Annals of Horticulture

Efforts were made to study the effect of integrated nutrient management on the growth and flowering of marigold. Out often treatments taken for this study viz. T₁, (control), T₂ (100% recommended dose) of NPK (100 Kg N, 100 Kg P₂O₅ and 100 Kg K₂O) + 100% recommended dose of FYM (160 q ha⁻¹), T₃ (100% recommended dose of NPK + 100% recommended dose of vermicompost (130 q ha⁻¹)), T₄ (100% recommended dose of NPK + 100% recommended dose of Azatobacter (5Kg ha⁻¹)), T₅ (75% recommended dose of NPK (75 Kg N, 75 Kg P₂O₅ and 75 Kg K₂O ha⁻¹)+ vermicompost 159.0q ha⁻¹), T₆(75% recommended dose of NPK (75 Kg N, 75 Kg P₂O₅ and 75 Kg K₂O ha⁻¹)+ Azatobacter 6.6 Kg ha^−l), T₇ (75% recommended dose of NPK (75 Kg N, 75 Kg P₂O₅ and 75 Kg K₂O ha⁻¹)+ vermicompost 80 q ha⁻¹ + Azatobacter 3.3 Kg ha^−l), T₈ 75% recommended dose of NPK (75 Kg N, 75 Kg P₂O₅ and 75 Kg K₂O ha⁻¹) + Neem Cake (24 q ha⁻¹), T₉ 50% recommended dose of NPK (50 Kg N, 50 Kg P₂O₅ and 50Kg K₂O ha⁻¹) + Neem cake (47.7 q ha⁻¹), T₉ 50% recommended dose of NPK (50 Kg N, 50 Kg P₂O₅ and 50 Kg K₂O ha⁻¹) + vermicompost (250 q ha⁻¹) + Neem cake (28 q ha⁻¹). Among all the treatments, T₇ gave the maximum high of the plant (94.84cm), plant spread (49.41 cm), leaf area (49.46cm) number of branches (15.92), total dry matter (39.03 g/plant), flower diameter (6.7 cm), weight of flower planr^l (45.97 g), number of flower (58.32), per cent weight (3.99g) and yield of flower plan⁻¹ (368.29g), yield of flower (26.48 tonne ha^−l) The treatment was also found significantly most affected in inducing earliest flowering and duration off lowering.