제주지역에서 에키네시아 주요 품종의 생육특성 연구

Abstract

This study has been carried out with the aim to examine the growth characteristics in Jeju Island of the major Echinacea cultivars which have the potential to become medicinal and landscaping plants, and thus to provide the basic data helpful to discovering and spreading new economic crops. For this purpose, these cultivars have been cultivated for three years from 2009 to 2011 on the experimental fields in six areas in Jeju Island which range in altitude and soil type. The results are summarized as follows.

1) Germination and growth characteristics The rooting rate after planting turned out to be high for all the cultivars in Bonseong area, located at 300 meters of altitude, among the areas with volcanic ash soil, and in Yoosooam area, 200 meters above sea level, among the areas with non-volcanic-ash soil. In the comparison among cultivars, purpurea showed the best survival rate, while angustifolia did the worst. It was shown that Echinacea tended to germinate earlier at a lower altitude, and that Purpurea germinated earliest in all the experimented areas. Soil type exerted no effect on the time of germination until the second year, but in the third year, they germinated 3 to 4 days earlier on the volcanic ash soil. As for stem length, those planted in Songdang, 200 meters above sea level, showed best statistics, and at the end of the second year it was 2.0 to 2.4 times the length measured in the previous year. Angustifolia showed the worst figure whether or not the soil was volcanic ash. In case of purpurea, the growth was best in Songdang (200m) with volcanic ash soil. But the growth was retarded in the third year compared to that in the second year. As for the number of branches, it varied wildly depending on the growth area and cultivar, but was bigger for purpurea than other cultivars. Angustifolia and pallida yielded better statistics on the non-volcanic-ash soil, while purpurea did on the volcanic ash soil. 200 meters of altitude caused the biggest number of branches regardless of the soil type, volcanic ash or not. Purpurea showed the biggest number of leaves in all the experimental areas. In the comparison among the areas, the best statistics was gained in Bongseong (300m), of all the areas with volcanic ash soil, while it was in Yoosooam (200m), among the areas with non-volcanic-ash soil. As for leaf length and leaf width, the statistics tended to be good in Songdang (200m) among the areas with volcanic ash soil, and in Yoosooam (200m) in case of non-volcanic-ash soil. Purpurea showed the trait to have long and broad leaves, but angustifolia and pallida showed the trait of having narrow and harsh leaves.

2) Flowering characteristics In the first year, purpurea flowered earliest in all the areas, and a low altitude triggered early flowering. On the non-volcanic-ash soil at 300 meters of altitude, angustifolia and pallida did not flower thwarted by low temperature. In the second and third years, all the cultivars flowered 110 days earlier than in the first year. Pallida flowered earliest in all the areas and tended to flower earlier at a lower altitude. As for flower stem length, it was the longest for purpurea in the first year. It was generally good in Yoosooam (200m) with non-volcanic-ash soil. In the second year, flower stems were longer on the non-volcanic-ash soil than on the volcanic ash soil. Angustifolia and pallida produced longest flower stems in Songdang (200m) with volcanic ash soil, whereas purpurea did in Bongseong (300m) with volcanic ash soil. Flower stems were mostly shorter in the third year than in the second year. Purpurea showed the biggest number of flowers. In general, volcanic ash soil and 200 and 300 meters of altitude caused bigger numbers of flowers .

3) Rooting characterstics As for root length, pallida showed the best figure with 23.3 centimeters. Altitude of 200 meters led to longer roots whether the soil is of volcanic ash or not. In the second year, root diameter was the biggest in Yoosooam(200m). In the comparison among the areas and by cultivar, angustifolia and purpurea turned out to show the thickest roots in Yoosooam (200m) with non-volcanic-ash soil; and pallida did in Bongseong (300m) with volcanic ash soil. As for number of roots, non-volcanic-ash soil was more favorable than volcanic ash soil for all the cultivars. Regardless of soil type, they showed the best statistics in both Songdang and Yoosooam, at 200 meters of altitude. Among cultivars, purpurea had the largest number of roots while angustifolia had the smallest. As for the root weight per plant, it was heavier for those grown on the non-volcanic-ash soil than those on the volcanic ash soil. Among the areas with non-volcanic-ash soil, Songdang (200m) yielded by far the heaviest roots. The per-acre root harvest after two-year cultivation increased by 40% over that after one-year for angustifolia, 120% for pallida, and 130% for purpurea. Non-volcanic-ash soil turned out to be more favorable than volcanic ash soil. Among the areas with non-volcanic-ash soil, Yoosooam (200m) was the most favorable for all the cultivars. For all the cultivars, the root harvest decreased in the third year compared to that in the second year. It remains to be studied whether this decrease was caused by the bad weather or whether the harvesting after two-year cultivation is the most productive.

4) Analysis of the efficacious ingredients The ingredient analysis of Echinacea leaves showed that angustifolia had more chorogenic acid, echinacoside and cynarin than the other cultivars, and that purpurea had more caftaric acid. As for the ingredients in the root, angustifolia had the highest content of echinacoside. Those grown on the non-volcanic-ash soil and at 200 meters above sea level showed much chorogenic acid, while cynarin was extracted only form those grown in Yoosooam (200m) with non-volcanic-ash soil. In the comparison among cultivars, purpurea showed more caftaric acid than the other cultivars, and pallida showed higher content of echinacoside. As for the ingredients in the Echinacea seed, all the contivars had just chorogenic acid, with angustifolia in the lead. A further study is needed with an higher-sensitivity analysing equipment. Angustifolia showed much content of echinacoside, chorogenic acid and cynarin, and purpurea did caftaric acid. Much caftaric acid was detected in the plants cultivated on the volcanic ash soil at 200 meters above sea level, echinacoside in those grown on the nonvolcanic-ash soil at 200 meters above sea level, and chorogenic in those grown on the volcanic ash soil at 100 meters of altitude. In general, however, the plants grown on the nonvolcanic-ash soil at 200 meters above sea level tended to have a good level of ingredients. In sum, it was concluded to be economical to cultivate purpurea on the fields at the altitude of 200 to 300 meters in Jeju Island. It seems that Echinacea have value as new sightseeing resources if cultivated on a large scale for landscaping. It also can be used as the material for various products owing to its efficacious ingredients, and therefore developed into a new promising economic crop for the farmers of Jeju Island. It is worth a study on developing it into a substitute for the antibiotic additive to the fodder for the cattle. It can in part replace mandarine in overproduction and play a role as a buffer to the inevitable fluctuation in the acreage of growing winter-season vegetables, and thus contribute to enhance the stability of the farmers' income. It is expected that the research and development and the production of new Echinacea products would help activate the manufacturing industry and create job openings.