Citronella is perennial grass grows upto height of 90-180cm. It is widely cultivated for its essential oil. Its oil is used in manufacturing of soaps, incense sticks, mosquito repellent creams and deodorants, purfumesfor improving their odour. The oil is also extensively used for extracting aroma chemicals citronellol, citronellal and geraniol.

In India, Assam, Aandhra Pradesh, Bihar, Karnataka, Meghalaya, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Tamilnadu and Uttar Pradesh are major citronella growing states. This cropsyields about 800-1000 tons of oil annually in India.

It can grow on variety of soil but for good growth it requires sandy loam soil with good amount of organic matter content. pH of soil should be in range of 6 to 8.5. 

Medini, Manjari, Jalpallavi, Bio-13, Mandakini and Manjusha are improved varieties of citronella java. Java-11 is an old and established variety.

Java-2: High yielding varieties recommended for South india.

Bio-13: High yielding varieties recommended for South india.

Plough land thouroughly and bring soil to fine tilth. Prepared rigde bed or flat bed. 

Time of sowing

May to June is optimum time for citronella cultivation.

Spacing

For sowing use spacing of 60x60cm.

Sowing Depth

Plant slips at depth of 5-8cm in soil.

Method of sowing

Sowing of slips in main field. 

Citronella is vegetatively propagated. For propagation, slips are used. Slips are chosen from old and healthy crop. seedlings of 30-35days old in main field.

Seed Rate

For sowing one acre land 10,000 rooted slips are used.

 Nutrient Requirement (kg/acre)

Fertilizer Requirement (kg/acre)

For accurate fertilizer dose always apply fertilizer on the basis of soil test result.

Apply half fertilizer dose of Nitrogen@25kg/acre and full amount of Potash@16kg/acre and Phosphorus@16kg/acre at time of land preparation. Apply remaining dose of nitrogen@25kg/acre after first harvesting. 

In case of absence of rain, apply first irrigation, two to three days after sowing. Afterwards, apply irrigation at interval of seven days.

In general, this crop requires eight to ten irrigation in its growth period.

Keep field weed free for initial three to four months. Take first weeding operations, one month after sowing. Afterwards take weeding operations as per need.

To control weeds chemically, do pre-plant application of Simazine@0.6kg, Diuron@0.4kg or Oxyfluorfen@0.1kg/acre. 

For good yield and high oil recovery, remove flower stalks time to time and discard them away from field. 

Crop is ready for first harvest, six to seven months after planting. Afterwards, second harvesting is done with interval of two to three months. Harvest crop 10-15cm above ground level. After harvesting, remove dead and dried leaves. About 15ton/acre of herbage yield is obtained with oil recovery of 100kg/acre per year.