60 treatments, respectively. According to the results, the highest nitrogen content, with 2.44 and 2.32 g/100 g, was obtained from the cow manure30 treatment in the first and second year, respectively. The maximum nitrogen uptake with 94.43 kg ha−1 was obtained from N50, P25, K25 + vermicompost10. The lowest nitrogen uptake at 24 kg ha−1 was related to Pseudomonas putida treatment. The mean comparison of two years showed that the highest essential oil percentage (2.11 g/100 g) and yield (79.27 kg ha−1) were obtained from the second year compared with the first year. Carvacrol, γ-terpinene, thymol, and p-cymene were the major components in the essential oil. The results showed that the combined treatments of chemical fertilizers with animal manure and vermicompost are suitable treatments to increase the yield of different organs and essential oil yield in field conditions. •Satureja species use in food, cosmetics, and pharmaceutical industries.•Combined fertilizers are suitable to increase the quantity and quality of Satureja mutica.•The highest essential oil percentage and yield were obtained from the second year.•The results showed that Satureja mutica ha