Investigation of the potential use of recycling spent mushroom compost as Marigold (Calendula officinalis) bedding medium

A greenhouse experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of different culture media on plantlet emergence, vegetative and generative traits of Marigold (Calendula officinalis) in randomized complete block design with ten treatments and three replications. The treatments were consisted of spent mushroom compost (SMC), alluvium soil (AS), garden soil (GS), SMC + AS (2:1), SMC + GS (2:1), SMC + AS (1:2), SMC + GS (1:2), AS + GS (2:1), GS + AS (2:1) and SMC + AS + GS (1:1:1). The results showed that application of SMC had positive effects on the vase life of flower and the number of days from the first bloom appearance. The vase life of flower was the highest (17.4 days) in the media containing SMC alone and the shortest (12.3 days) in media containing SMC + AS (1:2). However, mixture of SMC with AS or GS had significant positive effects on the evaluated traits. Generally, AS, SMC + AS or GS (2:1) and GS treatments had a better situation than other media.