The Effect of Different Harvest Stages on the Quality and Quantity of the Essential Oil of Tulsi (Ocimum sanctum L.)

This study was carried out at the research field of Tarbiat Modares University, Peykan Shahr, Tehran to determine the changes in the content and chemical compositions of essential oil of tulsi (Ocimum. sanctum L.) at three different growth stages including vegetative, flower bud formation and full flowering stages. The essential oils of the aerial parts were extracted by hydrodistillation method using Clevenger apparatus, and analyzed by GC and GC-MS. The hydro-distillation of the aerial parts of Ocimum. sanctum at the vegetative, flower bud formation, and full flowering stages yielded 0.95%, 0.87% and 1.3% (w/w) EO, respectively. The main constituent of the EO from the vegetative stage were 1, 8-Cineole and β-bisabolen, while eugenol was found as the main compound of flower bud formation and full flowering developmental stages.