Yield, yield components and fatty acid composition of Artemisia dracunculus L. local breeds under organic cultivation conditions

The importance of medicinal and aromatic plants in people's lives is growing due to their various uses and diverse cultivation conditions. This study aimed to determine the yield and yield components and quality features (oil ratio and fatty acid composition according to GC-MS) of six different tarragon (Artemisia dracunculus L.) local breeds grown organically in Bayburt province, Turkey. For this purpose, the data obtained by growing the plants in the experimental area during the two crop years, 2018 and 2019, were evaluated. As for the yield values, the highest values for green herb yield (275.41 kg ha-1), drug herb yield (99.89 kg ha-1), drug-herb percentage (44.00%), green leaf yield (208.97 kg ha-1), green leaf percentage (75.09%) and drog leaf yield (72.48 kg ha-1) were found in the local breed from Bayburt Central location. It was found that the oil percentages, evaluated to determine the quality traits, ranged from 5.39% to 7.02%. The most important fatty acid was alpha-linolenic acid (9.49%-23.1%), followed by linoleic acid (4.18%-13.89%) and palmitic acid (4.05-13.89%). As far as we know, this is the first study investigating tarragon's total oil content and fatty acid composition. The results show that the total oil content of this plant, which has remarkable pharmacological effects, is present in useful quantities compared to the leafy green and does not contain fatty acids that prevent its consumption as food. Therefore, this plant is expected to be used directly in various food products.