2017 ASHS Annual Conference

Sweet basil (Ocimum basilicum) is the most popular fresh culinary herb, and increase in demand due to diversification of food in Japan. However, it is thought that there is advantages for sweet basil production in plant factory with artificial environmental system, since there are some problems in field and protected cultivation for sweet basil. Fragrance for sweet basil is one of the quality judgment criteria, but there is no report comparing those cultivated by hydroponic and soil cultures. In this study, we investigated the effects of hydroponic, soil cultures and nutrient solution concentration in hydroponic culture on the emission scent compounds of sweet basil. Sweet basil ‘Superbo’ was grown for 39 day in various environmental condition, and was cut two pairs of top leaves at 28th day after planting. Then the emission scent compounds of sweet basil leaves isolated by solid-phase micro extraction and analyzed by gas chromatography mass spectolometry. The relative concentration of emission scent compounds of sweet basil cultivated in hydroponic culture was about half compared with that in soil culture. The relative concentration of 1,8-cineole and α-bergamotene in sweet basil, which was cultivated by soil cultivation and hydroponics, were the most in common. Growth of sweet basil at different nutrient concentrations in hydroponic culture was the least at electrical conductivity (EC) 3.4 and was the best at EC 1.7. Next, the relative concentration of emission scent compounds of sweet basil with different nutrient concentrations was the highest in EC 1.7. The relative concentration of 1,8-cineole and α-bergamotene in sweet basil was the most at all nutrient concentrations, followed by methyleugenol, eugenol and 3-carene. 1,8-cineole in emission scent compounds of sweet basil at different nutrient concentrations was responsible for about 36% at all nutrient concentrations, but α-bergamotene at EC 0.8, linalool and eugenol at EC 3.4 were the lowest. These results suggest that total amount and composition ratio of emission scent compounds of sweet basil greatly varies depending on the cultivation environment and conditions.