African marigold (Tagetes erecta L.) is an important traditional flower crop under cultivation throughout India. It belongs to the family Asteraceae/Compositae. It has a great economic potential as loose flower which finds industrial application in preparation of natural dyes, essential oils and also used as nematode and mosquito repellents. The current investigation on "Impact of water soluble fertilizers and silica on the growth of African marigold (Tagetes erecta L.)” for the hybrid Tennis ball orange was carried out at Grapes Research Station, Theni. The experiment was laid out in Randomized Block Design (RBD) with fifteen treatments replicated thrice. The results revealed that application of the treatment T9 [Mono Potassium Phosphate (0:52:34) @ 0.5% + Potassium Nitrate (13:0:45) - @ 0.5% + Chelated micronutrient @ 0.1% + Ortho silicic acid form of Silica @ 0.1% + Norwegian sea weed extract (Ascophyllum nodosum) @ 0.1%] resulted in the maximum growth. The highest values for vegetative parameters viz., plant height, internodal length, leaf length, leaf width, number of branches and stem diameter were recorded in the treatment T9 followed by T7 [Mono Potassium Phosphate (0:52:34) @ 0.5% + Potassium Nitrate (13:0:45) - @ 0.5% + Chelated micronutrient @ 0.1% + Ortho silicic acid form of Silica @ 0.1%] when compared to the control (T15).

Tagetes erecta L., Tennis ball orange, water soluble fertilizers, ortho silicic acid and Ascophyllum nodosum

The study concluded that application of the treatment T9 (Mono Potassium Phosphate (0:52:34) @ 0.5% + Potassium Nitrate (13:0:45) - @ 0.5% + Chelated micronutrient @ 0.1% + Ortho silicic acid form of Silica @ 0.1% + Norwegian sea weed extract (Ascophyllum nodosum) @ 0.1%) recorded maximum growth with the highest values for vegetative parameters viz., plant height, internodal length, leaf length, leaf width, number of branches and stem diameter when compared to the control (T15).

Bharathkumar C., A. Subbiah, D. Keisar Lourdusamy, K. Sathiya Bama and K. Vanitha (2023). Impact of Water Soluble Fertilizers and Silica on the Growth of African Marigold (Tagetes erecta L.). Biological Forum – An International Journal, 15(8): 561-566.