This document provides information on the production of geranium (Pelargonium graveolens), including its origin, cultivation practices, varieties, propagation, planting, and care. Key points include: - Geranium is native to South Africa and is commercially cultivated for its essential oil, which is used in fragrances, flavors, and pharmaceuticals. - India imports most of its geranium oil due to low domestic production of around 5 tonnes annually against a demand of 150 tonnes. - Common varieties include Algerian, Reunion, and varieties released by CIMAP and IIHR for different growing conditions. - Propagation is primarily through stem cuttings, with optimal spacing and care needed during establishment.

2. ADVANCES IN PRODUCTION TECHNOLOGY OF
GERANIUM
UNIVERSITY OF HORTICULTURAL SCIENCES

3. Geranium : Pelargonium graveolens, Family : Geraniaceae
Common Name : Rose-scented pelargonium
 Geranium is one of the important aromatic plants, yielding an
essential oil which is highly priced for its very profound and strong
rose-like odour.
 The plant is also known as rose geranium.
 The chief constituents of the oil are (18%) geraniol and citronellol
(25%).
 Essential oil extracted through steam-distillation is used in fragrance,
flavor and pharmaceutical industries
 The pure geranium oil is almost a perfume by itself and blends well
with all other perfumes.

4. As against the yearly consumption of about 150 t requirement of
geranium oil, India produces a meagre quantity of about 5 t per year.
Therefore, most of the 145 t requirement of geranium oil of the Indian
industry is being largely met through imports
The current international demand of about 600 tonnes geranium oil is
being largely met by China, Morocco, Egypt, Reunion Island and South
Africa (Qinghua 1993; Anon., 1996–1997).
India is a net importer of rose-scented geranium oil as demand far
exceeds its production, therefore excellent potential exists for extending it
cultivation.

5. INTRODUCTION
 Geranium (Pelargonium graveolens) is an erect, branched shrub,
which can reach a height of up to 1.3m and a spread of 1m
 The leaves are strongly rose scented
 It is a native of dry rocky slops of Cape Province (South Africa) and
grown chiefly in Reunion, Algeria, southern France, Spain, Morocco,
Madagascar, Congo and Russia for the production of oil.
 A number of species have been introduced into India and grown in
gardens, some of which are found in the Nilgiri hills.
 In India, it is cultivated mostly in south and grows well in temperate,
subtropical and tropical climates.
 It is propagated by stem cuttings (Anon, 1991).

7. USES
 Geranium oil has historically been used in the treatment of dysentery,
haemorrhoids, inflammation, heavy menstrual flows and even cancer
 Geranium oil is one of the top 20 essential oils in the world and used
mainly in perfumery, cosmetic and food industry (Rashmi and
Manjushri, 2010)
 The French medicinal community currently treats diabetes, diarrhoea,
gall bladder problems, gastric ulcers, jaundice, liver problems, sterility
and urinary stones with this oil
 Geranium oil provides relief within minutes whereas tropical
capsaicin, the commonly prescribed conventional remedy for shingles
pain, begins to alleviate pain in about two weeks (Greenway et al.,
2003)
 The aromatic oil is extensively used in various types of rose
fragrances where petal and foliage effects are desired; in scenting of
soaps due to its stability in slightly alkaline medium and in cosmetic
products.
 Leaves of geranium is also used in herbal teas and the oil is used as

9. Origin and Distribution
 Geranium is a native of the Cape Province in South Africa.
 Commercially cultivated in France, Belgium, Spain, Morocco, Madagascar,
Egypt, Reunion Islands, Congo, china, India and the former USSR countries.
 The world production of geranium oil is estimated at 250 -300 t, whereas the
demand is more than 600 t annually.
The first planting of a high yielding Geranium introduced from Renuion island
was grown at Yercaud by a French planter, in the early twentieth century.
 From that time onwards it has been cultivated as a commercial crop, but only
in high altitude areas with a milder climate.
 Presently it is being commercially cultivated mainly in the Nilgiris and
Kodaikanal Hills of Tamil Nadu and in and around Bangalore in Karnataka in
an area of about 2000 ha

10. Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Order: Geraniales
Family: Geraniaceae
CLASSIFICATION

11. Description of the plant
 Geranium is a bushy, aromatic plant.
 The stem is cylindrical, woody at the base, pubescent, green when young and
turning brown with age.
 The leaves are alternate, stipulate, simple with 5 primary lobes and secondary
lobes and densely pubescent.
 The leaves are highly aromatic in nature.

13. Geranium is a genus of 422 species
Some of the commonly grown species include:
 P. cinereum
 P. clarkei (Clark's geranium)
 P. dalmaticum
 P. endressii (Endres's cranesbill)
 P . fremontii (Fremont's geranium)
 P . himalayense often sold under Geranium grandiflorum
 P . libericum (Caucasus geranium),
 P. macrorrhizum (bigroot cranesbill or bigroot geranium)
 P . maculatum (wild geranium)
 P . maderense (giant herb robert)
 P . magnificum (showy geranium)
SPECIES

14. P. platypetalum (broad- Petaled geranium)
P.pratense (meadow cranesbill)
P. psilostemon (Armenian cranesbill)
P. renardii (Renard geranium)
P. sanguineum (bloody cranesbill)
P. subcaulescens (grey cranesbill)
P. sylvaticum (wood cranesbill)

15.  Genus Pelargonium (Geraniaceae) contains a large number of species
with scented leaves of various odours, ranging from pleasantly fruity or
floral to minty flovour
The numerous aromatic species,
 P. citronellum : lemon scent (Demarne and Van der Walt, 1993);
 P. tomentosum : peppermint odour (Demarne and Van der Walt, 1990)
 P. graveolens and P. radens : mint-scented
(Van der Walt and Demarne, 1988)
 P. fragrans : an unusual nutmeg smell (Rollet, 1998)

16. P. platypetalumP. maculatum P. sanguienum P. robertianum
P. dissectum P. peltatum
P.
P. hortorum P. graviolense
P. offenstein P. fromuva P. attarofroses

17. SOIL REQUIREMENTS
 Grown on a wide variety of soils.
 It prefers well-drained sandy to loam soils with a pH range of
5.8 to 8.5 and sunny, hot, frost-free conditions.
 Ideal soil types should be rich in organic matter and have a
clay content of not more than 40 %.
 Pelargonium grow well in the sandy soils of the coastal belt.
 It can tolerate high alkaline soils as well. Good drainage is
required to prevent water logging and reduce the incidence of
root diseases.

18. CLIMATIC REQUIREMENTS
Temperature
 Prefers warm temperate to subtropical climates with a
long growing season without extreme weather conditions.
 It grows well at a temperature range of 10 to 33 °C, and it
needs enough sunshine for the development of oil in the
plant.
 The plant is sensitive to cold weather and cannot
withstand frost.
 Optimum temp 20 to 25 °C.

19. Rainfall
 The favourable rainfall should range from 700 to 1500 mm per
year, uniformly distributed throughout the season.
 In areas where rainfall is less, it can be grown with
supplementary irrigation.

20. ESSENTIAL PART
 Leaves and stalks are the
essential parts of this plant.
 The essential oil is extracted
from fresh plant material
mainly using steam distillation.

21. 2. Reunion or Bourbon
 Grown in the Nilgiris and Anamalais, the plant is sturdier with light pink
flowers and more suitable for wet conditions.
 The oil content is higher during the summer months from April to June.
 The terminal portion with 6 to 12 leaves contains more oil than the middle
and basal portions.
Types
1. Algerian or Tunisian
 This type of geranium is slender with flowers of a dark pink colour.
 It is being grown in the Nilgiris and is unsuitable for wet conditions.
 This variety yields 50-60% more oil than that of the Reunion type.

22. In the evaluation trial of the Algerian and Reunion types PG-7 and PG-20
respectively at the Horticulture Research Station, Kodaikanal
The clone PG-7 recorded 0.3% essential oil and 2.32 ml of oil per plant.
 And it has been released under the name KKL-1.
The IIHR, Bangalore has found Sel-8, a Reunion type as the highest
yielder under Bangalore conditions and recommanded for cultivation.
Hemanti, Bipuli and Kunti are the other varieties released by the CIMAP,
Lucknow, for cultivation in the plains of North India.
Kelkar, Ooty, IIHR Sel-8 and CIM Pawan are the other varieties available
in this crop.

23. CIM PAWAN
 High yielding genotype, more herb and good quality oil 20-
25%.
 For cultivation of North Indian plains, reunion types.
HEMANTHI :
 This variety is released by CIMAP, Lucknow for cultivation
in the plains of North India.
 It is same as Algerian type rich in citronellol.
BIPULI :
 This variety is released by CIMAP, Lucknow.
 It is the same as Bourbon type equally rich in both geraniol
and citronellol.

24. Narmada
 The invention is related to the development of a novel
geranium plant `Narmada` derived as a somaclonal variant
"CIMAP/GER SA 44" from the Indian cultivar `Bourbon`.
 The somaclone "CIMAP/GER SA 44" now named `Narmada`
is propagated vegetatively through stem cuttings and is stable
for commercial cultivation.

25. IIHR PG-8
 Among 13 accessions evaluated this is selected as a superior
cultivar for herbage and oil yield.
 It yields 25-30 t herbage contains 0.25-0.30% oil leading to the
production of 65-90 kg oil/ha.
The chemical composition of the oil is
 Isomenthone---------13.54 %
 Linalool----------------2.86 %
 Citronellyl formate—13%
 Geraniol-----------------18%
 Guaiadiene--------------1.24 %
 Citronellol-------------52.63 %

27. Propagation:
Geranium is easily propagated by cuttings; since there is no seed setting
in geranium, vegetative propagation is a must.
Terminal cuttings about 10-20 cm long and consisting of about 8 nodes
are the best suited material for propagation, as they give 80% rooting
even without any treatment.
However the middle portion and basal cuttings are reported to give poor
rooting, which can be improved by treating them for 6 minutes with
growth regulators like IBA or IAA at 200 ppm.
The transplanted cuttings have a characteristic initial slow growth and
are susceptible to weed competition during this lag phase leading to yield
losses (Rajeswara Rao and Bhattacharya, 1997)
Rao et al. (1988) found 60×45 cm spacing to be optimum for obtaining
high yields of rose-scented geranium in Bangalore plains.

28. The cuttings are planted in raised beds 3m long and 1m wide.
The soil should be well mixed with powdered FYM.
The cuttings are planted closely at a spacing of 8-10 cm.
Before planting, the cut end of the cuttings is dipped in 0.1% Benlate solution.
Before root initiation, temporary shade is provided and the beds are watered
regularly.
The nursery is sprayed with a 0.2% urea solution at biweekly intervals and the
cuttings strike roots in 40 days.
After about 60 days, the cuttings are ready for transplanting.
They can also be rooted in polythene bags, which help to avoid damage to the root
system while planting in the main field.
This practice ensures a high percentage of success in the field.

29. Recently its propagation through leaf petioles has also been reported
to give a good rooting percentage (75%), which will help to multiply this
plant in larger numbers than the traditional method of propagation
using 20cm long cuttings.
The CIMAP, Lucknow, has developed a protocol for large scale
production of geranium Calli-clones and plants have been obtained
under field conditions with improved oil yield and quality.
Intercropping
To enhance crop productivity, attempts were made to grow short
duration legumes like
Cowpea (Vigna unguiculata)
Blackgram (Vigna mungo) (Prakasa Rao et al., 1984, 1986)
Greengram (Vigna radiata)
Clusterbean (Cyamopsis tetragonoloba) (Rajeswara Rao et al., 2000)
Butterbeans (Phaseolus luteus L.) (Narayana et al., 1986) and
Garlic (Allium satium L.) (Muni Ram and Kumar, 1998)

30. PLANTING
 Terminal stem cuttings of uniform size (9–10 cm) in length having
seven to eight nodes and three to four terminal leaves) of rose-
scented geranium cv. Bourbon were grown in polythene bags (10
cm in diameter and 16 cm in length, filled with native red soil, kept
under partial shade and regularly watered.
 One cutting was planted in each bag for Rooting
 Healthy, profusely rooted, 60 days old cuttings were transplanted in
the field
The feasibility and profitability of intercropping short duration legumes and
menthol mint was successfully demonstrated under the semiarid and
subtropical climatic conditions of Hyderabad and Bangalore
(Prakash Rao, et al., 1986 and Rao et
al., 2000)

31. Planting and after care:
About 30,000 cuttings are required for planting an area of 1 ha.
Before planting, the land should be properly prepared by ploughing and brought
to fine tilth.
Ridges and furrows are made, the application of fertilizer and irrigation should be
done a day prior to planting.
The cuttings are carefully dug out from the nursery and planted at a spacing of 60 x
45 cm.
They must be irrigated immediately after planting.
Irrigation is continued on alternate days for about 10-15 days and then reduced to
twice a week.
The schedule is modified during the winter and summer months at intervals of 7 to
10 days depending on the situation.
Though geranium tolerates short periods of drought, but water logging of the crop
must be completely avoided.

32. The crop growth is slow initially, so weeds should be removed periodically.
It has been experimentally observed at the CIMAP, Lucknow, that polyhouse
cultivation reduces weed infestation, the number of irrigations and produced
less weed biomass.
Manures and Fertilizers:
Prior to transplanting the cuttings, 10 t of good quality FYM, 35 kg N, 35 kg P2O5,
and 35 kg K2O/ha are incorporated into the soil in the form of urea, super
phosphate and murate of potash.
A second dose of nitrogen at 34kg/ha is applied about 2 months after the first
application.
Further nitrogen is given in two equal split doses for each harvest – the first
dose being just after the crop is harvested and second two months later.

33. Altogether, 210 kg/ha/yr of N is applied to the crop in six equal doses to cover
three harvests.
Application of 30 kg N/ha (15kg/ha as basal and 15 kg as a foliar spray with 1%
urea solution, 45 and 90 days after basal application) is reported to increase
herbage yield and oil yield by 447% and 140% respectively over the control.
In addition, the application of 20 kg/ha of zinc sulphate and 10 kg/ha of boron has
been reported to increase the herbage yield.
Similarly, an application of copper (20kg/ha) and molybdenum (30Kg/ha/year) in
four split doses after each harvest has been found to increase the yield by 37%
Rose-scented geranium were fertilized with 10t FYM, 150 kg N, 60 kg P2O5, 60
kg K2O and 25 kg ZnSO4 per hectare were applied prior to transplanting and
thoroughly mixed with the soil. Nitrogen as urea was applied in four equal splits at
one split per harvest. Urea was applied in 5–7 cm deep furrows, which were closed
manually.
(Rao, 2002)

34. Pest and Diseases
The incidence of pest and disease is not severe in the geranium crop.
However, it is found to be affected by wilt disease, caused by the Fusarium
species and Botrydeplodia theobromoe, which are soil borne fungi.
Recently Alternaria alternata has been reported to cause leaf blight in the Terai
region and the Kumaon Hills of Uttar Pradesh
Sclerotium rolfsii causes, collar rot disease
Rhizoctonia solani causes root rot
Wilt in the Kodaikanal region of Tamil Nadu.
Control:
Generally, the suggested control measures for these pathogens are only partially
satisfactory, even if anthracnose and botrytis can be controlled by spraying
specific fungicides.
Despite the need for resistant varieties, a genetic improvement programme does
not seem reasonable or economically viable regarding the economic importance
of the crop in the individual oil-producing countries,

35. Small, round spots in geranium infected
with bacterial blight
Wilting and V-shaped necrosis on geranium
Botrytis blight on geranium (concentric lines
within brown, discolored tissue).
BACTERIAL BLIGHT

36. Harvesting:
Geranium is harvested 4 months after transplanting, when the leaves begin to
turn light –green and exhibit a change from a lemon like odour to that of rose.
However this requires careful observation and experience.
The crop should be harvested using a sharp sickle and sent for distillation
immediately.
The use of a sharp sickle is important as it minimizes the jerks, pulls and damage to
the crop while harvesting.
After every harvest, hoeing, fertilizer application and irrigation are done according to
the schedule.
The plants then put forth fresh shoots, grow faster, and reaches the next
harvesting stage in 4 months. Thus a total of 3 harvests can be expected in a
year.
Cultivation under poly house conditions is reported to reduce the harvest time by
21 days.

37. ESSENTIAL OIL
 The major constituents reported from essential oils of P. graveolens
were:
β-Citronellol; Citronellyl formate; Isomenthone; Eudesmol etc.
 Their essential oils possess a sweet rose-like odour with various
nuances, such as citrus and minty undertones. Often used as a
substitute for the expensive rose essential oil, they are of high
importance in perfumery and cosmetic formulations (Gilly, 1997).
 The best quality geranium oil is used in high-grade perfumes, while the
lower quality oil is used for perfuming in creams, soaps and toiletries
 The main rose-scented geranium essential oil-producing countries are:
Egypt, Algeria, Morocco, China and India
 There are several cultivars of geranium that are commercially grown for
the production of the essential oil.
 The important cultivars of geranium are the Reunion Island type, the
Egyptian or North African type, and the Chinese type
 The oil of the Reunion Island type contains citronellol and geraniol
(1:1) and citronellyl formate, guaia-6,9-diene and isomenthone in high

38. The Chinese type oil contains high amounts of citronellol and citronellyl
formate and a low concentration of geraniol
The Egyptian type oil contains citronellol and geraniol (1:1) and citronellyl
formate, isomenthone and eudesmol as major constituents

39. CONTD….
 There are few research reports about the essential oil compositions of
three cultivars of geranium from India that are known by the names
 Bipuli (intermediate to the Reunion Island and Egyptian types),
 Hemanti (similar to the Chinese type) and a third type, Kunti, whose oil
is rich in geraniol (40-50%) and poor in citronellol (1-10%) compared to
Reunion Island type (Kaul et al. 1995; Mallavarapu et al., 1993)
 According to one report by Jensen, an average annual worldwide
demand for geranium oil of about 600 metric tons, it can be determined
that 499 million of the 500 million geranium plants harvested yearly for
oil production (Jensen, 2004)
 The essential oil yield and quality of the variety Bipuli (Bourbon type)
has been improved by somaclonal and mutation breeding
approaches.
 An improved product of these experiments is the cultivar “CIM Pawan”

41. VOLATILE OIL DISTILLATION
 The above ground freshly harvested shoot biomass and aroma
chemical rhodinol separated through fractional distillation of the
volatile oil, are widely used in the fragrance industry, aromatherapy and
sparingly used in the flavor industry (B.R.R. Rao, 2002).
 Five hundred grams fresh sample of grounded, then immersed in water
in a round bottom flask and hydro-distilled for 4h in a full glass
Clevenger-type apparatus as recommended by British Pharmacopoeia
giving yellowish oils.
 The essential oil was dried over anhydrous sodium sulphate (Merck)
until the last traces of water were removed and then stored in a dark
glass bottle at 4 ºC prior to GC-MS analysis (Adams, 1991)

42.  Oil composition is influenced by location, age of leaves, climatic
changes, drying of herbage prior to distillation, cultivars and method
of distillation, type of distillation, apparatus used, application of growth
regulators, storage of oil, weeds, little leaf disease, partial shade of trees
and the plant part distilled (Babu and Kaul, 2005)

43. DISTILLATION UNIT

44. The essential oil is distributed over the green parts of the plant, particularly in the
leaves.
The terminal portion with 6-12 leaves contains more oil than the middle and basal
portion.
Yield:
The quality and yield of oil will be better if the crop is harvested at the appropriate
time of maturity.
For a higher yield a good plant population in the field is necessary.
A minimum of 25,000 plants should be maintained in a hectare in a year which in
turn may yield 15 kg of oil on distillation.
The recovery of the oil ranges from 0.08 to 0.15 % depending upon the season of
harvest and type of material.
Cultivation under poly house cover is reported to increase herb and oil yields up
to 53% over the conventional planting of the geranium crop.

45.  The extraction yields for the essential oils of three locations of
were: 0.32% for sample G-1 collected from Solan (1467m), 0.27%
for sample G-2 from Manali (2050m) and 0.21% for sample G-3
from Rahalla Fall (2501m).
 The major constituents reported from essential oils of P. graveolens
from all three locations were:
 β-Citronellol; Citronellyl formate; Isomenthone; γ-Eudesmol etc.

47. RESULTS
 By gas chromatography and mass spectroscopy (GC-MS) analysis
the components of the essential oil were identified.
 The essential oil analysis led to the identification of 36
constituents out of total 40 constituents
 From the results, it is concluded that P. graveolens sample G-1
Solan (1467m) has more rosier as compared to G-2 Manali
(2050m) and further G-3 Rahalla Fall (2501m) has more rosier
and fruity notes than G-2 Manali 2050m)

48.  Different row spacings (60×30, 75×30, 90×30 and 120×30 cm) and
intercropping corn-mint cv. Shivalik on the biomass yield, essential oil
yield and essential oil composition of rose-scented geranium cv.
Bourbon.
 The row spacing of 60×30 cm (60 cm between rows and 30 cm between
plants) was superior to other and produced 57.4 t/ha (total of four
harvests) biomass yield (132.4% higher than 120×30 cm) and 52.7
kg/ha total essential oil yield (98.9% greater than 120×30 cm).

49. RESULTS
 Intercropping of corn-mint did not affect biomass yield and essential oil
yield of rose-scented geranium and yielded 5.6 t/ha of biomass and 21.3
kg/ha of essential oil of corn-mint as bonus yields over and above that of
rose-scented geranium
 Biomass yield and essential oil yield of intercropped corn-mint suffered
reductions of 53.4 and 59.1 %, respectively, compared with mono-cropped
corn-mint
 The chemical composition of essential oils of both the crops was not
influenced either by row-spacings or by intercropping. The quality of
essential oils of both the crops was good
 Rose-scented geranium and corn-mint can be planted during the winter
season in the semi-arid tropical climate of India and they need frequent,
light irrigations for their optimum growth
 The former is a deep rooted crop and the latter is a shallow rooted crop.
Corn-mint takes 4 months and rose-scented geranium 5 months to come
to maturity for their first harvest

52. Fertilization and Colors of Plastic Mulch Affect Biomass and Essential Oil
of Sweet-Scented Geranium
 Silva et al, 2014
 Three colors of plastic mulch (black, white, and silver-colored) and a control
without plastic mulch were assessed along with three fertilizers
 20,000 L⋅ha−1 of cattle manure;
 1,000 kg⋅ha−1 of NPK 3-12-6;
 20,000 L⋅ha−1 of cattle manure + 1,000 kg⋅ha−1 of NPK 3-12-6)
 control without fertilizer
Results
 The absence of a soil cover negatively influenced the agronomical variables, while
coverage with plastic mulch was associated with increased biomass
 When cattle manure + NPK 3-12-6 were used together, combined with white or
black plastic mulch, the highest yields of essential oil were obtained
 For the silver-colored plastic mulch, higher amounts of essential oil (6,9-guaiadien)
were obtained with mineral fertilizer

53.  Mulching is a common technology used in the cultivation of medicinal
and aromatic species to increase the production of active
ingredients
 The analysis of the essential oil chemical composition was performed
in a gas chromatograph coupled to a mass spectrometer (GC-MS)

54. YIELD AND COMPOSITION OF ESSENTIAL OIL OF Pelargonium
graveolens L. IN DIFFERENTS FORMS OF CULTIVATION AND
FERTILIZATIONS
Rabelo et al., 2013, Brazil
Materials & Methods
 The experimental design was randomized blocks factorial 2x2, with 6
repetitions and two cropping systems (greenhouse and field) at 2
fertilizations (mineral and organic).
 The spacing used : 60X40cm.
 Fertilization consisted by formulated fertilizers and animal waste.

55. RESULTS
The higher biomass and greater heights of plants were found in the
greenhouse using organic fertilizer.
Regarding the production of essential oil content and yield did not differ
among treatments.
The mono-terpene geraniol, citronellol, linalool and iso-menthone
presented as a majority in all treatments, averaging 40-53%, 17-22%, 9-
12%, 6-13%, respectively.
The environmental conditions of the greenhouse associated with organic
fertilization showed higher biomass of geranium
The contents (%) were obtained by dividing the weight of essential oil
obtained from leaves and the mass used for extraction
Yield (g/m2) was calculated by multiplying the essential oil content with
the biomass of plants (Blank et al., 2012, Singh et al., 2011)

57.  Materials & Methods
 Eight treatment combinations of two variables of organic mulch (paddy
straw at 7t/ha and no mulch)
 Four levels of nitrogen (0, 80, 160 and 240 kg/ha) were examined to
observe the effect of organic mulching on N-use efficiency
 And essential oil yield in a multi-harvested geranium crop

58. RESULTS
 Application of paddy straw mulch increased the herb and essential oil
yields by 23% and 27%, respectively, over the un-mulched.
 A significant response to N was observed with 160 kg/ha in mulched
plot over the same level of N in the un-mulched plot
 Using paddy straw mulch, nitrogen uptake by plants was increased by
33%, over the un-mulched control
 The quality of essential oil of geranium in terms of its major constituents,
citronellol and geraniol, was not affected by the use of organic
mulching and nitrogen fertilization
 The use of an organic mulch with 160 kg N/ha proved better in terms
of economising to produce an economic yield of 86.9 kg geranium oil
from two harvests under subtropical conditions of the North Indian
plains
 At 160 kg N/ha, paddy straw mulch application permitted the geranium
crop to produce 18.4 kg/ha more oil which gave an additional return of
Rs. 53,600/ha than that of un-mulched control

60.  Materials & Method
 A large number of essential oil samples were collected during different
seasonal months (once a month) and daily during the peak summer
season months of May and June. They were analysed for terpenoid
composition by GC and GC-MS.

61. RESULTS
 The crop yielded the lowest values for biomass yield, essential oil
yield and essential oil concentration in the summer months of April
to June.
 The percentages of geraniol and its esters were highest during
cool winter season months of December and January followed by
rainy and autumn season months.
 Iso-menthone, 1-epi-gamma-eudesmol and other minor terpenoid
compounds (present in ~1% amounts in the essential oil) did not
exhibit any definite seasonal trends.
 Favorable environmental conditions encouraged crop growth and
produced highest biomass yields, essential oil yields and
maximum concentration of essential oil in rose-scented geranium
plants.

63.  To optimize the geographical area and a season particularly for
geraniol content in the plant leaves
 Both the percentage yield of the oil and geraniol contents were
determined for the samples obtained from different eco-geographical
area and seasons
 The variation in geraniol content was quantified using highly sensitive
and efficient Gas chromatographic (GC) technique.
 Four different geographical locations viz., Y.S. Parmar University, Nauni
(H.P.), IHBT, Palampur (H.P.), Southern Nilgiris and Moga, in four
different seasons (Autumn, Winter, Spring and Summer) from each
geographical location.

64. RESULTS
 Maximum yield of oil and geraniol content (% v/v) was found in plant
collected from Solan and in winter season (29.87%) and minimum
was found in plant collected from Moga (9.52 %) in summer season.
 Generally winter season cause increase in concentration of geraniol as
well in the percentage yield of oil while summer season is reported to
cause reduction in the content
 Maximum oil yield, plant material should be collected in the autumn but
as the geraniol content is very important for the quality purposes of the
oil, which may be maximum if the material is to be harvested in the
winter season

68. RESULTS
 Application of phosphorus at 40 kg
P2O5 ha-1 proved significantly better
than control (no P) in the production
of geranium oil and garlic bulbs.
 Uptake of Zn also increased
significantly up to 40 kg P2O5 ha-1.
 Higher rates of P decreased the Zn
uptake by the plants.
 Application of 30 kg Zn SO4 ha-1
showed a significant response on
the herb and oil yields over the no
zinc application
 Application of 40 kg P2O5 and 30 kg
Zn SO4 ha-1 is, recommended for
achieving the maximum yield
advantages in a geranium-garlic
intercropping system

70.  To standardize protocols for derivation of cuttings from rose-scented geranium
plants and converting them into rooted propagules
 Studies were taken up in India to standardize economic production of
essential oil of geranium in the Indo-Gangetic plains and Himalayan hills of
north India and Nilgiri and Palni hills and plains of south India cv ‘CIM Pawan’
which is a somaclone of the Bourbon type variety Bipuli.
 ‘CIM Pawan’ yields more herbage and essential oil than Bipuli.

71. RESULTS
 The protocol could give more than 1,500 cuttings/plant in ∼16 weeks.
 The cuttings planted in poly-bags or in field plots over soil + FYM/NPK
developed into rooted propagules suitable for field cropping in 6 weeks
 The propagules produced in poly-bags were suitable for planting both
locally and for transporting to distant location
 Production of Propagules on Split Shoots buried infield Soil Apical
segments of shoots ∼25 cm long were split longitudinally and buried in
the field soil ∼3 cm deep for up to 6 weeks in early winter in December.
 The plot in which the split twigs had been buried was irrigated twice a
week for first 3 weeks and after that fortnightly in the remaining period
 Splits were excavated at the end, washed, and observed for the
number of rooted nodes and propagules yield.
 On an average only 5.6 ± 0.7 rooted cuttings were available from each
split twig

73. PRODUCTION OF PROPAGULES ON NEAT LIVESTOCK DUNG
 Beds were prepared by laying a 7-cm-thick rectangular patch of fresh
livestock dung (1 × 0.5 m2) on black polythene.
 Each bed of 0.5 m2 was planted with 200 phytomers, each phytomer
composed of a piece of stem bearing a node carrying a leaf and its axial
bud which were transferred to field later.
 The phytomers had developed well-grown root systems after 1 month of
transplanting. Each rooted phytomer (propagule) was given the shape of
a pellet for further use. The success in propagule production from
phytomers on livestock dung was > 95%.

74. PRODUCTION OF ROOTED PROPAGULES IN POLYBAGS AND FIELD NURSERY
 The rooted cuttings saved from the previous crop over the monsoon season in
the glass house were planted in the field in October.
 The field had been applied vermi-compost at 5 tons ha−1.
 The field plot was divided into four parts and each part planted with 30 cuttings
in six rows of five plants each.
 The plant-to-plant and row-to-row distance was kept at 50 cm.
 When geranium plants were 75 days old, was the starting time for obtaining the
cuttings from resource plants. cuttings were taken every fifth day
 Taking of cuttings from the plants continued until the resource plants were of 120
days old.
 The four treatments could be arranged in the following order in terms of the
number of cuttings obtained: 20 days interval (82.3 per resource plant) < 15
days interval (98.8 cuttings per resource plant) < 10 days interval (114.2 per
resource plant) < 5 days interval (145.6 per resource plant).
 Obtaining of cuttings every fifth day from the resource plant after they had
attained the age of 11 weeks resulted in the highest yield of propagules

77.  Materials & Methods
 investigated under mist chamber during 2009-2011
 to standardize concentration of IBA on rooting of geranium stem cutting for
commercial cultivation
 The terminal cuttings of 12-15 cm length with 3-5 leaves were taken from
one year old healthy plants in the month of September
 The cuttings were treated with 0, 500 and 1000 ppm IBA for one minute to
investigate its efficacy on rooting and shoot development in different rooting
substrates viz., garden soil, sand, vermiculite, perlite and coco-peat

78. RESULTS
 Maximum rooting (94.05%) was recorded in coco-peat followed by
perlite (84.89 %) as compared to garden soil (58.96 %)
 Length of root system and number of roots were found maximum in
coco-peat (11.19 cm and 34.41), respectively
 Root fresh and dry weight were found highest (4.00 g and 527.73 mg)
in coco-peat and lowest in garden soil
 Shoot length and number of leaves were recorded maximum in
garden soil (23.05 cm and 13.03) followed by coco-peat (22.21 cm and
12.28), respectively and minimum in sand.
 Among different substrates, coco-peat was found superior followed by
perlite in rooting of cuttings, while poorest rooting was observed in
garden soil.
 Maximum rooting percentage and length of root system were recorded
with IBA 1000 ppm (80.56 % and 8.28 cm)
 Survival percentage was recorded highest with IBA 1000 ppm (72.09
%) as compared to control (65.26 %).

83. FUTURE THRUSTS
 The effect of soil, nutritional elements, photoperiod and rainfall can be
studied for future prospects
 A constraint in the large-scale cultivation of short-duration geranium is
the availability of planting material (propagules) in sufficient quantities
 A 1-ha geranium field needs to be planted with 60,000 plantlets.
 To meet the needs of plantlets for cultivating over large areas, improved
technology is needed for the economic production for rapid field
planting materials (of propagules).