THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN YIELD AND QUALITY INDICATORS THROUGH SELECTION OF TETRAPLOID FORMS OF CHAMOMILE WITH HIGH PRODUCTIVITY INDICATORS

Abstract

Chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla L.) is a well-known medicinal plant that has great economic and medicinal value. Despite its significant potential, there are currently no commercially available varieties specifically adapted to low-intensity farming systems. The aim of this study was to use a genetically improved population in low-intensity conditions. The cultivation of tetraploid chamomile varieties Perlyna Lisostepu and Zloty Lan in the conditions of the Right-Bank Forest-Steppe of Ukraine during the research period (2018–2025) was studied. During the years of experimental research on chamomile varieties, the selection process was studied, which was aimed at specific commercial traits of chamomile, which contributed to improving plant height, number of leaves, shoots and inflorescence morphology. It was found that the studied varieties of chamomile had quite high indices, the essential oil content remained stable in both populations (0.78%) in the Perlyna Lisostepu variety and lower in the Złoty Łan variety (0.59%). The realized heritability values exceeded 0.5 for all traits, confirming strong genetic control. The breeding population showed significant observed improvements compared to the initial population, in particular, the dry weight of 1000 seeds increased to 87.06%, the α-bisabolol content to 36.80%, and the chamazulene content to 22.03%. Overall, these results demonstrate that traditional breeding, when effectively applied to local resources, can improve both agronomic productivity and essential oil profile. The newly created breeding population provides a solid basis for the future development of varieties adapted to the global temperature fluctuations of sustainable farming systems. Although the total essential oil content did not differ significantly, a noticeable increase, especially of α-bisabolol, depended on the variety and environmental conditions. It has been proven that the main direction of use of chamomile raw materials remains the pharmaceutical industry, which is focused on the processing of medicinal plant raw materials in accordance with European standards for qualitative and quantitative indicators.