Chapters 5.20

5.20 -Rosemary as a Cash Crop for Smallholder Subsistence Famers

Arden Welton, University of Guelph, Canada

Suggested citation for this chapter.

Welton,A. (2022) Rosemary as a Cash Crop for Smallholder Subsistence Famers, In Farmpedia, The Encyclopedia for Small Scale Farmers. Editor, M.N. Raizada, University of Guelph, Canada. http://www.farmpedia.org

Introduction

Widely used as an herb in the culinary world, rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis),is a crop that demonstrates significant ability to thrive and may help smallholders fight against climate changes. Rosemary originates from the surrounding areas of the Mediterranean basin (Borges et al. 2019; Mateu-Andrés et al. 2013; Rašković et al. 2014). It is rather easy to grow, drought tolerant, and contains essential oils which have a bio-herbicidal effect against weeds (Mahdi et al. 2020).

Benefits of Rosemary

Rosemary has multiple functions, including being sold as a cash crop, utilized for medicinal as well as culinary purposes; it can be harvested in different ways to achieve the desired results (Borges et al. 2019; György et al 2020; Hcini et al 2013; Mateu-Andrés 2013; Rašković et al 2014; Stefanovits-Bányai 2003). A common use of rosemary involves its many oil compounds which act as natural preservatives for both culinary and medicinal purposes (Borges et al. 2019; György et al 2020; Hcini et al 2013; Mateu-Andrés 2013; Mohammed et al. 2020; Rašković et al 2014; Stefanovits-Bányai 2003). These oil compounds (aka hydrosol) are most widely harvested through the method of hydro distillation wherein condensate is collected and the essential oils are separated from the distilled liquid (Borges et al. 2019; Mohammed et al. 2019, p. 9). The essential oil compounds from dried rosemary leaves contain antioxidants and, when hydro distilled, can demonstrate anti-microbial activity against foodborne pathogens (Borges et al. 2019; Carocho et al. 2018; György et al 2020; Hcini et al 2013; Li et al 2016; Mateu-Andrés 2013; Mohammed et al. 2020; Rašković et al 2014; Stefanovits-Bányai 2003). This powerful feature may aid subsistence farmers to preserve their own food or aid other farmers to preserve food products for sale in markets. Alongside these benefits, rosemary’s medicinal properties have been shown to fight inflammation and increase blood flow, while other compounds are used in the cosmetic industry for aromatics (Borges et al. 2019; György et al 2020; Hcini et al 2013; Li et al 2016; Mateu-Andrés 2013; Mohammed et al. 2020; Rašković et al 2014; Stefanovits-Bányai 2003). Although the value of rosemary increases as the plant is processed into essential oils, there is a cost to extract and process these essential oils. Rosemary has different cultivars that are more suited for specific purposes. For example, creeping rosemary is suitable to use as groundcover to help reduce erosion, while others may be better suited for aromatics (e.g. upright rosemary) or other end-uses such as cooking.

Growing Rosemary

As stated previously, another benefit of rosemary is that it is easy to grow, requiring only basic knowledge. It performs exceptionally with minimal rainfall (Borges et al. 2019). The plant thrives in environments with light, sandy soils that are well-drained and even slightly tolerates salinity (Borges et al 2019). On the other hand, rosemary is unable to grow well in primarily clay-based, water-logged soils (Borges et al. 2019). The optimal soil pH for rosemary is approximately 5.0-6.0 (Dudd 2020). Very little fertilizer is needed to grow this crop, typically at the start of the growing season (Masabni et al. 2017). Being tolerant to drought conditions, rosemary is suitable to combat climate change and/or in semi-arid environments. Although it is rather easy to grow, the environment and geographic site has an effect on the quantitative yield of the essential oils and their quality (Borges et al 2019; Mohammed et al. 2020). The chemical composition of the essential oils of rosemary plant are heavily dependent on plant age, tissue, origin, soil conditions, and climate (Borges et al 2019; Mahdi et al. 2020; Mohammed et al. 2020).

Benefits of Rosemary to Smallholder Farmers

Smallholder women farmer could simply sell rosemary seeds to other women farmers as a secondary source of income. However, the fact that rosemary can be processed and sold as something other than seeds is something that smallholder women farmers may be able to take advantage of - provided they have the correct tools.

At a village level, the sale of a natural pesticide could be extremely useful to other smallholder farmers who are willing to invest to save their crops from pathogens (György et al 2020; Hcini et al 2013; Li et al 2016; Rašković et al 2014). The natural preservative found in the essential oil, can be used as an antioxidant in foods with high fat content (meats especially) (Olmedo 2019:2). Farmers may use the natural preservative chemical found within the rosemary plant to preserve their fruits, vegetables, and even meat for longer periods of time.

As noted in the “Getting Started” section (below), a link is provided that specifically demonstrates the hydro distillation process from rosemary stems along with information on the equipment that would be required to perform this process efficiently. In addition to this equipment, smallholder women farmer may opt to working with other women to create a cooperative. This would split the work among all partners and also provide support for one another in the form of tools, equipment, etc. An example of a much simpler oil extraction alternative can be viewed in the fourth link below which may be much more attainable to smallholder farmers who are unlikely to have access to equipment. However, the essential oil yields and quality are lower in the simpler method provided, but the costs are significantly reduced.

Prior to undertaking rosemary as a cash crop, women farmers would have to consider their ability to sell the product and to whom. Sales of essential oils may do better in an area where smallholder farmers can sell directly to a shop (e.g. for tourists) or in large markets visited by women farmers from different villages.

Practical resources to get started

Processing raw rosemary plant into essential oil via hydro distillation process: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v2X3WCJCaHE&feature=emb_logo

Further (more in-depth) explanations for the process of hydro distillation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5HgM8G4llqw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FIS5r1KVnY

Processing hydrosol at home: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=77IQ4ayqQHE

References

Borges, O. (2019). Rosmarinus officinalis essential oil: A review of its phytochemistry, anti-inflammatory a. activity, and mechanisms of action involved. Journal of Ethnopharmacology, 229, 29–45. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jep.2018.09.038

2. Carocho, M. (2018). Antioxidants: Reviewing the chemistry, food applications, legislation and role as a. preservatives. Trends in Food Science & Technology, 71, 107–120. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tifs.2017.11.008

3. Dodd, V. (2020). What Is the Best Soil pH for Growing Herbs? The Culinary Herb Garden. Retrieved from a. https://howtoculinaryherbgarden.com/best-soil-ph-for-growing-herbs/

4. Grant, A. (2020, April 14). Rosemary Plant Types: Varieties Of Rosemary Plants For The Garden. a. Retrieved from https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/herbs/rosemary/rosemary-plant-varieties.htm

5. György, L. (2020). The effect of essential oils and their combinations on bacteria from the surface of a. fresh vegetables. Food Science & Nutrition, 8(10), 5601–5611. https://doi.org/10.1002/fsn3.1864

6. Hcini, K., Sotomayor, J. A., Jordan, M. J., & Bouzid, S. (2013). Chemical composition of the a. essential oil of Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.) of Tunisian origin. Asian Journal of b. Chemistry, 25(5), 2601-2603.

7. Masabni, J., & King, S. (2017, February 09). Growing Rosemary– how to grow Rosemary- in Texas. a. Retrieved from https://agrilifeextension.tamu.edu/browse/featured-solutions/gardening-landscaping/rosemary/#:~:text=Rosemary seldom needs fertilizer.,as it is applied correctly.

8. Mateu-Andrés, A. (2013). Geographical patterns of genetic variation in rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) a. in the Mediterranean basin. Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, 171(4), 700–712. https://doi.org/10.1111/boj.12017

9. El Mahdi, T. (2020). Bio-Herbicidal Potential of the Essential Oils from Different Rosmarinus officinalis L. a. Chemotypes in Laboratory Assays. Agronomy (Basel), 10(6), 775–. https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy10060775

10. Mohammed, A. (2020). Drying Induced Impact on Composition and Oil Quality of Rosemary Herb, a. Rosmarinus Officinalis Linn. Molecules (Basel, Switzerland), 25(12), 2830–. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules25122830

11. Olmedo, G. (2019). Oxidative Stability, Affective and Descriptive Sensory Properties of Roasted Peanut a. Flavored with Oregano, Laurel, and Rosemary Essential Oils as Natural Preservatives of Food Lipids. European Journal of Lipid Science and Technology, 121(5), 1800428–n/a. https://doi.org/10.1002/ejlt.201800428

12. Li, C. (2016). Volatile diversity in wild populations of rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.) from the a. Tyrrhenian Sea vicinity cultivated under homogeneous environmental conditions. Industrial Crops and Products, 84, 381–390. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indcrop.2016.02.029

13. Rašković, A., Milanović, I., Pavlović, N., Ćebović, T., Vukmirović, S., & Mikov, M. (2014). a. Antioxidant activity of rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.) essential oil and its hepatoprotective potential. BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 14(1), 225–225.

14. Rosmarinus Officinalis. (n.d.). Arizona State University. Retrieved from a. http://www.public.asu.edu/

15. Stefanovits-Bányai, É. (2003). Antioxidant effect of various rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.) clones. a. Acta Biologica Szegediensis, 47(1-4), 111