Evaluation of Some Types of Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare Mill.) Newly Introduced and Adapted in Egypt

Abstract

Exports of local fennel (Foeniculum vulgare Mill.) from Egypt over the past few years have been affected due to the high estragole but low anethole content of the oil. Therefore, fennel seeds were imported from different countries to investigate the adaptability of such strains in different locations in Egypt, in comparison with the local one. The obtained results indicated that Holland fennel surpassed other fennel strains under study, as it showed the best growth in terms of number of umbels, seed production, seed oil (%) and oil production per plant and unit area. The seed oil of this strain had the highest content of anethole (75.93% on average) and low estragole percentage (4.22%). The Indian strain showed poor characters. The German strain contained high oil percentage; however, the oil yield/plant or unit area was poor. Locations in Menia led to the best characters for Holland, Indian, Azoricum and local fennel; however, it did not favor the growth of the German strain. It would be recommended to cultivate the Holland fennel strain at Menia to obtain the best growth, oil yield and character.

Key Word Index:

• Foeniculum vulgare
• estragole
• anethole
• essential oil