Effect of Sowing Date and Plant Spacing on Growth, Phenology, Seed Yield, and Seed Quality of Kasuri Methi (Trigonella corniculata L.)
Pooja Kaushik *
Department of Horticulture (Vegetable Science), Faculty of Agricultural Sciences (FASC), SGT University, Gurugram, Haryana 122505, India.
Pooja Pant
Department of Horticulture, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences (FASC), SGT University, Gurugram, Haryana 122505, India.
Adarsh Pandey
Department of Natural Resource Management, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences (FASC), SGT University, Gurugram, Haryana 122505, India.
Karmnath Kumar
Department of Natural Resource Management, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences (FASC), SGT University, Gurugram, Haryana 122505, India.
Parul Kaushik
Department of Horticulture (Vegetable Science), Faculty of Agricultural Sciences (FASC), SGT University, Gurugram, Haryana 122505, India.
Bharat Antil
Department of Horticulture (Fruit Science), Faculty of Agricultural Sciences (FASC), SGT University, Gurugram, Haryana 122505, India.
Priyanka Bijalwan
Faculty of Agricultural Sciences (FASC), Horticulture, SGT University, Gurugram, Haryana 122505, India.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Kasuri methi (Trigonella corniculata L.) is an important seed spice and leafy condiment valued for its characteristic aroma, nutritional quality, medicinal properties, and commercial importance. Optimising sowing time and plant spacing is essential for improving crop growth, seed yield, and seed quality under semi-arid conditions. The present investigation evaluated the effects of three sowing dates and four plant spacings on growth, phenology, yield, and seed quality of Kasuri methi during the Rabi season of 2023–24 at the Research Farm of SGT University, Gurugram, Haryana, India. The experiment was laid out in a factorial randomised block design with three replications. Treatments comprised three sowing dates, namely 4 December, 11 December, and 18 December, and four plant spacing levels, namely 30 × 10 cm, 30 × 20 cm, 30 × 30 cm, and 30 × 40 cm. Sowing on 11 December recorded the highest plant height (72.22 cm), branches per plant (18.44), leaves per plant (187.69), seed yield per plant (5.43 g), and seed yield per hectare (7.96 q ha⁻¹). Wider spacing (30 × 40 cm) improved individual plant performance, including branches per plant, leaves per plant, pods per plant, pod length, seeds per pod, test weight, and seed yield per plant. However, closer spacing (30 × 10 cm) produced the highest seed yield per hectare (7.99 q ha⁻¹). The interaction of 11 December sowing with 30 × 10 cm spacing recorded the maximum seed yield per hectare (10.89 q ha⁻¹) and superior seed quality attributes, including germination percentage, seedling length, seedling dry weight, vigour index-I, and vigour index-II. These findings indicate that sowing Kasuri methi on 11 December at 30 × 10 cm spacing is suitable for improving seed yield and seed quality under comparable semi-arid agro-climatic conditions.
Keywords: Kasuri methi, Trigonella corniculata, sowing date, plant spacing, crop geometry, growth attributes, phenology, seed yield, seed quality, seed vigour, semi-arid conditions