The influence of meteorological factors on phytochemical composition of Artemisia pontica L.

Abstract

In order to increase the diversity of medicinal plants and biologically active compounds accumulated in them, considerable attention is given to introduction of Artemisia L. genus plants in Lithuania. The aim of our study was to determinate the qualitative and quantitative composition of essential oils of Artemisia pontica L. introduced in Lithuania. The object of investigation – Artemisiae pontici herba were prepared in the Scientific Sector of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants, Scientific Department of Botanical Garden at Vytautas Magnus University in 2018–2019. Essential oils were separated by hydrodistillation method, their composition was analysed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry methods in the Faculty of Pharmacy at Lithuanian University of Health Sciences in 2018–2020. The obtained results showed that a statistically significant (p > 0.05) higher amount and diversity of compounds from Artemisiae pontici herba essential oils were assessed in 2018 when HTC = 1.32. A strong correlation (r = 0.740) was assessed between the average of active temperatures and precipitation in 2019. The content of compounds was by 33.3% lower when HTC = 0.91. The other major compounds were 1,8-cineole (46.86%), 1,4-cineole (37.92%) and camphor (29.41–33.02%).