BIOMASS PRODUCTION, YIELD AND CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF PEPPERMINT ESSENTIAL OIL USING DIFFERENT ORGANIC FERTILIZER SOURCES

Mentha x piperita L. is an aromatic and medicinal species belonging to the family Lamiaceae that is popularly known as peppermint. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of organic fertilizer sources on the biomass production, yield and chemical composition of peppermint (Mentha piperita L.) essential oil. The experiment was conducted using a completely randomized design (CRD) with a 2 x 5 factorial scheme, two sources of manure (cattle and poultry), five doses (0, 3, 6, 9 and 12 kg m(-2)) and four replicates. Different doses of cattle and poultry manure significantly affected plant biomass production and the responses of other variables, including leaf area, leaf weight ratio, leaf area ratio, root: shoot ratio, yield and chemical composition. Organic fertilizer doses of 9.0 kg m(-2) cattle manure and 8.3 kg m(-2) poultry manure to obtain the maximum total dry biomass. The highest yield of essential oil was obtained by applying 11.8 kg m(-2) poultry manure. Differences in the chemical composition of the essential oil were observed for only three components (menthone, pulegone and menthyl acetate) without significant changes in the menthol content.