| Abstract
| - The productive potential of two different ecotypes of Rosmarinus officinalis (Cevoli and Lunigiana)cultivated in the littoral area near Pisa (northern Tuscany, Italy) and the differences in the yield andcomposition of the essential oils of leaves, flowers, and stems obtained from different positions ofthe plants were used to characterize the two ecotypes. The Cevoli ecotype plant produced the highestyield of dry matter (221 g plant-1) in comparison to the Lunigiana ecotype (72 g plant-1). There weresignificant differences in dry matter production of different organs of both ecotypes. The essential oilcontents of Cevoli and Lunigiana ecotypes were similar. In contrast, the oil contents of the differentplant parts showed marked differences. The apical part of the plant and the leaves gave the highestessential oil yields. The major difference between the oils of the two ecotypes consisted in the 1,8-cineole contents (6.6 and 37.9% in Cevoli and Lunigiana, respectively). The Cevoli ecotype wasdetermined to be the most suitable for essential oil extraction because it was characterized by apreponderance of flowers and leaves in the apical portion. The Cevoli ecotype could be classifitedas an α-pinene chemotype, whereas Lunigiana is a 1,8-cineole chemotype. Keywords: Rosmarinus officinalis (L.); ecotypes; yield; chemical composition; essential oil
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