Table 1.
Effects of intercropping marigold on soil physico-chemical properties of apple orchard.
| Clean tillage | Intercropping | |
|---|---|---|
| pH | 6.77 ± 0.05 | 6.91 ± 0.05 |
| OM (g kg−1) | 16.41 ± 0.42 | 20.47 ± 0.10* |
| TN (g kg−1) | 0.73 ± 0.03 | 0.80 ± 0.01 |
| TP (g kg−1) | 0.71 ± 0.11 | 0.73 ± 0.02 |
| AN (mg kg−1) | 40.00 ± 3.23 | 53.97 ± 3.69* |
| AP (mg kg−1) | 4.48 ± 0.29 | 5.54 ± 0.48* |
| Soil moisture content (%) | 13.17 ± 1.56 | 20.09 ± 0.47* |
| Urease (mg g−1 d−1) | 0.75 ± 0.03 | 0.85 ± 0.03* |
| Phosphatase (mg g−1 d−1) | 0.82 ± 0.04 | 1.20 ± 0.02* |
| Sucrase (mg g−1 d−1) | 15.81 ± 0.57 | 26.42 ± 0.21* |
| Cellulase (mg g−1 d−1) | 5.17 ± 0.09 | 7.72 ± 0.23* |
OM, organic matter; TN, total nitrogen; TP, total phosphorus; AN, alkali-hydrolysis nitrogen; AP, available phosphorus. Data (means ± SD, n = 3) followed by asterisks indicated significant differences between treatments at p < 0.05 verified by Kruskal-Wallis tests.