A new and distinct hybrid plant named `Himalaya` (Mentha arvensis) characterized by its higher yield of oil which is rich in menthol, improved regeneration potential, vigorous growth, deep green broad thick leaves, pinkish white flowers and tolerance to rust such as alternaria leaf blight, corynespora leaf spot and powdery mildew.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention relates to a new plant variety namely Mentha arvensis 
`Himalaya`. 
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention relates to a new and distinct variety of Mentha 
arvensis, a member of the mint (Mentha) genus, which is a hybrid between 
CIMAP/MAH-9 (cv. Gomti) and CIMAP/HY-77 (cv. Kalka). The commercial 
cultivation of Mentha arvensis is wide-spread in tropical and subtropical 
climates and its oil is produced and traded in larger quantities than any 
of the other mint oils. The crude Mentha arvensis oil is rarely employed 
in flavoring and is used as a source of natural menthol and dementholized 
oil. Menthol's refreshing aroma and cooling action along with its 
stimulant and antiseptic qualities have led to its wide-spread use for 
medicinal purposes in pharmaceutical industries and cosmetics. The oil and 
its derivatives also find extensive use in flavoring confectionery and 
cigarettes. In spite of the limitations of Mentha arvensis genotypes being 
sub-fertile in nature, there are no cross-incompatible barriers and, 
therefore, the practical feasibility exists for combining potentials of 
oil yield and its quality, and disease resistance by crossing prospective 
parental genotypes involving sexual hybridization in the breeding program. 
The genotype CIMAP/MAS-92-1 (Himalaya) evolved in this invention 
represents such an improvement combining higher oil yield and tolerance to 
the common diseases. This offers the growers an improved high yielding, 
disease tolerant variety which can be commercially cultivated to obtain 
higher yield of menthol rich oil. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention provides a new and distinct hybrid plant named 
`Himalaya` of Mentha arvensis characterized by its higher yield of oil 
which is rich in menthol; improved regeneration potential; tolerance to 
rust, alternaria leaf blight, corynespora leaf spot, and powdery mildew; 
vigorous growth; deep green broad thick leaves; and pinkish white flowers. 
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
A new and distinct hybrid plant named `Himalaya` of Mentha arvensis having 
the following combination of characters: 
(a) deep green foliage with broad, thick and leathery leaves, and pinkish 
white flowers; 
(b) regeneration potential in second harvest; 
(c) resistance to leaf rust and alternaria leaf spot and toleration to 
corynespora leaf spot and powdery mildew; 
(d) RAPD profile for PCR amplified DNA segment using twelve primers 
distinct from other existing varieties known to applicants, and 
(e) high oil yield under different environments. 
The new variety of this invention is a Japanese mint genotype, named 
`Himalaya` which was created in a planned breeding program conducted by us 
at Central Institute of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (CIMAP), Lucknow, 
India with an aim to develop a hybrid clone of Mentha arvensis combining 
the property of regenerability after first harvest of the herbage of the 
genotype CIMAP/MAH-9 (cv. Gomti) and tolerance to leaf spot and rust 
diseases of the genotype CIMAP/HY-77 (cv. Kalka). For this purpose the two 
genotypes were grown in alternate rows in a field plot in July 1991 at 
Lucknow, India facilitating pollination of CIMAP/MAH-9 flowers with 
CIMAP/HY-77 pollen. The seeds borne on CIMAP/MAH-9 were collected in 
October 1991 and were sown in pots under glasshouse conditions in December 
1991. The resultant seedlings were space planted in the field at Lucknow 
in January 1992. Based on the superior performance for vigorous growth 
habit, oil yield and freedom from diseases, the plant of this invention 
(clone CIMAP/MAS-92-1) was selected for further observation and 
evaluation. 
Considering the superior characteristics like excellent vigor, enhanced 
yield, regeneration potential and freedom from common diseases, it was 
asexually reproduced through stolons (suckers) to maintain clonal purity. 
The selected clone CIMAP/MAS-92-1 was grown in 3 meter rows along with its 
parents (cvs. Gomti and Kalka) for two consecutive years following uniform 
cultural practices to study oil yield and disease tolerance. The clone 
CIMAP/MAS-92-1 maintained its virogous growth, enhanced oil yield and 
tolerance to rust, alternaria leaf blight, corynespora leaf spot and 
powdery mildew. 
This clone (CIMAP/MAS-92-1) was vegetatively propagated and grown in a 
replicated field trial (plot size 9 m.sup.2, 3 replications) along with 
other promising genotypes and cvs. Gomti, Kalka at Lucknow, India during 
1995 to study oil yield and quality over two harvests of the herbage. The 
genotype proved significantly superior over both parental cultivars in 
terms of oil yield (231 kg/ha oil). The quality of essential oil in terms 
of menthol content (79%) falls between the range of that of parents. 
In the subsequent year (1996), the genotype (CIMAP/MAS-92-1 ).sub.2 was 
evaluated in a replicated field trial (plot size 25 m.sup.2, 3 
replications) along with parents and another commercial cultivar 
(Shivalik) over two harvests of the herbage at two locations (Lucknow and 
Pantnagar) to study oil yield, quality and natural disease incidence. The 
clone (CIMAP/MAS-92-1) proved significantly superior over its parents and 
local check in both the harvests by yielding 444 kg/ha oil at Lucknow and 
284 kg/ha oil at Pantnagar. The quality of the essential oil as reflected 
in terms of menthol content was significantly superior to the parent cv. 
Gomti at both locations. Like the cv. Kalka, the genotype CIMAP/MAS-92-1 
was found to be free from the common diseases as compared to cv. Gomti and 
cv. Shivalik both at Lucknow and Pantnagar, India. 
Evidence of uniformity and stability 
The genotype CIMAP/MAS-92-1 has remained stable and uniform for its 
morphological characters and showed consistency in performance for various 
oil yield and quality attributes during its evaluation and vegetative 
multiplication since 1992. 
Type and frequency of variants during reproduction and multiplication and 
identification of the variant: 
A single variant differing only in colour of the foliage (yellowish green) 
from normal population of CIMAP/MAS-92-1 with deep green foliage was 
identified in sucker production block through vegetative multiplication in 
a population of 800 plants covering an area of 130 square meter in 1993. 
The frequency of the occurrence of the variant was 0.12%. No variant has 
been recovered in much larger multiplication, testing and experimental 
plots screened carefully in 1994, 1995, 1996 cropping seasons.