Yield and glucosinolates in mustard seeds and volatile oils in caraway seeds and coriander fruit. II: Yield and volatile oils of caraway seeds (Carum carvi L.)

Caraway was grown in Freising, West Germany and at three locations in Finland. The growth substrate was a fertilized peat of the same quality at each location. The total volatile oil contents of the seeds varied between 5.45 and 7.59 ml/100g. There were no significant differences in total oil content or in carvone content between the seeds grown at different locations. In addition, different varieties (‘Hungarian’, ‘Kami’, ‘Caraway I and ll’ Sv) were tested in Helsinki. The average yield was 3200 kg/ha at the first harvest and 800 kg/ha in the second year. The Hungarian cultivar gave the largest yield and the growth period of this variety was approximately one week shorter than that of the Scandinavian varieties ‘Kami’ and ‘Caraway I and IT. The volatile oil contents of the seeds ranged between 4.22 and 6.98 ml/100 g. There were no significant differences between the varieties in the total oil contents. The proportion of carvone varied between 48 and 56 % of the total oils.