Lemongrass Production Guide

There are two species of lemongrass introduced for cultivation the East Indian Lemongrass or Cymbopogon flexuosus (Steud.) Watss and the Wes Indian Lemongrass or C. citratus Stapf. The term lemongrass was given because of its strong lemon-like odor due to high citral content (75-90 percent) of the essential oil present in the leaves. Lemongrass oil is one of the most important essential oils produced in the world. The oil is produced because of its high citral content, which is used as a basic raw material to synthesize Bionones which is used to synthesize a number of aromatic useful compounds and Vitamin A. Citral itself is used as a perfume for various grades of soaps and cosmetics. AGROCLIMATIC REQUIREMENTS Lemongrass requires a warm and humid climate with plenty of sunlight and rainfall, ranging from 250 cm to 300 cm, uniformly distributed over the year. The plant is hardy and resistant to drought. High temperature and sunshine are conducive to the development of oil in the plant. It grows luxuriantly in hilly places receiving heavy rainfall and is harvested more frequently; its oil and citral contents are less compared to the plants growing in regions receiving less rainfall. Lemongrass grows well at altitudes between 100 and 1,200 m above sea level, generally on poor soils with hilly slopes but flourishes on a wide variety of soils ranging from rich loam to poor laterite. It grows best on well-drained sandy loam soil; it even thrives on light sandy soils, provided they are well manured. Plants from such a sandy soil yield relatively more oil with higher citral content. CULTURAL MANAGEMENT PRACTICES A. Propagation Lemongrass is propagated both from seeds and rooted slips in case of C. flexuosus. Whereas, C. citratus is grown through rooted slips. However, it is better to propagate the plant by vegetative methods from selected clones, as seed propagation leads to considerable genetic heterogeneity resulting in deterioration of yield and oil quality. Collection of seeds. The crop flowers during November and December and seeds are collected from January to February. To collect seeds, the plants are left without harvest because yield of seeds from plants subjected to regular harvest is less. On the average, a healthy plant gives about 100-200 grams of seeds. The whole inflorescence is cut and sundried for two to three days. They are then trashed and seeds are again sundried. They are then stored in gunny bags. The seeds lose their viability if stored over a longer period. Preparation of nursery. The plant is cultivated preferably as a transplanted crop because it has been found superior to direct sowing of seeds in terms of grass yield, oil content, and citral percentage. The seeds are sown by hand in a wellbprepared nursery at the onset of the monsoon from April to May and are covered with a thin layer of soil. The nursery is watered in the absence of rainfall. About 10 kilograms of seeds are adequate to raise seedlings for planting I hectare (ha). Seeds germinate in five to six days. Seedlings are ready for transplanting when about 60 days old. Transplanting. Seedlings are planted at a distance of 45 to 60 cm in rows 60 to 70 cm apart. It is better to plant on ridges in areas receiving high rate of rainfall. Propagation by root divisions. Tops of clumps are cut off within 15 cm of the root. It is divided into segments and the lower brown sheath is removed to expose young roots. One or two segments are placed into each hole, about 15 cm deep. Each segment is transplanted firmly into the ground. This is done at the beginning of the rainy season. The spacing of the segments depends upon the fertility of the soil and climatic conditions of the place of cultivation. Placing the segments 60 cm apart in rows about 90 cm apart is reasonable. Closely spaced plants give more grass than the wide-spaced ones; but the increase in oil is not as much as the increase in grass yield. B. Fertilization Lemongrass is a soil-exhausting crop. It is preferable to use spent lemongrass in the form of compost at the rate of 10 tons/ha and wood ash at the rate of 2 tons/ha. It supplies sufficient amount of nitrogen and potash which are the most important growth factors in the crop.

The use of inorganic fertilizers also gives encouraging results. It is recommended to supply 30 kg P2O5, 30 kg K2O, and 30- kg nitrogen per hectare as basal dose at the time of planting. Nitrogen (60 kg) can be top dressed in three to four split-doses during the growing season. C. Weeding Weeding and hoeing are very important as they affect the yield and soil quality. Generally, two to three weedings are necessary in a year. Earthing up should also be done at least once a year. In a row-planted crop, intercropping can be done by a tractor-drawn cultivator or hand-hoc. Weeds can also be controlled by applying recommended herbicides. Distillation waste, when applied at 3 to 5 tons/ha suppresses weed growth. D. Irrigation In areas receiving good amount of rainfall, irrigation is not necessary. However, lemongrass has high water requirement and irrigation is essential to obtain optimum yield in those areas where rainfall is not evenly distributed. POSTHARVEST PRACTICES Harvesting First harvest is generally possible after three months of transplanting in the case of C. flexuosus and after six months of planting of C. citratus. Subsequent harvests take place at intervals of 40-50 days. Under normal conditions, more harvests are possible during the first year than in subsequent years. Drying The grass is either distilled fresh or allowed to wilt for 24 hours. Wilting reduces the moisture content and allows larger quantity of grass to be packed into the still, thus economizing the fuel use. Pest Management Several pests and diseases have been found to affect lemongrass. The most important one is the Chilotreae species. The caterpillar is color white and has a black head and black spots on its body. It attacks lemongrass by boring into the stem and feeding on the shoot. The first symptom of the attack is the drying up of the central leaf. Subsequently, the whole shoot dies, resulting in a significant reduction in grass yield. Control measures include setting the dry stubbles on fire during the off-season in summer to destroy caterpillars lurking inside the stubbles, pulling out and destroying the affected shoots, and spraying appropriate chemicals in case of severe infestation. Distillation To have good quality oil, it is advisable to use steam-distillation. To obtain the maximum oil yield and facilitate oil release, the grass is chopped into shorter lengths. Chopping the grass is advantageous because more grass can be charged into the still and even packing is facilitated. The grass should be packed firmly to prevent the formation of steam channels. The steam is allowed to pass into the still with a steam pressure from 18 to 32 kg in the boiler. Storage The oil is stored in containers, preferably glass or well-tinned iron. Containers should completely be filled to exclude any air and protect from sunlight as they affect the citral content. Filtering the oil too often in open air affects the citral content. The oil should be free from moisture. Uses The oil is used to isolate citral for the manufacture of vitamin A. Citral is the starting material for the manufacture of ionones and is also used in flavors, cosmetics and perfumes. A small amount of oil is used, as such, in soaps detergents and other preparations. In some countries, the grass is used as a food flavoring, especially on chicken. It is also often used for flavoring tea and added to bath water. The spent lemongrass leaves are suitable for making paper and are used as fuel for the distillation of the lemongrass. It is also an excellent Source of manure; it is applied either after composting or in the form of ash by burning. Popularity: 7% Popularity: 7% Posted on March 17th, 2009 under Plant. Tags: Grass, Lemongrass. RSS 2.0 feed. Leave a response, or trackback.

4 Responses to Lemongrass Production Guide

1. rey balaguer Says:
August 23rd, 2010 at 6:04 pm

please update me in my email about your contents. thank you. 2. Ben Felisilda Says:
January 3rd, 2011 at 1:56 am

Hi, I would like to know more about the invitro culture of lemon grass since we are trying to produce lemon grass here in bulk for our local project. Please let us know the latest of the in vitro techniques of growing this commodity. 3. always smile Says:
February 24th, 2011 at 11:08 pm

Hello Nice to see this production guide. as we know that Adverse impacts of global warming and subsequent climate change are already been apparent with an increase in frequency and intensity of climate induced extreme events. Peoples lives and livelihoods, especially of poor and marginalized social groups such as farmers, indigenous communities, women and children in least developed countries and developing nations are most at risks and vulnerable to these disasters. Therefore i want to know that either this underutilized species may help to tackle with these increasing impacts of climate change please update in my email Regards 4. Fernandito R Ridao Says:
March 19th, 2011 at 1:42 pm

I am interested in planting lemon grass. At 60cm x 90cm planting distance, how many liters of oil is estimated to be produced. And whats the current farm-gate price of lemon grass oil? Aside from its oil, lemon grass also produces hydrosol. In a hectare of lemon grass, whats the aprroximate production of hydrosol, and its value?