Abstract :
The experiment was conducted to study the phenology, growth, and reproductive behavior of Calendula officinalis under field conditions. Seeds were sown in the first week of December. In phenological studies, vegetative growth was undertaken up to March; flowering (anthesis) initiated simultaneously in the month of February and continued till mid-April; fruiting and seed maturation also occurred simultaneously from mid-April to early May and death/senescence was observed from early May onwards. Growth attributes viz., plant height, basal stem diameter, the number of leaves plant-1, leaf biomass, stem and branches biomass, flowers, and fruits biomass and root biomass studied increased with the advancement of growth stages (vegetative, flowering, and maturity stage) under field conditions. However, the root/ shoot ratio decreased with the advancement of the growth stage. Reproductive behavior such as number of flower heads plant-1, number of seeds head-1, seeds output (numbers per plant), seed yield (g/plant), germination of seeds produced, and reproductive capacity was observed as 51, 40.3, 2055.7, 6.1, 86.67, and 1783.02 at maturity stage in field conditions.
Keyword :
Calendula officinalis, growth, yield parameters, reproductive capacity