DIVERSITY IN CHEMICAL COMPOSITION AND YIELD OF ESSENTIAL OIL FROM TWO IRANIAN LANDRACES OF SWEET BASIL

Ocimum basilicum L. belongs to the family Lamiaceae is an herb that is extensively cultivated in some countries. Areal parts, especially leaves of sweet basil are widely used to enhance the flavour of foods such as salads, pasta, tomato products, vegetables, pizza, meat, soups, marine foods, confectioneries and other products. Essential oil yield and chemical components of two Iranian landraces of sweet basil including "Purple" and "Green" grown south-central of Iran (Isfahan province) were investigated. The hydro-distillated oils were analyzed by GC-MS. The oil yields were obtained from the aerial of Purple with 0.56 ml / 100 g dry matter and the aerial of Green with 0.48 ml / 100 g dry matter. Results indicated significant differences (p < 0.01) among the aerial for the main constituents in the essential oil from two Iranian landraces of sweet basil. The major constituents of the essential oil from the aerial of Purple landrace were methyl chavicol or estragol (63.32%) and linalool (7.96%). The main compositions of the essential oil from the aerial of Green landrace were methyl chavicol (31.82%), geranial (24.60%) and neral (22.65%). Genarlly, a comparison of our results with the previous reports suggests differences in the essential oil compositions and oil yield of the plant material could be attributed to genetic diversity in two Iranian landraces of sweet basil.