Tuz Stresinin Nane (Mentha piperita L.)‘de Büyüme ile Uçucu Yağ Miktarı ve Bileşenleri Üzerine Etkileri

Abstract

Peppermint is one of the valuable medicinal and aromatic plants with its powerful flavour and fragrance. Its leaf and essential oil are used in cosmeceuticals, foods, pharmaceutical and personal care products. It is well known that yield and secondary metabolite biosynthesis in the medicinal and aromatic plants are strongly influenced by abiotic stresses. Salinity is also one of the most important stress factors affecting plants. This study was carried out to determine the effect of salt stress on growth, essential oil content and oil constituents in peppermint plants. For this aim, three different concentrations of sodium chloride NaCl (0, 100 and 150 mM) were applied to peppermint plants. As a result of the study it was determined that all of the investigated parameters were significantly affected by NaCl applications. Shoot length, fresh and dry weights of plants and essential oil content decreased in line with the elevating level of NaCl. Besides, NaCl also caused differences in essential oil composition. Menthol and menthone, the main components of the peppermint oil, reduced significantly when NaCl concentration rose to 150 mM. Based on the results, it may be concluded that NaCl especially at high concentrations considerably and negatively affected plant growth, essential oil content and quality of the essential oil.