rosa damascena

Damask rose is one of the most valuable and famous medicinal plants worldwide. Its essential oil, rose water, and dried flower buds are exported. Essential oil can be used in the perfumery, cosmetic, and therapeutic industries and is widely used in depression treatment and traditional medicine. In the northwest of the country, in the provinces of East Azarbaijan, West Azarbaijan, Ardabil, Zanjan, and Hamedan, the damask rose is known as Qizil Gul. It has a special place in the lives of the region's people. 10% of the cultivated area of this product in the country is allocated to East Azerbaijan. More than 60% of it is produced in Osko City. Due to the high added value and economic profitability of the rose, it is recommended to develop the cultivation of native varieties of rose in East Azerbaijan province. Also, investing in processing industries leads to new job creation. In addition, rose cultivation with native varieties protects and controls floods. It also prevents soil erosion and preserves and strengthens medicinal and rangeland biodiversity.

Sustainable agriculture requires identification and development of scientific methods that have an important role in optimizing water use, employment and income, community health, and non-oil exports. Significant economical and therapeutic value, market demand and high processing level of medical plants have caused the daily increasing growth of these plants around the world. Considering the climatic and geographical conditions in Iran, the development of these crops, especially in arid areas and semi-arid has doubled. Therefore, in the present study, climatic, topographic and socioeconomic criteria were selected as effective measures in the cultivation of Rosa Damascena and were weighed using the network analysis process and then the ArcGIS was used to digitize and combine the layers. After the formation of the regional spatial database, descriptive information of the maps was added, weighted overlapping in the GIS environment, and finally zoning the areas susceptible to cultivating Rosa Damascena. The results showed that three factors including annual rainfall, altitude, and mean annual temperature had maximum impact and slope parameter had the least impact on the quality and quantity of Rosa Damascena. Moreover, the zoning map showed that 38 percent of northern parts, 15.6 percent of central pats and 11 percent of western parts of the province, have the most suitable sites for Rosa Damascena cultivation.