Integrated Nitrogen Management in Safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.)

India is one of the largest producer of safflower and ranks first in acreage, accounting about 36% of the world total area. Nutrient management is the major factor which influences the productive capacity of soils. Fertilizer is the major input through which the productivity can be increased by exploiting the varietal potential, since the cost of inputs of major nutrients through chemical fertilizers is increasing. Hence, this supports the integrated nutrient management approach not only to boost the production but also to preserve the ecosystem and to maintain its health. The conjunctive use of organics with the nitrogen fertilizer increased the use efficiency of nitrogen, improves the soil health and minimizes soil pollution. The results showed that performance of safflower crop improved significantly with integrated use of inorganic and organic sources of N (Farm Yard Manure/Poultry manure/Vermicompost) when compared with the application of inorganic N alone. Among the different combinations tried, application of 50 % N through inorganic fertilizer + 50% N through VC recorded highest seed yield, oil yield and also improves soil fertility leading to better soil health.