Produção e qualidade de Melissa Officinalis L. em diferentes condições de cultivo

Abstract

Melissa officinalis L. of the Lamiaceae family is one of the most important medicinal and aromatic plants with potential in the market. The species is part of the list of medicinal species regulated by the Agência Nacional de Vigilância Sanitária (National Sanitary Surveillance Agency) and its essential oil has proven pharmacological properties in several countries. However, it has low levels of essential oil (0.02 to 0.40%). And different farming systems can increase Melissas active ingredient production. This work aims to evaluate the biomass, the content and the chemical composition of the essential oil in different cropping systems (50% NFT, 100% NFT, vertical hydroponics, soil with organic fertilization, soil with mineral fertilization and soil without fertilization). The experimental design was completely randomized (DIC), with six treatments and five replicates. The biomass, the content and the chemical composition of the essential oil were evaluated. The extraction of essential oil was performed by hydrodistillation in the clevenger apparatus and the chemical composition was analyzed in gas chromatograph coupled to mass spectrometer. For the biomass production, it was observed that the 100% NFT treatment presented higher dry matter (11.33 g / plant). The 50% NFT treatment presented lower dry matter yield (8.29 g / plant). However, this treatment presented higher value and essential oil content in relation to the others. In relation to the chemical analysis, citral and geranial were presented as major components in all the treatments.