Muscat Cultivation of roses is one of the treasures of the Green Mountain in the Sultanate of Oman, and it is still one of the most important sources of livelihood for the residents of that region, who practiced the secret of distilling flowers and extracting their pure and fresh water, which almost no home in the Sultanate is completely free of.
Al Jabal Al Akhdar, located in the interior region of the Sultanate of Oman, is considered a tourist attraction in the summer due to its beautiful nature and temperate climate. It is located at an altitude of 2300 meters above sea level, and is characterized by a Mediterranean climate, where temperatures in the winter drop to less than zero. The highest temperature in the summer is 22 degrees Celsius.
The rose harvest season in the Green Mountain begins at the beginning of March and ends in May of each year. Tourists go to the Green Mountain during the rose harvest season to enjoy its beauty, and learn about the traditional and modern methods used in the manufacture of rose products.
mountain rose farm
In an interview with Al-Jazeera Net, Ahmed bin Abdullah Al-Saqri, owner of the rose water distillation plant in the Jabal Al-Akhdar region, believes that his love for the craft long ago pushed him to develop it, noting that the Rose Al-Jabal farm is the largest farm in the region with an area of 8,000 square meters, and produces Approximately one ton of roses annually, at a time when he buys about 1.5 tons from neighboring farms in the mountain.
Regarding the modern methods used in the distillation of roses, Al-Saqri said that the Jabal Al-Akhdar Rose Factory project is an investment project with economic and tourism dimensions.
He added that in the beginning, traditional methods were used to extract rose water and oil, indicating that he intends to raise the quantity of roses each season to reach between 5 and 10 tons.
modern ways
Ahmed Al-Saqri explains the components of the modern device and how it works, saying, “The device specializes in distilling rose water and oil in particular, and aromatic plants in general, and the device has a capacity of approximately 200 kilograms of roses.”
The device consists of 3 parts, which are the boiler, and the temperature in it reaches 100 degrees Celsius, and the raw roses are placed in it. The rose water turns into steam that rises in tubes that reach the second part of the device called the “condenser” and it works at a very low temperature, then the last part, in which the oil is automatically separated from the water, and the production takes about 5 hours and depends on the quantity of roses, and the modern method saves time Effort and product quality are guaranteed.
Speaking about rose products, Al-Saqri explains the difference between the production of rose water and rose oil, saying, “There are specific standards for the production of rose water and oil, and these standards are similar, except that the production of rose oil requires large quantities of roses, producing 12 grams of rose oil requires a ton of roses. While it is possible to produce between one thousand and two thousand liters of rose water using the same amount, the price of 12 grams of rose oil is about 350 Omani riyals (about $ 910).
The cultivation of roses and the manufacture of its products is one of the ancient crafts in the Sultanate of Oman, and Al-Saqri indicates that there are efforts to expand the areas of agricultural land devoted to the cultivation of roses, and there are also efforts to transfer the skills used in the manufacture of rose products to future generations, as the mountain rose factory opens its doors to tourists to learn about Various industries of roses and manufacturing methods.
/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/prisa/7PSK4DAZ5VHJFD4KXKSUZFTQ5Y.jpg)
