Citronella (Cymbopogon Winterianus)

Varieties Java-2, Jerlab-2, Java citronella, Java II and Ceylon citronella, Bio-13, Mandakini and Manjusha are the high yielding varieties.

Soil and climate Sandy loam with abundant organic matter with pH of 6.6 – 8.0 is highly suitable. It comes up well under tropical and sub-tropical conditions with a high rainfall (200 - 250 cm) and high humidity.

Season Planting spreads from June to July.

Seeds and planting It can be propagated through slips. About 28,000 slips at a spacing of 60 x 45 cm in ridges can be planted in a hectare.

Plough the field thoroughly and flat ridges are formed. Slips are planted at the top of the ridges.

Manuring The crop requires FYM 10 t/ha and NPK at 25:40:40 kg/ha as basal dose. 75 kg N/ha can be applied in 3 equal splits of 25 kg each at 3, 6 and 9 months after planting.

Irrigation Life irrigation is given on third day and again at 7 – 10 days interval.

Harvesting One to two weeding at the initial stages and earthing up after each harvest are required.

The first harvest is done at 6 months after planting. Second and subsequent harvest can be taken at an interval of two and a half months. Cut the bush by leaving 10-15 cm above the ground level. Oil extraction is done after shade drying the leaves for one day.

Yield The herbage yield is about 20 - 30 t/ha/year. Oil is extracted by water distillation. The oil content ranges from 0.2% to 0.3%.