Harvesting and yield

Harvesting and yield

    • The leaves and flowers which are used for culinary and medicinal purposes are harvested five months after sowing/planting.

    • The leaves and flowers are plucked from the plants or shoots of about 15 cm are cut off from the plants, dried in the shade or in a dryer immediately after harvest and stored in airtight containers to prevent the loss of flavor.

    • The dried leaves are curled, brownish-green in colour, usually not longer than 6-7 mm. The dried shoots may also be powdered and packed.

    • Under favourable conditions the yield of dry herb is around 1,100-2,200 kg/ha. The yield is comparatively low during the first year.

    • The plants become woody which necessitates their replanting after three or four years.

    • For extracting the oil, the fresh herb is collected, on dry days, at the stage when it just starts flowering. At the time of collection, the lower portions of the stem, along with any yellow or brown leaves, should be rejected.

    • The oil is distilled from the fresh flowering-tops by steam-distillation. The herb contains about 2% essential oil and the total oil recovered by distillation is about 21 kg/ha.

Last modified: Tuesday, 3 April 2012, 11:16 AM