INVITRO PRODUCTION OF ESSENTIAL OIL FROM PROLIFERATING SHOOTS OF ROSMARINUS-OFFICINALIS

The 40-day-old in vitro proliferating shoots of Rosmarinus officinalis L. var. genuina forma erectus produced an appreciable quantity of essential oil, i.e., 1.8% fw, which was similar in its constituents to that obtained from 1-year-old plants, whether naturally grown or in vitro-raised potted plants. However, the quantity of various constituents identified so far was generally, but marginally, less in the former case than the latter two kinds of 1-year-old plants with the exception of bornyl acetate and 1,8-cineole, the concentrations of which were higher in the proliferated shoots than the plants. The essential oil content of 1-year-old naturally grown plants was 2.4% fw, while it was 2.38% fw in the in vitro-raised potted plants of the same age.