Superior varieties of lemongrass key to increasing production yield in Indonesia

My Agriculture— Lemongrass is a plant that can produce essential oils obtained from the leaf distillation process. In the trading world, the essential oil of this plant is known as Citronella oil. The quality of the oil produced depends on three factors, namely superior varieties of lemongrass, cultivation techniques, and the distillation process. Cheppy Syukur, Researcher at the Research and Development Agency of Agriculture at the Research Institute for Spices and Medicinal Plants (Balittro) said that there are still many farmers or cultivators who are still not familiar with superior varieties of lemongrass. The origin of the materials used is still unclear, so the results obtained are not optimal. “Why should we prioritize plant materials? Because plant materials are the beginning to produce a product that meets our expectations, namely oil from lemongrass leaves," said Cheppy as quoted from the litbang.pertanian.go.id page. Cheppy explained that Balittro has had a purple ...