Lemon Grass
Cymbopogon flexuosus
(Local: Haona)
Family:Poaceae
INTRODUCTION
Cymbopogon
flexuosus
commonly
known as Lemon grass, is a tall,
perennial sedge throwing up dense
fascicles of leaves from a short rhizome,
up to 1.8 meter high. Most of the
species of lemon grass are native to
South Asia, South-east Asia and
Australia. It grows in many parts of
tropical and sub-tropical countries of
South East Asia and Africa. It was
introduced in India about a century back
and is now commercially cultivated in
these States. In India, it is cultivated
along Maharashtra, Kerala, Karnataka,
Utter Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Tamil
Nadu besides foot-hills of Arunachal
Pradesh and Sikkim and has been
recently introduced in Manipur for their
commercial cultivation. At present, India
grows this crop in 3,000 ha area, largely
in states of Kerala, Karnataka, U.P. and
Assam. The annual production ranges
between 300-350 t/annum.
PLANT PART USED: Aerial Parts (stems
and leaves)
Heavy clay soils and sandy soils are not
suitable for good growth of the plant.
Calcareous
and
water-logged
soils
should be avoided. The plant is also
reported to grow well at the altitudes
between 1000-1500 m.
SOME IMPORTANT VARIETIES
The best quality planting material of a
Lemongrass variety is required for
obtaining best quality essential oil for a
successful
entrepreneur
and
market. Many varieties of this species
have been developed in India. Some of
the best varieties are: OD -19, OD-408,
RRL - 38, RRL - 39 and CIMAPA.S-48,
CIMAP Bio-13, Java-2, Jorhat-2, RRL 16,
CKP 25
PROPAGATION
The crop is best propagated through
seed raised in nurseries, 2.5 kg. of the
fresh seed produces enough seedling for
planting one ha. of land. It is also
vegetative propagated by splitting the
clumps into slips. These are planted at a
spacing of 60x80 cm.
About 55,000
slips are required for one ha of planting.
MARKETED PRODUCT: Oil and citral
CHEMICAL COMPOUNDS: Citral
CULTIVATION METHODS
CLIMATE & SOIL
The crop grows well in both tropical and
subtropical climates at an elevation upto
900 m. (above m.s.l.). However, ideal
conditions for growing lemon grass are
warm and humid climate with sufficient
sunshine and 250-330 cm rainfall per
annum, evenly distributed over most part
of the year. A temperature ranging from
20-300 C and good sunshine throughout the
year is conducive to high crop yield.
Lemon grass can also be grown in semiarid regions receiving low to moderate
rainfall. This species grows well under
varying soil conditions, but the sandy loam
soil with abundant organic matter is the
most suitable under a pH range of 5.8-6.0.
SEED PRODUCTION
The crop flowers during NovemberDecember and seeds mature in next two
months viz. February-March (dry season
in Kerala). For collection of seeds, the
plants are maintained in good health as
the yield of seeds from plants subjected
to regular harvest is low. On an average,
a healthy plant gives about 100-200 g of
seeds. At the time of seed collection, the
whole inflorescence is cut and sun dried
for 2-3 days. These are then threshed
and seeds are again dried in the sun and
the seed remain attached with fluffy
mass which is removed by beating of
seed bag at sowing. These dry seed lots
are stored in gunny bags lined with
polythene. The seeds lose their viability
if stored for a period more than one
year.
NURSERY RAISING
The transplanting of nursery raised
seedlings is found to be superior to
For any other information please contact:
Dr. V.S. Rana, Facilitation Centre on Medicinal Plants, IBSD, Takyelpat, Imphal,
Ph.385 2051277 (Direct).
direct sowing of seeds. The seeds are
sown by hand on well prepared raised
beds of 1m to 1.5m width at the onset
of monsoon and are covered with a thin
layer of soil. Although 2.5 kg. of seed
produce enough seedlings, the seed rate
is 4-5kg/ha. The bed should be watered
immediately after sowing and care
should be taken to maintain adequate
moisture in the soil. Seed germinates in
5-6 days and the seedlings are ready for
transplanting after a period of 60 days.
PLANTING
Seedlings are planted at a distance of
40x40 cm, 40x30 cm, 40x60 cm. apart
depending upon fertility of land and
inter-culture implements used. It is
better to plant on ridges in areas
receiving high rainfall. In case of rooted
slips one or two slips are placed into
each hole, about 15 cm deep.
IRRIGATION
The
newly
bred
varieties
of
lemongrass have water requirement for
optimum yield. In northern India, 4-6
irrigations are given during summer
months (May-June). If rains are erratic,
the field is irrigated at an interval of 3
days during the first month and 7-10
day intervals subsequently. After the
establishment
of
plants,
irrigation
schedule is adjusted depending on water
holding capacity of the soil and weather
conditions.
NUTRITION
It is recommended to apply 30 kg
nitrogen, 30 kg P2 O5 and 30 kg K2O/ ha
at the time of planting. Remaining
nitrogen (60 to 90 kg) can be applied as
top-dressing in 3 to 4 split doses during
the growing season. In soils having low
fertility levels, the dose of nitrogen
should be increased. In Zinc deficient
soils, 25-60 kg Zinc sulphate per ha., is
applied. Lemongrass crop is free from
most pests or disease but may require
micronutrients over marginal lands.
INTERCULTURAL OPERATIONS
The field is kept weed free for the first
3-4 months after plating. Similarly,
weeding cum hoeing is done up to 1
month, after every harvest. Generally,
2-3 weedings are necessary during a
year. In row-planted crops, interoperations can be done by a tractordrawn cultivator or hand-hoe. Distillation
waste of this crop is applied as organic
mulch @ 3 tonnes/ha and this is found
effective for controlling weeds in the
crop.
PLANT PROTECTION MEASURES
There are several pests and diseases
recorded on the crop but these cause
only minor damage and loss of crop is
usually insignificant in value.
HARVESTING AND YIELD
Lemongrass flowers in winter season.
The first harvest is generally obtained
after 4 to 6 months of transplanting
seedlings. Subsequent harvests are done
at intervals of 60-70 days depending
upon the fertility of the soil and other
seasonal
factors.
Under
normal
conditions, three harvests are possible
during the first year, and 3-4 in
subsequent years, depending on the
management
practices
followed.
Harvesting is done with the help of
sickles; the plants are cut 10 cm above
ground-level and allowed to wilt in the
field,
before
transporting
to
the
distillation site.
Depending upon soil and climatic
conditions, plantation lasts on an
average, for 3-4 years only. The yield of
oil is less during the first year but it
increases in the second year and
reaches a maximum in the third year;
after this, the yield declines. On an
average, 25 to 30 tonnes of fresh
herbage are harvested per hectare per
annum from 4-6 cuttings, which yields
about 80 kg of oil. Under irrigated
conditions from newly bred varieties an
oil yield of 100-150 kg/ha is obtained.
The fresh herb contains on average
0.3% oil and thick stems are removed
before distillation as these are devoid of
oil.
ECONOMIC IMPORTANCE
The oil is distilled from leaves and
flowering tops of Lemon grass. The oil
has strong lemon-like odour, due to high
percentage (over 75%) of citral in the oil
and used in scenting of soaps,
For any other information please contact:
Dr. V.S. Rana, Facilitation Centre on Medicinal Plants, IBSD, Takyelpat, Imphal,
Ph.385 2051277 (Direct).
detergents, insect repellent preparations
etc. However, the major use of oil is as a
source
of
citral,
which
goes
in
perfumery, cosmetics, beverages and is
a starting material for manufacture of
ionones, which produces vitamin-A. The
citral rich oil has germicidal, medicinal
and flavouring properties. An allied
species called West Indian lemon grass
(C. citratus) has low citral content in the
oil and has meager trade in the country.
SOURCES OF TECHNOLOGY
(i) Facilitation Centre on Medicinal
Plants, IBSD, Takyelpat, Imphal.
(ii) Central Institute of Medicinal and
Aromatic Plants, Lucknow-226015,
(iii) Regional Research Laboratory,
Jorhat-785006.
For any other information please contact:
Dr. V.S. Rana, Facilitation Centre on Medicinal Plants, IBSD, Takyelpat, Imphal,
Ph.385 2051277 (Direct).