Growing herbs and spices using organic methods are supported and encouraged in Egypt. This study was conducted on summer savory (Satureja hortensis L.) throughout the growing seasons of 2019/2020 and 2020/2021. The research was carried out on a plantation that adheres to organic farming practices to ascertain the impact of chitosan and bio-fertilizer EM on the crop. The study was designed with a splitplot as the layout. For the main plots, it was recommended to use rates for chitosan spray that were 0, 5, and 10 liters/hectare. For the subplots, it was recommended to use bio-fertilizer EM, either with or without. Our findings indicated that applying chitosan spray to plants at 10 liters/hectare while using biofertilizer produced the highest growth, herbage yield, and improved volatile oil characteristics. The volatile oil constituents were dominated by γ-terpinene and carvacrol. The highest levels of γ-terpinene and carvacrol were found in oils extracted from chitosan and biofertilizer-treated plants. These constituents were lower in control.

Spice production is crucial for the world economy. Today, the farming of spices faces significant challenges under climate change, such as heat stress, rising salinity, water stress, low soil nutrients, and increased pests, which lead to reduced yield and quality. The present study was conducted in Egypt on Turkish oregano (Origanum onites L.) plants. The trial was achieved under organic farming conditions. The purpose was to investigate the responses of the plant towards two natural stimulators, chitosan and biofertilizer. The design of the work was a split plot. Main plots were assigned to the foliar spray of chitosan at three concentrations (0, 5, and 10 liters/hectare) and sub-plots to biofertilizer EM (with and without). The collected data comprised plant height, fresh and dry herb weights per plant, fresh and dry herb yields per hectare, essential oil percentage, oil yield per plant and hectare, and GC-MS analysis of oils. The significant maximum growth and yield characteristics were obtained by spraying with chitosan at the highest concentration of 10 liters/hectare combined with soil drenching by biofertilizer EM. The major essential oil component was carvacrol, which is responsible for its pungent flavour. This previous treatment also recorded the maximum carvacrol percent in oil of all cuts. So, this treatment could be used to increase the quantity and quality of the organic product.

wo field experiments were carried out during 2014/2015 and 2015/2016 seasons to evaluate the effect of different levels of magnesium sulphate (0, 25, 50 and 75 kg/feddan) on growth, yield, chemical composition, essential oils and their constituents of three curly parsley cultivars (Petra, Krausa and Bravour) under South Sinai conditions (Ras Sudr). Results showed that Krausa cultivar surpassed the two others cultivars in stem/leaves per plant, plant fresh weights per square meter, plant fresh yield per feddan, chlorophyll a, carotenoids, nitrogen, magnesium contents and fractions for essential oils responsible on the preferred parsley aroma. On the other hand, Petra cultivar showed the superiority in plant dry weight, chlorophyll b, total chlorophyll, phosphorus, potassium content, essential oil and total oil yield. Magnesium sulphate at 75 kg/feddan resulted in the best values of the studied characters. The highest growth and yield values were obtained with Krausa cultivar and 75 kg magnesium sulphate per treatment, while, the Petra cultivar with 75 kg per feddan gave the highest content of essential oil under salt stress.