Botanical Names
Cymbopogon citratus (DC.) Stapf
Common Names
| Malaysia | Sereh, serai, serai dapur. |
| English | Lemongrass, West Indian lemongrass. |
| Indonesia | Serai dapur, sereh, bubu. |
| Thailand | Cha khrai, khrai, soet-kroei. |
| Philippines | Tanglad, salai, balioko. |
| Cambodia | Slek krey sabou. |
| Laos | Si khai, sing khai. |
| Myanmar | Sabalin. |
| Vietnam | Sar chanh. |
Family
Graminae
Introduction
‘Serai makan’ is reported to be native to Sri Lanka. It is widely grown in the tropics and this includes Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Tanzania, Brazil, Guatemala and even China. In Malaysia, ‘serai makan’ is normally planted in kitchen gardens mainly for its stem which are commonly used in cooking.[1]
Morphological Features
‘Serai makan’ has very strong aromatic leaves and stems. The plant is grown in clumps, and each clump has 20-30 stems. The stems are whitish pink or red. The leaves are very dense, greenish and have a very rough surface. The leaves are are 60-100 cm long and 1.0-1.5 cm wide.[1]
Medicinal Properties and Usage
In Malaysia, the stem is traditionally used as a flavouring agent in rice, curry and soup preparations. It has antiseptic, sedative properties. It is normally used to treat fever, rheumatism and digestive problem. The leaves and stems are also used in herbal bath preparations especially for the afterbirth treatments. In some countries, the leaves are used in the production of essential oils. The oils extracted are brownish in colour with strong lime or lemon smell. The main component of the oils is citral (65-85%). Other compounds include linalol, geraniol, citronellal, citronellol, farnesol, farnesal, limonene and nerol. The oils obtained from ‘serai makan’ are normally used in soap, foam bath, shampoo and cosmetics. The citral and ionones isolated from the oil are normally used in the production of perfumeries, cosmetics and flavouring agent for food. Ionones are used in the production of other compounds that includes vitamin A.[1][2][3][4][5][6]
Soil Suitability and Climatic Requirement
‘Serai makan’ can be planted on most soil types except for heavy clay and under waterlogged conditions. It is best grown on sandy loam soil with high organic matter content. ‘Serai makan’ is well adapted to tropical climate and needs an evenly distributed rainfall through out the growth period. The optimum monthly rainfall is 250–300 mm. The plant requires full sunlight for optimum growth.[1]
Field Preparation
Land Preparation
‘Serai makan’ needs proper land preparation for good control of weeds and crop establishment. This includes ploughing using disc plough and disc harrow. If necessary, Ground Magnesium Limestone (GML) should be applied at least 2 weeks before ploughing to increase the pH to 5–6. Pre-germination herbicide has to be applied prior to planting to avoid early weed establishments.[1]
Production of Planting Materials
The rooted seedlings stems are used as the source of planting materials. These rooted tillers are collected from the mature plants of about 8-9 months in the fields. Each clump can produce 20-30 good and vigorous seedlings. The leaves are cut leaving the rooted stems to about 20-25 cm long.[1]
Field Planting
One or two rooted stems are planted in each planting hole. The recommended spacing is 1.0 m between rows and 0.5 m within a row. This will give the population density of about 20,000 clumps/ha.[1]
Field Maintenance
Fertilisation
The recommended fertiliser for ‘serai makan’ on alluvial soil is the compound N:P:K (15:15:15) at the rate of 400 kg/ha. For the main crop, it is split into three applications and given at 1st, 3rd and 5th months after planting. The rate is 100 kg/ha for the 1st month followed by 150 kg/ha for the 3rd and 5th month after planting. For the ratoon crop, the fertiliser is given at the 1st and 3rd month after the last harvest at the rate of 150 kg/ha.[1]
Weed Control
Good land preparation is very important for the early control of weeds. During the early crop growth, weeds can be controlled by practicing inter row cultivation. Manual weeding and careful use of contact herbicides such is practised to control weeds at later crop growth stages.[1]
Water Management
‘Serai makan’ is relatively resistant to droughts and dry weather conditions. However for good crop establishment and initial crop growth, planting should be planned to coincide with the start of the rainy season.[1]
Pest and Disease Control
Generally, there are no serious pests and diseases in the commercial production of ‘serai makan’.[1]
Harvesting
For fresh market, ‘serai makan’ is harvested at 6-8 months after field planting. This is done by pulling out the whole clump by using a hoe. The leaves and roots are removed and leaving the stem (together with the leaf sheath) measuring about 15–20 cm long. The estimated yield of fresh ‘serai makan’ is 16–20 t/ha. If the crops are harvested for essential oil extraction, the leaves are harvested to the height of about 10 cm from the ground by a sharp knife. The clumps are left to grow for the next harvest that is 3-4 months after the last harvest. The yield of fresh leaves from each harvest is 12-15 t/ha. The potential yield a year (three harvests) is 36-45 t/ha. A new crop has to be planted after 4–5 years.[1]
Postharvest Handling
For fresh market, harvested stems are cleaned from dried leaf sheath before being tied into bundles of about 10 cm in diameter. Leaves harvested for essential oil production are left to wilt for 1-2 days before distillation. The yield of essential oil extracted from ‘serai makan’ is 0.3-0.4% of the leaf fresh weight. The estimated yield per hectare per year is 96−120 kg for the first year and 144-180 kg for the subsequent years.[1]
Estimated Cost Of Production
The total cost of production for the first year is RM9,800. The cost for the second and subsequent years are RM7,700. The main components are the planting materials, other agricultural inputs and labour. The estimated cost of production for fresh produce is RM0.55/kg for the first year and RM0.4/kg for the subsequent years. The production cost was estimated based on the cost of current inputs during writing of this article.[1]
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References
- Abdul Rahman Azmil, I. (2005). Serai makan (Cymbopogen citratus). In: Penanaman tumbuhan ubatan & beraroma. (Musa, Y., Muhammad Ghawas, M. and Mansor, P., ed.). Serdang: MARDI, pp 90-94.
- Anon. (1988). Lemongrass. In: Essential oils ’88. Paper presented in Regional Worshop/Seminar on Essential Oils, Bangkok, Thailand 1988. pp 11-14. Organiser: Thailand Institute of Scientific and Technical Research.
- Anon. 2002. Compendium of Medicinal Plants Used in Malaysia (Vol. 1) Pg 238, Kuala Lumpur : HMRC-IMR
- Kamarudin Mat-Salleh and Latiff, A. (editor). 2002. Tumbuhan Ubatan Malaysia. Pg. 617, Bangi : UKM
- Musa, Y. Azimah, K. and Zaharah, H. 2009. Tumbuhan Ubatan Popular Malaysia. Pg 85, Serdang : MARDI
- Wiart, C. 2002. Medicinal Plants of South East Asia. Pg 336, Kuala Lumpur : Pearson Malaysia Sdn Bhd
