Description:FIELD OF TECHNOLOGY
The present invention relates to an innovative technology to address the emerging concern of fragrance &flavour industry as the industry is struggling to meet its raw material requirements. This has been due to declining interest of the primary growers, as they are not getting desired share of the value chain. This has also been impacting the quality of the product. To overcome this, the inventors of the present invention have developed a novel and inventive technology of growing the said crops under the fertile system comprising combination of hydroponic system and traditional method which results in higher crop yield. This technology has given an encouraging result with multi fold increase in crop productivity by enhancing resource utilization efficiency. This technology is such that it ensures sustainable supply of quality produce to flavour industry.

The process under the present invention comprises combination of traditional and sustainable non-traditional cultivation hydroponic system.

Hydroponic is soilless farming comprising use of nutrient solution for growing up of plants. In the process of present invention; planting material is developed in cocopeat which is known to have high water holding capacity; however, this causes poor air-water relationship, leading to low aeration within the medium, thus affecting the oxygen diffusion to the roots. This problem is resolved by the addition of coarser materials into cocopeat like perlite. Growing of the plant material in cocopeat culture media forms part of hydroponic method of cultivation as it is a soil less culture. Transplanting of this planting material as done in traditional method of cultivation in the selected sight which is developed in such a way so that it has got all the requirements of hydroponic method of cultivation and also comprises macro and micro climate of a green house.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Fragrance and flavour industry is expanding with a significant rate of around 5%. As the industry is growing and consumers are more quality conscious, there is a significant requirement of quality product of essential oil producing crops. On one hand the demand is increasing and on other hand the supply is decreasing due to continuously declining producer’s margin. Regardless of the decreasing producer’s margin, the industry is always paying higher price for procuring the quality raw material. There is a clear indication that if this situation persists in future, the flavour industry will be impacted adversely with worst phase of raw material shortage and narrowing margin. All these factors have forced the industry representatives for finding a permanent solution to address the issues. The issue can be addressed by finding improved and efficient means of cultivation for growing high quality essential oil bearing crops in higher yield. However, the capital cost and technical resources for technology development need to be invested by the industry. Once the technology is established the same can be disseminated to the growers.

Considering that the industry is engaged in developing better technologies for ensuring higher productivity and better quality produce of essential oil producing crops, this initiative ultimately leads to an economical production of the targeted product, which ensures long term sustainable profitability on their finished products.
The scented oil obtained from natural sources is also referred as Essential oil. An essential oil may be defined as a volatile perfumery material derived from a single source of vegetable or animal origin, which has been separated from the source by a physical or a chemical extraction process.
Global production of essential oil is 1,29,838 million tonnes (as per 2011 data), out of total more than 25% is being produced in India. With this India is enjoying the leading position in the essential oil sector.
Though in the present era research organizations and technical institutions engaged in damask rose & Jasmine research have developed and standardized the package and practices. The established package and practices of these indicate that these crops grown on a wide spacing of 1.5 x 1.5 meters; plant population ranges from around 3000-6400 plants/acre. As the economical produce of both the crops is flower, plant population and its canopy plays a direct role in determining the crop productivity. As per the standard and advanced varieties the raw flower production of both the crops ranges from 14-20qt/acre. With this productivity, The producers who are engaged in Damask rose and Jasmine production are producing in open field condition using traditional method are facing difficulty in ensuring profitability. Not only this, margin share of producer is either stagnated or it is declining. But the end user i.e. essential oil industries are bound to pay higher rate for procuring the required raw material.
The growers engaged in essential oil producing crops are struggling, which is forcing them to shift from their present crops to better remunerative crops. The fluctuating crop acreage under essential oil producing crop is an indication for the same. The major reason behind crop shift is the stagnating crop productivity and continuously increasing input cost, which is eating up the growers net unit area return.
The un-predictable supply, due to various reasons leads to a high volatile market price of the essential oil producing crops. The same is being recorded in the month of December 2014, when the market prices for jasmine flower at Madurai reaches as high as INR 2500/Kg. This price fluctuation not impacted much to those using the flower for aesthetic value creation but it has seriously impacted the essential oil industry. Under such a high price volatility scenario, the industry players are bound to think for a permanent solution.
To support the industry and grower engaged in production of essential oil, it is required to work on the technology for enhancing the unit area return of the essential oil producing crops. Considering that hydroponic system of growing crop may become a sustainable solution. It is only required to establish the crop production protocols and capital investment. The initial results of growing essential oil producing crops under hydroponics has given encouraging results with a potential of enhancing productivity of essential oil bearing crops by many folds.
EXISTING PRACTICE:
Before elaborating the new technology, it is required to understand the existing practices adopted for the production of essential oil bearing crops such as Damask rose & Jasmine and the likes.

COMMERCIAL CULTIVATION OF DAMASK ROSE:
LIGHT:
Cultivation of rose plantation is taken up in full sunlight, away from trees or hedges so that it gets sun shine at least during the whole forenoon. It is cultivated on levelled field, medium to high degree sloppy hills and terraces.
TEMPERATURE:
A mild temperate climate is best” suited for Rosa Damascena. Temperature ranging from 0 to 5°C for a period of about 15 days prior to start of blooming enhances the quantity as well as quality of flowers.
At the time of flowering, the temperature should be between 25 to 30°C and relative humidity above 60%. High air humidity above 60% and moderate temperature of 15- 20°C gives more flower yield. Rosa damascena is cultivated even in areas with high temperatures but flower yields are very low in comparison to those plants cultivated in temperate climatic conditions.
SOIL:
The roses flourish well at the foot hills. It withstands wide range of soil pH conditions from 6 to 8 and silty clay loam to sandy loam soils. Heavy clay soil is not suitable for roses. There should be soft muram below 45–60m layer of soil for a good plant growth. The plants do not thrive in saline sodic soils.
WATERING:
Irrigation is necessary in rose plantation at the frequency of 12-15 days during peak periods. However, when plants are established properly after two years, frequency of irrigation may be reduced. Proper drainage in the field is very essential to drain out the excessive rain water from the plantations.
FEEDING:
The quantity of fertilizers and manures are applied on soil test basis considering various factors like basic fertility of soil, organic content, soil texture, moisture supply, soil pH and the likes.
Farm yard manure@ 18-20 tonnes/hectare and 100-125 kg NPK (18:32:16) mixed fertilizer is applied at the time of transplanting of rooted cuttings into the pits. After two years, 160-200 kg nitrogen, 60-90 kg phosphorus and 40-60 kg potash per hectare per annum are needed in Rosa damascena plantation. It is a perennial, moreover soil exhausting crop which remains in the field for more than 10 years. Therefore, split application of fertilizer doses is suggested. Fertilizer application should be completed just after pruning and before the start of monsoon or rainy season of each year.
PROPAGATION:
Rosa Damascena is propagated through one year old stem cuttings. It is also propagated through the divisions of old plant, lateral sprouts with roots and seeds.
Stem cuttings are collected at the time of pruning in mid-October to end of December; 20 cm long, 0.75-1.50 cm thick cuttings are planted in nursery; 2/3 of the stem length is inserted into soil. IB A @ 200-250 ppm is given to induce rooting. These cuttings are ready after one year for transplanting into main field.
PLANTING AND TRANSPLANTING:
Soil should be free from weeds and other vegetation. If new land is taken for cultivation, wild bushes and perennial grasses should be cleared. Drainage and irrigation channels are to be made at the same time. Proper marking of land at optimum distance is done. 1.5 x 1.5 m2 spacing is sufficient for optimum growth of plants.
Prior to transplanting in the field, the planting site is cleared of bushes and pits for planting are dug at 1.5 x 1.5 m2 spacing. Pits of size 45 x 45 x 45 cm3 in good soil or 60 x 60 x 60 cm3 in poor soils are dug and pit soil is allowed to weather at least for one to two months before planting. The soil is refilled in the pit at the time of planting or a few days earlier to planting. Rooted stem cuttings are taken out from nursery and put in the pits. The soil is firmly pressed around the plant. While taking out plants from nursery, the lateral roots are disturbed as little as possible. It is useful to put 3-4 kg of farm-yard manure, 20-25 gm. NPK mixture {18:32:16) and 20 gm. aldrin powder in the pit at the time of planting.
The best time of transplanting rooted cuttings in the field is mid-November to mid-January. The nursery plants are taken out on a cloudy day and planted in the field. Rose plants can also be transplanted in the month of rainy season.
INTER-CULTURAL OPERATIONS:
It is required to keep the plants free of weeds after planting. Usually two to three times weeding and hoeing are required to be done during the first year. Thorough weeding and circle hoeing around each plant are followed after pruning every year during winter. Two times sickling during rainy season controls the seasonal weeds and grasses in rose plantation.
INTER-CROPPING:
There is little scope for inter-cropping or other crops in rose plantation. However, in early stage of development of new plantation, suitable inter-crops like pulses and vegetables are taken during first two years. The rose plantation after two years develop sufficient canopy leaving no space for inter-cropping. Moreover, rose is a sunshine loving plant which prefers neat and clean area and plenty of sunshine.
PRUNING:
Pruning is very important operation in Rosa damascena. It requires a dormant also referred as resting period before flowering. In temperate climatic conditions, the dormancy requirement is met naturally due to low winter temperature when plant goes under dormancy and sheds its leaves. In the ensuing springs, new shoots appear which give flower buds. In the region of sub-tropical climate, the rose plants are essentially pruned to induce artificial dormancy. The other purposes of pruning are to train plants into desired form, to keep• the desired size, to remove injured and diseased parts, to remove the terminal buds and change the growth habit to encourage bushy roses, to provide more horizontal expansion and finally production of more flower buds.
Tune, number and height of pruning are main factors for consideration. Before first flowering season of new plantation, simple tipping off (removal of terminal bud of vegetative shoots) or light pruning is sufficient in the month of December-January. During second year, plants should be pruned twice in a year, once in the month of August at 50 cm plant height and again in November-December at 75 cm plant height. Further pruning is done only once in a year• in November to December at one meter plant height. Excessive water shoots are checked, otherwise, size of bushes becomes unmanageable.
FLOWERING:
Summer Damask rose (Rosa damascena var. trigintipetala) flowers from early March to mid of April in North Iridiru\ plains, from bout 10th April to about 20th May in mid hills of Himachal Pradesh and early May to early June in Kashmir Valley. Exact flowering time depends upon prevailing temperature in the locality. Autumn Damask rose (Rosa damascenavar. bifera) also flowers during September to November in sub-tropical plains but yield of flowers is comparatively lower than the main flowering season. Sporadic flowering may continue throughout the year in some cases. The total period of flowering is about 25-35 days but major part of the yield (about 75%) is received within about 15 days of peak flowering period.
PLUCKING:
The flowers are harvested in the early hours of day when they just open. Plucking starts from about 4 ‘O’ clock in early morning and continues till all flowers are plucked. Flowers are plucked by hand being nipped of just below the calyx. On an average at about 2-3 kg flowers are plucked per hour manually. At the peak of the season production of flowers increases many fold and picking is continued till afternoon in order to gather all the flowers maturing on that day. The puckers collect the flowers in cotton or polythene bags and transfer to well airy, wooden baskets.
COMMERCIAL CULTIVATION OF JASMINE
PREPARATION OF FIELD:
Land with proper drainage, irrigation facilities and sunny location is essential. Pits of about 45 cm3 are dug at least one month before planting and exposed to sunlight. A few days before planting, pits are filled with 2 parts of farm yard manure hereinbefore and hereinafter referred as FYM and one part each of fresh earth and coarse sand.
PROPAGATION:
Jasmine is propagated by cuttings, layering, sucker, grafting, budding and tissue culture.

J. auriculatum Semi hard wood cuttings
J. grandiflorum Terminal cuttings
J. sambac Terminal and semi hardwood cuttings.

Growth regulators: Quick dipping (of the basal cut end) in IAA (or) IBA @ 1000 ppm for terminal cuttings and 2500 ppm for semi hard wood cuttings is done.
• Best rooting medium: - sand: vermiculite: moss at 1:1:1 ratio.
PLANT SPACING, DENSITY AND SEASON:
Species Spacing Density Season
J.auriculatum 1.5 x 1.5 m 4400 June to November
J. grandiflorum 2.0 x 1.5 m 3350 June to November
J. sambac 1.25 x 1.25 m 6400 June to November
TIME OF PLANTING:
The best time for planting in most parts of India is during the monsoon but one can plant jasmine almost round the year in climates as of Bangalore. Once planted, the jasmine remains in the field for 10-15 years.
PLANTING:
• Land with proper drainage, irrigation facilities and sunny location are essential.
• Pits of 45 cm3 are dug at least about one month before planting and exposed to sunlight.
• A few days before planting, pits are filled with 2 parts of FYM and one part each of fresh earth and coarse sand. Pits are to be watered to settle the mixture.
• Well rooted, healthy and strong plants are planted one in each pit.
NUTRITION:
• Jasmine responds to intensive manuring.
• Too much of manuring encourages vegetative growth and hampers quality and quantity of blooms.

Species Quantity (g/plant) Method
N P2O5 K2O
J.auriculatum 60 120 120 6 split doses at bimonthly intervals

J. grandiflorum 100 150 100 2 split doses
(1) June-July
(2) December – After pruning
J. sambac 60 120 120 2 split doses
(1) June-July
(2) November- after pruning

FOLIAR NUTRITION:
• Spraying of zinc about 0.25% and magnesium about 0.5% before flowering increases flower yield.

• For Fe deficiency, FeSO4at about 5g/lit is sprayed at monthly intervals until the chlorotic symptoms disappear.
IRRIGATION:
• Flooding once in a week or once in ten days depending on the soil and climatic conditions.
PRUNING:
Need for Pruning
• In jasmine, flowering habit is terminal and auxiliary. So increasing the number of shoots would increase the yield, for which pruning is essential. Pruning influences growth, flower bud initiation, differentiation and ultimately the flower production.

PRUNING PERIOD:
Species Time of pruning
J. auriculatum Last week of January
J. grandiflorum Last week of December
J. sambac Last week of November

Pruning height: 45-50 cm from the ground level.
WEEDING:
• Commonly done manually but is expensive.
• Chemical weed control is effective and economical.
• Spraying Oryzalin 1 or 2 applications is effective.
• Mulching also reduce weed population.

HARVESTING:
• Jasmine gives economic yield only from the third year and up to about 12-15 years and then the yield starts declining.
• The stage of harvest depends on the purpose of flowers to be harvested. For fresh flowers, fully developed unopened flower buds are picked in the early morning, while for extraction of concrete also referred as essential oil, only fully opened fresh picked flowers are required.
• Picking of flowers after about 11 a.m. considerably reduces the yield and quality of the concrete.
• Damage to flowers during harvest and transit will affect shelf life of fresh flowers and concrete recovery.
YIELD:
Species Flowers yield (kg/ha) Concrete recovery (%)
J. auriculatum • 4733-9152 • 0.28-0.36
J. sambac • 739-81229 • 0.14-0.19
J. grandiflorum • 4329-10144 • 0.25-0.32

GRADING:
• There are no standard grades available for jasmine.
• The flowers are graded according to the corolla tube length, bud size, shape and freshness.
PACKING:
• Harvested flower are given cold treatment before packing.
• Packing should be functional, economical and attractive besides being acceptable in markets. Corrugated cardboard boxes are good for distant market.
• Wholesalers pack flowers in bamboo baskets.
• They are packed so as to maintain some moisture and air circulation in the baskets.
• Water is sprinkled on the newspapers covering the inside of the basket.
• The top is covered with paper again and closed with a bamboo basket cover or gunny sack which is stitched at the edges.
PROPOSED SOLUTION/TECHNOLOGY:
Looking at all the parameters involved in traditional mode of cultivation as mentioned herein for jasmine and rose, the inventors of the present invention have proposed a solution for increasing unit area production by ensuring desired macro & micro climate for crops growth.
OBJECT OF THE PRESENT INVENTION
The first aspect of the present invention is to develop a combo method to enhance cultivation of essential oil producing crops.

Second aspect of the present invention is to increase unit area production by ensuring desired macro & micro climate for crops growth.

Third aspect of the present invention is to implement the said combo method for rose and jasmine.

Forth aspect of the present invention is to make the process advantageous over the traditional mode of cultivation and hydroponic individually.

Fifth aspect of the present invention is to develop a process that is based on traditional and hydroponic mode of cultivation.

Sixth aspect of the present invention is to reduce the consumption of water.

The main aspect of the invention is to keep cultivation of essential oil producing crops profitable and sustainable.

Before getting into the details of the invention, inventors of the present invention wish to say a few things on the subject matter. A very significant event in the world history of agriculture is the domestication of plants by mankind. Instead of depending on wild growth, it has been realized that the planting of seeds or cuttings allowed the propagation of the type of plants. Another important breakthrough resulted from the need to protect the domesticated plants from abiotic and biotic stress factors.

The choice of plants and cultivar is an important factor for determining the sustainability of non-traditional cultivations. While the selection process is complex, some of the main aspects have been simplified. The choice is based on a step-by-step approach preceded by a specific analysis aimed at understanding the demand and priorities. This approach is based on the awareness of available know-how and on the possibility of carrying out experimental activities; it is to be considered dynamic and therefore adaptable to the continuous evolution of social, economic and agronomic conditions.

There is lot of literature which indicates that the soilless culture techniques also known as “hydroponic” improve the nutritional conditions and nutritional problems which are not easily solved under open field conditions.

Soilless culture techniques were developed under glasshouses in order to overcome major agricultural problems, including nutrition, plant diseases and environmental pollution. It was later discovered to be an efficient water-saving tool. The development of a simple low-cost hydroponic system was the main challenge to enable soilless culture. Several attempts to design and implement soilless culture techniques were made and proved to be economically viable and environmentally safe. Water-use efficiency was thus greatly improved and the chemicals used for nutrition and pest and disease control reduced to a very low level.
From one of the project summary of California State Science Fair 2006 (project number S1611), it has been practically observed that the soil system is a better choice when “gardening inside”. The system showed better results in cost, maintenance, and growth compared to the hydroponics system. The experiment comprised plantation of germinated seedlings of lettuces and basil in soil that contained fertilizers and these plants were then measured, watered.

Similarly the hydroponics system was set-up from a kit called the water farm. This kit was assembled and purified water with the recommended nutrient solution was added to it. The pH of the nutrient solution was tested and adjusted. 5 lettuce seedling and 3 basil seedlings were planted in the water farm. After six weeks it was concluded that soil showed better results in terms of growth cost, maintenance compared to the hydroponics system at the level of “gardening inside”.
This dissuades and teaches to a person skilled in the art not to opt for the hydroponic route for plant cultivation.

However, despite dissuasions and non motivation from the prior art, inventors of the present invention have carried out research and development activity and have proved that hydroponics system is better for the cultivation of essential oil producing crops when implemented on the commercial scale which is contrary to the teachings from the prior art.

Data given herein in the description indicates that hydroponics system is better for the cultivation of essential oil producing crops when implemented on the commercial scale over the normal cultivation (soil farming). It is apparent from the observation that the crop under hydroponic condition is out-rightly superior over the normal cultivation in terms of number of primary branches, flower weight, Flower yield, oil recovery etc.

Since efforts to improve the quality of the soil and hence the product have been unsuccessful, other methods of increasing agricultural production, such as the use of alternative farming techniques, are proved to be more feasible. Hydroponics is a method of growing plants using mineral nutrient water instead of soil. In order to explain the science behind hydroponics, inventors of the present invention would like to discuss plant physiology and the nutrients a plant needs to survive.

On average, plants are made of 80-95% water. The rest of the plant material, otherwise known as dry matter, composes 5-20% of the plant. Of this dry matter, 90% is made of carbon, oxygen and hydrogen. Plants receive these essential elements from carbon dioxide and water. The plant must take up the other 10% of the nutrients and minerals (about 1.5% of the dry weight) from the soil as dissolved ions in the water. Currently, there are 16 elements identified by biologists that are essential to plant life. These include nitrogen (6% of dry weight), potassium (1.5%), calcium (1.0%), and magnesium (0.5%).

Table 1 shows the full list of essential elements and their percent concentration in the dry tissue of the plant.

Table 1: Percent Concentrations of Essential Nutrients in Dry Tissue of Plants:

Source: Resh, 1997
Element Symbol Concentration in dry tissue (%)
Hydrogen H 6
Carbon C 45
Oxygen 0 45
Macronutrients
Nitrogen N 1.5
Potassium K 1.0
Calcium Ca 0.5
Magnesium Mg 0.2
Phosphorus P 0.2
Sulphur S 0.1
Micronutrients
Chlorine Cl 0.01
Boron B 0.002
Iron Fe 0.01
Manganese Mn 0.005
Zinc Zn 0.002
Copper Cu 0.0006
Molybdenum Mo 0.00001

The process of ion absorption is not exactly understood; however, there are two main methods. The first method is passive where ions flow into the roots, usually driven by a concentration gradient. The second method is active where the plant has to expend energy to take in ions from the water. The plants obtain this energy from the process called “respiration”. This is important because if the plant roots do not obtain enough oxygen, they essentially starve to death. Packing the dirt too tightly, overwatering, or high temperatures, which lower the solubility of oxygen in water, may also lead to starvation. Therefore to maintain the said nutrient level it becomes mandatory to add the fertilizers in the soil in the traditional method of cultivation.

Hydroponics replaces the functions of soil in traditional farming. Soil is a combination of inorganic and organic material. The organic material is called humus and is very important in soil fertility because it acts as a reservoir of essential nutrients and minerals, especially nitrogen. There are four major functions of soil, which include acting as a reservoir for minerals and nutrients, supplying water to the plant, supporting the plant root system, and supplying the plant with oxygen. Hydroponics replaces soil by providing the plant with these needs. An inert medium is used to support the plant root system or the plant stem is simply supported by itself. Essential nutrients and minerals are readily dissolved in the water for plant uptake and oxygen issupplied using an air bubbler or having a large surface area to volume ratio for the nutrient solution.

HYDROPONICS VS. TRADITIONAL FARMING:
Hydroponic farming offers many advantages when compared to traditional farming. One of the main advantages is that crops are grown in places with barren or contaminated land. Hydroponically grown plants are also more resistant to water with a high salt content. Another advantage includes avoiding insects, animals, and diseases such as fungi already present in the growing medium. Labour intensive work such as tilling, cultivating, fumigation, and watering is not required for hydroponic farming.

Hydroponic systems are very efficient. In general, hydroponic plants only use one-tenth of the amount of water used by plants grown in soil because in traditional farming a majority of the water passes through the root layer quickly. The nutrient solution, required for hydroponic farming, only contains about 25% of the amount of essential elements found in solid fertilizers. Since plants do not have to compete for surrounding soil space for nutrient reserves, more plants are grown using less space in a hydroponic system. Spacing is only limited by the amount of available light. Plants also grow much faster and bigger in hydroponic systems. Therefore, hydroponic systems have higher yields per unit area when compared to traditional farming.

Once the system is ready to be used, the seeds need to mature and grow roots. This process is known as germination and requires the proper amount of humidity, airflow, and light. To begin the process, the seeds are planted in a substrate-based system. When the roots are long enough, they are transplanted to another bed where they will have more space to grow and develop until harvest.

Advantages associated with hydroponic over the soil farming are listed herein below:

• Hydroponics is a good way to grow plants if the soil is un-suitable for farming.

• Less water is used when using hydroponics because the water is recycled. Also, less water is lost through evaporation because the water is covered.

• Hydroponic plants survive with more salty water than soil plants.

• Hydroponic plants grow larger than soil plants because they receive all the nutrients they need.

• The right amount of nutrients is given to the plants without wasting fertilizer.

• Hydroponic plants grow faster than soil plants. This means there is a shorter harvest cycle, so more are harvested per year.

• More plants are grown in an area compared to soil farming.

• Hydroponic farming is easier to maintain and requires less work because the soil does not have to be tilled or weeds removed.

• Since the hydroponic system is elevated above the ground and protected, there are no soil based pests like insects and small animals.

Looking at the factors as mentioned here in above for both hydroponic and traditional method of cultivation individually, the inventors of the present invention have developed a sustainable alternative to traditional agriculture for essential oil producing crops such as Jasmine and Dumsakh rose and the likes, utilizing advanced hydroponic technologies in a controlled environment combining with a few factors of traditional method for best possible results. Inventors of the present invention after exhaustive research efforts have been able to combine features of both hydroponic and traditional farming techniques for essential oil bearing crops which when used individually don’t give desired results. Using combination of both synergize each other to give the desired set of results in respect of crop yield and crop quality.

Combination of controlled environment agriculture also known as Green House production with hydroponics in the present invention has increased the production of essential oil producing flowers such as Jasmine and Dumsakh rose and the likes remarkably. The present invention has eliminated all the soil borne pests and diseases.

Hydroponic combined with controlled environment for producing intended products greatly reduces the space requirement: 16 acres of conventional farming is grown on a 1/8 acre footprint. It requires 90% less water, 80% less nutrients, using no pesticides, fungicide or herbicides.

ADVANTAGES OF THE PRESENT INVENTION
Efficient utilization of Resources:
The proposed technology is ensuring efficient utilization of the resources used in production of essential oil producing crops. Installation of agriculture automation system ensures supply of water and nutrient as per the plant need. As the plants gets exactly what they need, it ensures better absorption and enhanced water and nutrient use efficiency. As the system is highly mechanized, it requires less skilled workers. In this system 2 skilled workers are managing an acre area. The planting geometry and the plant above the ground are further ensuring efficient utilization of photosynthetically active radiation hereinbefore and hereinafter referred as PAR.
Higher plant population:
Planting density is critical in any crop production system. It is directly linked with the unit area production. The only challenge is to manage impact of shading effect. The plant population in present technology of growing Damask rose and Jasmine is ranging from about 4000 to about 6500 plants/acre respectively. In the proposed technology the plant population is about 24000 plant/acre (6 plants/m2 area) for Damask rose and about 16000 plants/acre (4 plant/m2 area) for Jasmine. Higher planting density is ensuring better utilization of available resources and ultimately leads to better crop productivity.
Higher productivity:
Under normal growing condition the crop productivity of Damask rose is ranging from about 1.4-1.6 MT/acre. Whereas the productivity of Jasmine is ranging from about 3.2 to about 4.0 MT/acre. However in the proposed technology/system the productivity is reaching a level of 16 MT/acre which is about 10 times more for rose and more than 5 times for jasmine. The higher productivity is the outcome of the efficient utilization of the resources.
Enhanced produce quality
In the proposed system the crop is getting desired micro and macro climate, which results in enhanced quantity and quality. The analysis indicates that the oil content of the flower is significantly higher than the crop grown under normal condition. Higher oil recovery is directly linked with the revenue generation and profitability. It has also been observed that the oil composition also gets impacted under this technology. The study is under progress to understand the change in chemical composition of the oil produced under the proposed system of hydroponics.
Minimizing impact of climate change
Though the essential oil producing crops are hardy in nature, but the commercial cultivation of these crops require all the precautionary measures for plant protection. Under normal conditions plant protection is always a challenge. The growers, with their limited knowledge sometime they lose complete crops. In the proposed system, chances of insect and pest attack is minimized by preventing entry of pathogen in greenhouse and further by growing the plant on a raised bed of about 1.4 foot. In the proposed system on one hand entry is minimized by following preventive measures on other hand the better plant feeding helps in active physiological activity in plant, which enhances the plant’s immunity power.
Reduced chance of damage by pathogens
Agriculture is always on the risk from damage due to insect and pest attack. But in the proposed system, the inventors of the present invention are minimizing the risk by providing the desired growing condition for the crops. This system helps in minimizing the producer’s risk, which is the major concern for any grower. This system helps the producer to devote more energy on other crop production activities instead of focusing on the crop damage risk.
Harnessing maximum crop potential
Scientifically it is proved achieving genetically assure crop yield under normal condition. As per the concept, the crop yield is categorized in to three categories 1. Genetic potential yield 2. Attainable Yield 3.Real yield. The genetic potential is the highest potential for any crop variety to produce under normal condition. But most of the time crop suffers from different adverse conditions during the production cycle which ultimately leads to reduction in crop productivity. In the proposed system the crop is getting conducive growing environment. This system is providing opportunity to the growers to harness maximum potential of any essential oil producing crops.
Enhanced unit area return
In the proposed system the unit area return is increasing as the crop productivity is increasing about 10 times. Under this system the produce quality is also enhancing, which also fetches better price in the market. Unit area return in term of revenue is ranging from about 10000-14000/M2, which is generating around INR 50,000,00/acre. The benefit cost ratio under the proposed system is about 1:2.5, which is really an attractive proposition for any grower.
Mechanized system with least human intervention
The proposed system is mechanized to reduce the requirement of human intervention. The agriculture automation system is such that it is going to take care for the crop nutrition, drip irrigation, fogger and mister systems. The only requirement for the human worker is to manage the limited intercultural and harvesting operation. In this system about 60 man days/month is required to manage the crop production systems in one acre area.
Integration of two cultivation practices with calibrations
The proposed system is a combination of the two different system of crop cultivation. One is the normal cultivation of essential oil producing crops and the second is hydroponic cultivation of crops. In this system the normal growing crops such as Damask rose and Jasmine and the likes is tested under hydroponic system of crop cultivation with desired calibrations. This system has performed better over the existing system of growing the essential oil producing crops. The major calibrations done in this system are 1. Plant population; 2. Planting geometry; 3.Growing media; 4.Drainage system. These modifications have resulted in to better economic returns.
Conducive growing media
In the proposed system the growing media is shifted from the traditional soil to cocopeat. This growing media has provided more aeration and higher moisture holding capacity. This facilitates in reducing the shock due to moisture scarcity. In normal condition moisture scarcity is seriously impacting the crop physiology and ultimately the crop productivity and quality.
Rooftop Sprinkler: Crops physiological activity is directly related to the photosynthetically active radiation hereinbefore and hereinafter referred as PAR received at the crop canopy. Considering that in the proposed system, rooftop sprinklers are installed to clean the poly sheet, which helps in enhancing PAR to the crop canopy. This also helps in managing better macro climate inside the greenhouse. Sprinkler operation on the roof top of the greenhouse is helping in reflection of sun light, which ultimately helps in reducing the greenhouse temperature.

DETAILED DESCREPTION OF THE INVENTION:
The process comprises development of certified planting material. In planting material development the major difference is that in normal condition the planting material is grown under poly-bags filled with soil. But in this case the planting material is developed under cocopeat growing media. This has given a good response and the plants developed under this condition are healthier as compared to plant grown under soil media. It is also observed that the mortality percentage is much lower than the planting material grown under soil media. It has also been observed that the transplanting shock is lesser and the plant recovery is better under cocopeat grown planting material.

The identified site is developed as per the requirement of hydroponic system. As per the requirement, there should not be any water stagnation in growing beds. Any water stagnation in growing beds leads to development of harmful pathogens. Considering that, a slope of about 1.25% is created in east-west direction. Further to this, a drainage system is installed to manage the recommended leaching of about 25-30% of the total water supplied. The same is described under drainage system section. The land development also includes removal of stone, vegetation, any other un-wanted material. The levelling is done by using mechanical leveller attached with tractor.
To create ideal macro climate in the growing area, a greenhouse (top saw-toothed) is fabricated with a dimension of about 52 x 77 meters. The gutter height of the structure is about 4 meters and the total height of structure is about 6.5 meters. The bay size of the structure is about 9 meters and the top went is of about 1.5 meter with a manual opening facility. To provide a desired shading effect aluminate net is installed at gutter height. This aluminate net is motorized and it takes about 2-3 mins in rolling and unrolling. The extended height of about 6.5 meters is providing more air volume inside the greenhouse, which ultimately leads to better heating and cooling effect. Higher air volume works as a buffering agent for inside temperature variation. The greenhouse is covered by using IR-405 plastic sheet from Ginnerger. The properties of this sheet are: UV Stabilizer, anti-drift, multi-layer. This sheet helps in achieving desired macro climate inside the greenhouse.
Scientifically it is proved that the moving air is better than the stagnating air in any growing condition. Considering that air circulating fans are installed in greenhouse. This helps in maintaining uniform macro climate inside the greenhouse. It also helps in mobilizing the CO2 accumulation near the crop, which helps in enhancing the physiological activities of the crop. The air circulating fans with combination of top fogger is providing an enhanced cooling effect in greenhouse. This effect is due to small water particles from fogger. The small water particle from fogger is providing higher surface area of contact to absorb heat.
Growing media is the primary source of root contact and infection. Better the growing media, better the root growth. In this system the growing media used is cocopeat, which is having property of absorbing about 800 time of water by its volume. This media is an inert media without any nutrient. The electrical conductivity is about <1 ds and the pH is ranging from about 6-7. This facilitates better aeration around the growing root. To provide higher aeration, the growing media further mixed with perlite in a ratio of about 70:30%. The growing media is prepared by soaking in water for about 24 hrs, followed by leaching for about 24 hrs. Once it absorbs required water and expands it become friable with high aeration.
Perlite that is used along with cocopeat has got the composition of SiO2 73.6%, A1203 12.4%, Fe203 1.25%, MgO 0.15%, Na20, 2.99%, K20 4.18% which takes care of nutrients.

Soil is a home for all the beneficial as well as harmful microbial population. With continuous use of agro-chemicals population of beneficial microbes is decreasing and harmful microbes is increasing. The effect is quite apparent in the form of high incident of disease and insect damages.

This is avoided by eliminating root contact with soil. In this technology, inventors of the present invention are providing this ideal condition of avoiding direct contact of crop to soil by growing the crop in mapal trough. In this technology inventors of the present invention further avoided the crop contact with soil by putting the mapal trough on iron rod stand at a height of about 1.5 feet. The shape of iron stand is inverted “U” with rectangle shape. Two different thickness iron rods are used, one is of about 4 mm and other is of about 6 mm. All the inverted “U” rings are made-up in about 6 mm thickness. The rings are placed at a distance of one meter. On the ring there are about 6 horizontal iron rod, out of the about 6 rods, about 4 side rods are of about 4 mm and the 2 top rods are of about 6 mm. Mapal trough is placed on these stand. The length of stand is about 6 meters, the length is adjusted as per the row length of about 24 meters.

INTEGRATION OF TWO CULTIVATION PRACTICES WITH CALIBRATIONS
The proposed system is a combination of the two different system of crop cultivation. One is the normal cultivation of essential oil producing crops and the second is hydroponic cultivation of crops. In this system the normal growing crops such as Damask rose and Jasmine and the likes is tested under hydroponic system of crop cultivation with desired calibrations. This system has performed better over the existing system of growing the said essential oil producing crops. The major calibrations done in this system are 1. Plant population; 2.Planting geometry; 4.Growing media; 5.Drainage system. These modifications have resulted in to better economic returns.

Mapal trough is used as a growing bed. The dimension of mapal trough is about 17 x 40 x 20 cm. The mapal trough is fabricated in to a growing bed by following below mentioned process:

In a greenhouse, each bed is of a size of about 24 meter. The beds are placed with a spacing of about 70 cm. In one acre there are about 120 beds.
A drainage system is installed to manage the leaching water. Each growing bed is connected with a drainage pipe of about 60 mm thick PVC pipe. The pipes coming out of the bed is connected with a lateral drainage collection pipe of a same thickness. These lateral drainage collection pipes are finally connected to underground drainage pipe. The thickness of underground drainage pipe is of about 300 mm.

Apart from the internal drainage system, runoff water drainage system is also installed to manage runoff water from the greenhouse roof. The drainage system is designed to manage efficient discharge of heavy rain water.
Drip irrigation system is installed in the greenhouse. Total area of the greenhouse is divided in to two equal part of about 2000 m2 area. Each bed is installed with two lateral drip lines. The drip line used is Pressure non-compensatory and the drippers are with a water discharge capacity of about 1.6 lts/hr. The drippers are placed at a spacing of 17 cm. The complete system is connected with a disc filter for ensuring clean water supply in drip lines. Installation of drip irrigation is helping in creating the desired micro climate near the crop canopy.
Misters are installed on the growing beds. Misters are placed at a spacing of about 1 meter. The water droplet size of mister is ranging about 0-20 microns. This facilitates in reducing the temperature near to crop canopy. Low temperature coupled with desired Photosysnthetically Active Radiation (PAR) leads to better physiological activity and finally better yield.
Top fogger is installed for efficient management of macro climate. Foggers are installed at a spacing of about 1 meter. The operation time of these foggers are decided as per the climatic condition. If the outside temperature is high, it is required to operate the fogger for longer duration and for higher number of cycle.
Reverse osmosis system hereinbefore and hereinafter referred as RO system is installed to supply clean irrigation water. The capacity of RO system is about 5000 lts/Hr. Processed water from RO is used in fertigation and irrigation system.
Agriculture automation system is installed for managing the crop nutrition requirement. This system is capable of supplying plant nutrient as per the program developed. The nutrition cycle is also controlled by the system. The system is equipped with hydro-mixing technology for supplying uniform plant nutrient solution to the growing bed. Data recording system and weather station installation facility is available in this automation system.
Plant population and geometry is quite critical for achieving the targeted crop productivity. In this technology of the present invention, the plant population maintained is about 24000 plants/acre. The plants are placed with a spacing of about 17 cm from plant to plant. Each growing bed is planted with about 2 lines. Six plants per square meter is the targeted plant population. Zigzag planting geometry is adopted for better crop management and productivity.
To assess the performance of crop production system of the present invention, inventors have done different observations in greenhouse. The observations were recorded from randomly selected area of 1 m2. In each greenhouse inventors have selected 10 locations by thronging rectangle in the growing area. The study is done in terms of parameters like number of primary branches, flower weight, Flower yield, oil recovery etc.

Plant population is observed by counting the number of plant in 1 m2 area. The average of all the reading is considered as the average plant population/m2.
Plant height is observed for 5 plant/m2, which were randomly selected in the observation area. The average of all the observation is considered as the plant height. The height is observed from the base of the plant (above ground part) to the tip of last leaf.
Primary branches were observed by counting all the branches having secondary branches. The average of all the observation is mentioned in observation table.
The observation for flower/plant is taken during morning hours. In this observation, counted all the fully bloomed flowers and the buds about to flower during the day. The average of all the observation is being considered as number of flower/plant. This observation is also taken from 5 plants in 1 m2 area.
Number of flower/cluster was quite apparent in rose, however in case of jasmine it was bit difficult to observe. In case of Jasmine, we have counted all the plant appearing on secondary shoots. The average of all the observation was the final observation.
Weight of single flower is recorded by weighing 5 flowers/m2 in case of jasmine and all the flowers/m2 in case of rose. The average of observation was recorded as the final observation.
Crop yield were recorded by weighing the flower harvested in 1 m2 area. Yield in 1 m2 was extrapolated to acre by multiplying the observation by conversion factor. The average of all the observation was recorded as the final observation.
Oil percentage and oil yield were recorded after lab extraction of essential oil. It was done for all the 10 observations and the average of all the observation become the final yield.

It is apparent from the entire study that the crop under cultivation mode selected under the present invention that includes hydroponics with calibrations is out-rightly superior over the normal cultivation also referred as soil farming. It is observed that in case of Jasmine, number of primary branches are 85% higher over crop grown under normal condition. As the number of primary branches has increased, the flower/plant has increased by 220% higher over crop grown under normal condition. All other yield parameters like single flower weight, flower yield and oil yield were 40%, 266% and 174% higher over crop grown over normal condition.
In case of rose, number of primary branches was 85% higher over the crop grown under normal condition. It has also observed that the number of flower/plant were 50% higher under hydroponic condition over crop grown over normal condition. Not only the number of flower/plant was higher, it is also observed that the number of flower/cluster was 25% higher under hydroponic condition with calibration of the present invention. The yield parameters in hydroponic condition with calibration of the present invention were significantly superior over crop grown under normal condition. Single flower weight was 17% superior over crop grown under normal condition. Flower yield and oil recovery were about 294% and about 193% higher over crop grown under normal condition.
In an embodiment jasmine planting material is developed in cocopeat as growing media in a registered nursery in Coimbatore. To provide higher aeration, the growing media is further mixed with perlite in a ratio of about 70:30%.The growing media is prepared by soaking in water for about 24 hrs, followed by leaching for about 24 hrs. Once it absorbs required water and expands it becomes friable with high aeration. Developed jasmine planting material is then transplanted into identified site that is developed as per the requirement of hydroponic system that is also converted into green house. All the calibrations and the modifications as discussed in the detailed description are provided into the green house in order to maintain the micro and macro climate in the greenhouse. The calibrated parameters include drainage system, installation of gutter height, ginneger to act as UV Stabilizer, air circulating fans with combination of top fogger, mapal to avoid the contact of crop with soil, drip irrigation system, misters to facilitate in reducing the temperature, RO system to supply clean irrigation water, agriculture automation system to manage the crop nutrition requirement, Sprinkler operation on the roof top of the greenhouse to reflect sun light, which ultimately helps in reducing the greenhouse temperature. All these calibrated parameters have increased unit area production of jasmine and quality as well.
In another embodiment rose planting material is developed in cocopeat as growing media in a registered nursery. To provide higher aeration, the growing media is further mixed with perlite in a ratio of about 70:30%.The growing media is prepared by soaking in water for about 24 hrs, followed by leaching for about 24 hrs. Once it absorbs required water and expands it become friable with high aeration. Developed rose plant material is then transplanted into identified site that was developed as per the requirement of hydroponic system that is also converted into green house. All the calibrations and the modifications as discussed in the detailed description were provided into the green house in order to maintain the micro and macro climate in the green house. The calibrated parameters includes drainage system, installation of gutter height, ginneger to act as UV Stabilizer, air circulating fans with combination of top fogger, mapal to avoid the contact of crop with soil, drip irrigation system, misters to facilitate in reducing the temperature, RO system to supply clean irrigation water, agriculture automation system to manage the crop nutrition requirement, Sprinkler operation on the roof top of the greenhouse to reflect sun light, which ultimately helps in reducing the greenhouse temperature. All these calibrated parameters have increased unit area production of rose quality as well.
The present invention has been described in an illustrative manner, and it is to be understood that the terminology which has been used is intended to be in the nature of words of description rather than of limitation.
Obviously many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings. It is, therefore, to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims wherein reference numerals are merely for convenience and are not to be in any way limiting, the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described.

Claims:1. A method for cultivation of essential oil producing crops comprising:
a. development of planting material under soil less growing media in a nursery;
b. transplanting of said planting material into hydroponic system equipped with calibrated parameters.
2. The method of cultivation according to claim 1 wherein soil less growing media is cocopeat.
3. The method of cultivation according to claim 2 wherein the said growing media is blended with perlite.
4. The method of cultivation according to claim 1 wherein the calibrated parameters are:
a. drainage system is installed to manage the recommended leaching of about 25 to about30% of the total water supplied and also to avoid the stagnation of the water;
b. fabrication of greenhouse to maintain the macro climate in the growing media;
c. installation of aluminate net for shading effect;
d. covering the green house with ginnegerpoly-sheet to act as UV Stabilizer, anti-drift, multi-layer ;
e. installation of air circulating fans with combination of top fogger in the green house to keep the air moving and maintaining uniform macro climate inside the greenhouse and also to mobilize the CO2 accumulation near the crop;
f. growing in mapaltrough to avoid directcontact of growing media and root to avoid pathogens contamination;
g. installation of drip irrigation system to create micro climate of growing media such as cocopeat temperature, moisture content, aeration;
h. installation of misters to facilitate to develop micro-climate near the crop canopy;
i. installation of RO system to supply contamination free irrigation water for accurate crop nutrition;
j. installation of agriculture automation system to manage the crop nutrition requirement;
k. installation of Sprinkler operation on the roof top of the greenhouse to reflect sun light.
5. Essential oil producing crops as claimed in claim 1 are rose and jasmine.