Essential Oil Quality of Lavender Grown Outside Its Native Distribution Range: A Study from Serbia

The aim of this study was to test the quality (physicochemical and sensory odor properties) bioactivity (antimicrobial antioxidant activities) essential oils (EO) obtained from most frequently cultivated lavender lavandin varieties in Serbia, whose cultivation areas were previously reserved for warmer climates, outside agroecological region Serbia. Seven EO true lavenders (L. angustifolia Mill. cultivars: ‘Hidcote blue’, ‘Munstead’, ‘Primorska’), Croatian indigenous cultivar × intermedia ‘Budrovka’), ‘Grosso’ one undetermined sample (Lavandula sp.) showed compliance with standard requirements composition (contents linalool 23.9–30.2% 28.9–36.9%, linalyl acetate 22.2–32.2% 6.9–20.7% samples, respectively). All characterized as pleasant, a floral aroma prominent odor. Samples exhibited high antimicrobial activities (3.5–14.2 µL mL−1 MIC MBC values) against important Gram-positive (B. cereus L. monocytogenes) Gram-negative bacteria (E. coli) yeasts (C. albicans), capacity (IC50 values 0.23–0.59 µg AAE EO). This preliminary research on EOs reveals potential species future medicinal aromatic plant production further diversification agriculture area.