Tursun, NihatIşıkber, Ali ArdaAlma, Mehmet HakkıBozhüyük, Ayşe Usanmaz2023-08-062023-08-062022Tursun, N., Işıkber, A. A., Alma, M. H., Bozhüyük, A. U., (2022). Inhibitory Effect of Oregano and Laurel Essential Oils and Their Main Components on Seed Germination of Some Weed and Crop Species. Selcuk Journal of Agriculture and Food Sciences, 36(2), 275-281. DOI: 10.15316/SJAFS.2022.0362458-8377https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12395/49215The essential oils from oregano (Origanum syriacum L.) and laurel (Laurus nobilis L.), and their main components, namely, carvacrol, 1,8-cineole and ?pinene, were tested to determine their inhibitory effects on the seed germinations of three different weeds [redroot amaranth (Amaranthus retroflexus L.), wild licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra L.), curled dock (Rumex crispus L.) and cutleaf ground-cherry (Physalis angulata L.)] and three crops [(wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), corn (Zea mays L.) and cotton (Gossypium hirsitum L.)]. Gas chromatography/mass spectroscopy (GC-MS) analysis showed that 1,8-cineole and carvacrol were the major components of laurel and oregano essential oils, respectively. An in-vitro bioassay seed germination test showed that oregano essential oil and carvacrol completely inhibited the germination of weeds at all the concentrations ranging from 1 to 5 µl/Petri dish, while seed germination of test weeds significantly decreased with increasing of the concentrations of laurel essential oil and its main components, 1,8-cineol and ?-pinene ranging from 5 to 20 µl/Petri dish. Oregano essential oil and carvacrol were totally ineffective on cotton and corn germination (except for the concentration of 5 µl/Petri dish of cavracrol), whereas they had a strong inhibitory activity against wheat seeds. On the other hand, the laurel essential oil and its main component, 1,8-cineole, showed less selective action on test crop species. It could be concluded that volatile oil from O. syriacum and its main component, cavracrol, possessed a strong inhibitory effect on germination of the weeds and was totally selective action on some crops, and could be utilized as bioherbicide for future weed management programmes.en10.15316/SJAFS.2022.036info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccessEssential oilGerminationLaurelOreganoWeed seedsArticle362275281