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The volatile compounds of essential oil (EO) and corresponding hydrolate (HY) extracted by steam distillation from clary sage (Salvia sclarea L.) cv "Domaća mirisna" grown in Serbia were identified using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). The most abundant compounds of EO were linalyl acetate (43.5%) and linalool (25.9%), followed by α-terpineol, germacrene D, and geranyl acetate. In the corresponding HY (recovered water-soluble fraction of EO) the dominant were linalool (63.3%) and α-terpineol (26.8%), followed by geraniol.These differences in composition between clary sage EO and HY could be explained by linalyl acetate's low water solubility. Clustering of 55 clary sage EO accessions (from literature) shows the presence of several chemotypes: linalyl acetate+linalool, linalyl acetate+sclareol, linalool+geranyl acetate, germacrene D+β-caryophyllene, caryophyllene oxide, and three unspecified chemotypes (geranyl acetate, methyl chavicol, and α-terpineol). According to this classification, clary sage cv "Domaća mirisna" belongs to a moderate linalyl acetate chemotype (between 19.8 and 45.7%). Further investigations need to focus on clary sage HY and their potential applications because HYs could increase economic gain as a by-product. However, their utilization for other purposes (cosmetic, postharvest fruit processing, organic agriculture, etc.) could be a safe solution for wastewater produced during EO distillation.

One small-plotfield and five container experiments were conducted to evaluate sheep wool-wastes and human hair-wastes as soil amendments and nutrient sources for high-value crops. Overall, the wool-waste or hair-waste addition to soil: 1) increased yields from basil, garden sage, peppermint, valerian, thorn apple, marigold, foxglove, and swiss chard; 2) increased the amount of secondary metabolites (such as essential oils and alkaloids); 3) increased NH4-N and NO3-N in soil; 4) increased total N (and protein) content in plant tissue; 5) did not affect soil microbial biomass; and 6) decreased mycorrhizae colonization of plant roots. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) analyses indicated that some of the wool and hair in soil from the container and field experiments (after two field seasons and several harvests) retained its original structure, retained a significant amount of S and some N, and was not fully decomposed. Our results indicate that single addition of wool or hair-waste of 0.33% by weight to soil would support two to five harvests or crops, without addition of other fertilizers, and may improve soil biological and chemical characteristics.

Phytoremediation has been suggested as a solution to heavy metal—polluted soils, but the choices of suitable plant species for phytoremediation have been limited. Medicinal and aromatic plants appear to be excellent selections for these plantings, since these plants are grown for economically valuable secondary products (essential oils), not for food or feed. Preliminary research indicates that heavy metals are not accumulated in essential oils, permitting the oil to be used commercially. Productivity of some, but not all aromatic plants was reduced, however, by the heavy metals. The objective of our experiment was to distinguish the mechanism of heavy metal tolerance of plants using germinating seeds of medicinal and aromatic plant species. Seeds from medicinal and aromatic plants were germinated in solutions with selected levels of heavy metals (cadmium at 6 and 10 (μg·L-1; copper at 60 and 150 μg·L-1; lead at 100 and 500 μg·L-1; zinc at 400 and 800 μg·L-1) and in distilled water. Tests on Anethum graveolens L., Carum carvi L., Cuminum cyminum L., Foeniculum vulgare Mill., Pimpinella anisum L., Ocimum basilicum L., and the hyperaccumulator species Brassica juncea L. and Alyssum bertolonii established that different plant species reacted in different ways to the heavy metals. For example, cadmium did not decrease seed germination of Alyssum, O. basilicum, and B. juncea compared with germination in water but did decrease germination of C. cyminum. Lead did not affect germination of A. bertolonii and B. juncea as compared with water but did negatively affect germination of P. anisum, F. vulgare, and C. cyminum. Except for B. juncea, F. vulgare, and C. cyminum, copper had a negative effect on germination. Zinc decreased germination in all tested species except B. juncea.

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