AGRONOMIC ASPECTS FOR FIELD PRODUCTION OF IRISH LACE MARIGOLD (Tagetes filifolia LAG.) IN THE RAINFALL SEASON AT OCUITUCO, MORELOS

Abstract

Agronomic aspects of irish lace marigold (Tagetes filifolia Lag., anise) as new crop for rainfall or dry farming conditions at Ocuituco, Morelos, México, were evaluated. Two experiments were conducted. Three sow densities (1, 2 and 3 g of seed/m²), two herbicides (metribuzine 0.12 kg ha^-1 and linuron 0.35 kg ha^-1 at preand postemergence, both applied in mixtures with metholachlor 1.35 kg ha^-1 for preemergence and with sethoxydim 0.27 kg ha^-1 for postemergence) and two soil textures (clayey and sandy) were evaluated regarding anise and weed plants establishment and anise plants growth for Experiment 1. For Experiment 2, fertilizer doses (30 and 60 N; 25 K; 70 P; 30:70 and 60:70 NP; 75:75:20 and 125:125:50 NPK) were evaluated on anise plants growth. More anise plants (P ≤ 0.05) became established on sandy soil (32 plants) than on the clayey one (27 plants), and weed plants and anise fresh weight plants increased (4 plants and 529 g m^-2) on the clay soil than on the sandy one (2 plants and 445 g m^-2). By increasing plant density the number of anise plants (11, 34 and 43 plants) and their respective fresh weight (414, 504 and 542 g m^-2 ) also increased (P ≤ 0.05) but weed density (4, 3 and 2 plants) and canopy diameter of anise plant (15, 13 y 12 cm) decreased. Preemergence herbicides inhibited both anise (2 to 4) and weed (one) plants compared to the control with noherbicide (51 and 12 plants, respectively). Postemergence herbicides allowed anise plants to establish (43 to 46 plants) and weed plants to be controlled (one plant). The fertilizer trial showed that the NPK doses of 125-125-50, 60-30-0 and 60-0-0 were better (P ≤ 0.05) than the non fertilized treatment, interms of plant height, canopy diameter and fresh weight of anise plants.