Abstract:
The prospect of replacing traditional chemical fertilization with organic and microorganismbased
fertilization meets the current demand for more sustainable cropping systems and healthy
food. In this respect, research was carried out to evaluate the effects of the factorial combination
between four basil cultivars (‘Aromat de Buzau’, ‘Macedon’, ‘Cuisoare’ and ‘Serafim’) and three types
of fertilization, namely chemical fertilization (with a solid chemical fertilizer), organic fertilization
(with chicken manure formulate) and microorganisms’ fertilization (with microorganisms formulate),
on basil yield, biochemical and physiological parameters and essential oil composition. The results
showed that the biometric parameters (plant height, number of stems and leaves and leaf area)
were significantly influenced by the cultivar; ‘Macedon’ obtained the highest values of plant height
(64.7 cm) and number of stems (20.33) and leaves (618.3) and ‘Serafim’ the largest leaf area (4901.7 cm2
per plant), while the type of fertilization did not affect these parameters. Regarding the biomass, the
influence of the cultivar was not significant on fresh biomass but was significant on dry biomass, with
‘Macedon’ showing the highest value (56.4 g plant1 dry biomass). The mentioned parameters were
significantly influenced by the type of fertilization, with the highest values recorded with chemical
fertilization. Both the cultivar and the fertilization type significantly influenced the physiological
parameters (the total content of assimilatory pigments and photosynthesis). Five phenolic compounds
were quantified from leaf extracts by HPLC-MS (caffeic acid, hyperoside, isoquercitrin, rutin and
quercitrin). Hyperoside was identified only in ‘Macedon’, while the rest of the compounds were
found in all the cultivars and varied depending on the cultivar and fertilization type. Regarding
the composition of the essential oil, variation was found depending on the cultivar and fertilization
type. In ‘Aromat de Buzau’, the main compounds were methyl chavicol and -linalool; in ‘Macedon’,
geranial and neral; and in ‘Cuisoare’ and ‘Serafim’, -linalool. Moreover, the PCA showed that the
‘Serafim’ cultivar has exclusive properties compared to the other cultivars. Our results highlight that
identifying the most effective interaction between genotype and fertilization type allows to optimize
yield and quality targets for sweet basil.
