CARATTERIZZAZIONE DI TIPI DI “ANETO” COLTIVATI IN AMBIENTE MEDITERRANEO

Dill (Anethum graveolens L.) is an annual containing relevant amounts (2-4%) of essential oil, easily obtained through steam distillation of the whole aerial part or of the seeds alone. In Sicily, true dill is not present as wild plant; on the contrary, another Umbelliferae plant, Ridolfia segetum Moris., is largely widespread. The rather limited available literature is mostly devoted to the study of some botanical aspects or, at most, to chemical and analytical characterization of its leaves and flowers. Although at a deep examination the conformation of fruits is rather different between the two species, inside the inland Sicily the two genotypes, both referred to with the same dialectal denomination (anitu), are often misunderstood and popular tradition tributes to them the same medicinal and herbal uses. This work was carried out to give a further contribution to the differentiation of the two genotypes both from the morphological and productive point of view and in relation to the chemical and analytical composition of the fruits (seeds). Our work showed that Anethum generally has a lower number of umbrellas per plant than Ridolfia, even if bigger and bearing a higher number of seeds. Ridolfia showed a higher content of alpha-phellandrene (45%) and a lower one of beta-phellandrene and limonene, reaching together 12.9%, vs 70%, that in Anethum is represented by limonene only