European Borage (Borago officinalis L.) Yield and Profitability under Different Irrigation Systems

Abstract

European borage (Borago officinalis L.) is a cultivated medicinal plant in Iran, but common agronomic practices about profitable cultivation are mostly unknown. A 2-yr field experiment (2013 and 2014) was conducted in Guilan Province of northern Iran to evaluate European borage yield and profitability under irrigation with surface and drip irrigation systems. Treatments included (i) rainfed production (I0, control), (ii) single irrigation (I1) applied with surface irrigation alone and drip irrigation alone, and (iii) two irrigations (I2) applied with surface irrigation alone and drip irrigation alone. In 2013, I1 increased flower dry weight by 41.0% and seed weight by 7.1% compared with rainfed European borage, while with I2, the increases in those traits were 23.4% and 0.6%, respectively. In 2014, I1 increased flower dry weight by 78.0% and seed weight by 21.3% compared with rainfed European borage, while the respective increases were 51.8% and 17.3% with I2. On average, drip irrigation provided higher flower dry weight and seed weight by 39.3% and 12.6%, respectively, compared with surface irrigation. Drip irrigation increased variable costs by 165.2% compared with surface irrigation but resulted in increased gross income by 23.2%. Partial budgeting showed that I1 with drip irrigation provided the maximum net profit in both years. Based on the final rate of return, investing in the treatment I1 with drip irrigation was better than investing in the other treatments. Moreover, I1 with drip irrigation showed the highest value of economic water productivity and could be considered for improving the net income of European borage farmers.

Edible Wild Relatives of Cultivated Plants of Popular Use in the Iberian Peninsula

“…Outside Spain, Borago officinalis is cultivated commercially as an oil crop, particularly in United Kingdom, Canada and New Zealand [18] to get ɣ-linolenic acid (GLA) (Figure 2), an unusual fatty acid in plants, appreciated because of its nutritional, cosmetic and medicinal value [19,20]. The plant also contains pyrrozidine alkaloids, some of which are hepatotoxic, mutagenic and carcinogenic [21]. An overview of the main constituents is shown in Table 1.…”

Industrial oilseed crops in Chile: Current situation and future potential

“…21,25 In Europe, camelina is already considered one of the oilseed crops with the highest potential for usage for industrial purposes, 6,92 while borage is cultivated in many European countries, but its growth habits and agronomic practices have not been explained yet. 6,93 Both species have the potential to be produced in Chile, especially as Chile is a counter-season market for the Northern Hemisphere 94 and one of the 10 biggest seed producers in the world. 95 Clearly, more research is necessary to establish these crops for production.…”

Influence of Applying Seaweed Extracts and NPK Fertilizer on Vegetative Growth, Flowering Traits and Seed Yield of Borage (Borage officinalis L.)

“…It is also planted for medicinal, culinary and oil production. The top producers in the world are the UK, Canada and New Zealand 3 . Leaves and flowers of borage also contain several active compounds that are utilized in different dietary supplements.…”