Safflower (
Carthamus tinctorius
L.) is a temperate plant grown in arid and semi-arid regions of the
world, and is the most drought tolerant oilseed crop. The objective of this study was to evaluate the
effect of genotype and plant density on growth, phenology and yield of safflower. Treatments included
five safflower genotypes and six plant densities laid out in a randomised block design. Increasing
plant density from 62,500 to 100,000 plants ha
-1 significantly (P < 0.05) increased leaf area index (LAI),
leaf area duration (LAD), total leaf chlorophyll content (Tchl) and net assimilation rate (NAR) at all
phenological stages in both winter and summer. For all genotypes, the highest LAI, LAD, Tchl, NAR,
total dry matter accumulation (TDM) and seed yield resulted at a plant density of 100,000 plants ha
-1.
Maximum LAI, LAD, NAR and Tchl were observed at 50% flowering, compared to other phenological
stages in all genotypes and plant densities. In general, genotype ‘Sina’ at 100,000 plants ha
-1
significantly (P < 0.05) had the highest LAI, LAD, Tchl, TDM and seed yield compared to other
genotypes and plant densities in both summer and winter.