Determination of physico-mechanical properties of mint (mentha) plant for mechanical harvesting

Mint is the name given to herbaceous plants belonging to the Lamiacea family, which is among the medicinal aromatic plants. In Turkey, the mint plant is cultivated and commercially grown in the Aegean, Mediterranean and Marmara regions. Harvest time in mint is the period when the plant begins to bloom. The aim of the study is to minimize the negativities that may occur in the harvest and threshing process, to contribute to the studies to increase plant yield and quality, and to determine the parameters that may be required for machine design for mint plant. In this study, the physico-mechanical properties of the mint plant were determined for the mechanical harvest. In this study, mints reaching harvest maturity were harvested 5-10 cm from the soil by hand and with the help of pruning shears. After, some physico-mechanical properties such as dimensions (length, width, weight, diameter), breaking force of leaves from stem, projection area, leaf/stem ratio, amount of essential oil were determined. In the study, 13 mint varieties and 4 clones obtained from these varieties were used. Samples were taken from each mint plant. The sizes of the selected mint species were measured and recorded with the help of meters, calipers and precision scales. A biological test device was used to determine the mechanical properties of the plants in three different regions. In addition, the apparatus of the biological test device was changed and the breaking strength of the leaves from the stem was determined. It was determined that the highest value for the cutting force of the mint plant was the a zone of Multimentha species with an average of 71.17 N, the lowest value was the c zone of the Maracco Mentha Spicata species with an average of 6.76 N. According to the results of the experiment, the physico-mechanical properties of the mint plant examined in different species were found to be statistically significant at the P<0.05 level and letter grouping was made according to the importance level.