NPS Fertilizer and Spacing Effects on Yield and Quality of Coriander (Coriandrum sativum L.)

Background and Objective: Coriander (Coriandrum sativum L.) is a high-value culinary and medicinal herb that is simultaneously used as a spice throughout the world. Its growth and development require balanced plant nutrients with appropriate spacing for better yield and quality. But there was no research recommendation for the production of coriander in the study area. Hence, the objective of this study was to determine the optimum NPS rate and best spacing for coriander production. Materials and Methods: The field experiment was conducted in 2020/21 at Wolaita Sodo University, Ethiopia. The treatments consisted of four NPS fertilizer rates (0, 50, 100 and 150 kg haG 1 ) and inter-row spacing (10, 20, 30 and 40 cm) that gave 16 treatments in a factorial arrangement. The design was RCBD with three replications. Results: The ANOVA results revealed that the main effects of NPS fertilizer and inter-row spacing significantly (p<0.05) affected almost all parameters. The interaction showed a significant (p<0.05) effect on the number of branches, number of umbels, number of umbellets, number of seeds, seed yield, above-ground biomass and harvest index. The highest 1000 seed weight (10.65 g) and highest essential oil (7.32 kg) were obtained from 100 kg NPS haG 1 . The highest seed yield (1366.7 kg) was achieved by 100 kg NPS haG 1 at 30 cm inter-row spacing whereas the lowest total seed yield (494.4 kg) was achieved by 0 kg NPS haG 1 . Conclusion: Based on the results of the current investigation, it can be concluded that 100 kg NPS haG 1 with 30 cm inter-row spacing was the best combination for coriander production in the area.