ChileanJAR

Calendula or the pot marigold (Calendula officinalis L.) is a plant whose dried flower heads are used to heal wounds and are marketed as dried capitula or ligules. In order to determine the potential yield of Calendula, a trial was conducted in Chillán, Chile. The effect of four sowing dates and two cultivars in two growing seasons was evaluated. Sowing dates were June 4, August 5, September 7 and October 14, 1998, and the cultivars used were cv. ‘Resina’ and a local cultivar collected in the province of Ñuble. The experimental design was a randomized complete block design with a split-plot arrangement, where the main plot was the sowing date and the sub-plot the cultivar. Calendula is a biennial plant at this location. In the first year of production the highest capitula yield was obtained in the treatment sown on June 4. In the second year, with the same plants, there was no difference in yield between sowing dates, and the average dried capitula yield was 3685 kg ha^-1. The sum total yield of the two growing seasons was 4594 kg ha^-1 of dried capitula. There was no difference in the yield of the two cultivars in both growing seasons. It is concluded that Calendula could be sown on any date from June to October in Chillán, with either of the cultivars evaluated, without significantly affecting the accumulated yield for the first two seasons of production.