Mass multiplication of Pogostemon cablin (Blanco) Benth genotypes and increase of essential oil and patchoulol yield

Patchouli (Pogostemon cablin) is an aromatic species indigenous to Asia that has been cultivated in many parts of the world for the extraction of essential oils from its leaves. The objective of this study is to develop protocols for plant regeneration and acclimatization from three genotypes of patchouli. For the plant regeneration experiment, a completely randomized factorial design, employing the growth regulators kinetin and indole acetic acid (IAA), was used. The acclimatization used different mixtures of coconut coir dust and vermiculite supplemented with NPK fertilizer and limestone. Direct regeneration of plants was observed for MS medium supplemented with low concentrations (0.5–2.0 mg L−1) of kinetin and IAA alone or in combination for all of the studied genotypes. For genotypes POG014 and POG021, there were 175 and 154 shoots, respectively, obtained per explant with the use of 1.0 mg L−1 kinetin and 0.5 mg L−1 IAA. For genotype POG002, there were 41 shoots obtained per explant in a medium supplemented with 1.0 mg L−1 kinetin. The acclimatization of micropropagated plantlets of all three genotypes showed the best results with the vermiculite substrate plus MS medium salts. Essential oil content and the percentage of patchoulol were higher in plants derived from micropropagation in the three genotypes studied.