Abstract
Previous published literatures have been established the impact of selenium application in a trace amount on yield and active constituents of basil plants. In the current study, the effect of high doses of selenium application on growth of Greek basil Ocimum basilicum var. minimum growth and its essential oil compounds was investigated. Obtained result exhibited that the foliar application with (0, 40, 80, 120, 160) mg/L of selenium reduced the plants growth parameters and plant content of phytopigments and primary metabolites such as carbohydrates, protein, and proline. Refractive index of essential oil diminished post selenium application, while, specific gravity increased at 160 mg/L. Selenium application also caused alteration in the secondary metabolites profile. A reduction was obtained in the volatile compounds of essential oil such as Linalool, Eugenol and Methyleugenol with selenium treatment. On the other hand, unsaturated fatty acids such as Linolenic acid and phytosterols such as Campesterol, Stigmasterol and beta-Sitosterol increased with applicated selenium concentration.