Utilization of Municipal Wastewater Sludge for Enhancing Growth and Dye Yield in Pot Marigold Plants

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Department of Range and Watershed Management, Faculty of Natural Resources, Yazd University, Yazd, Iran

10.22126/atic.2026.11672.1188

Abstract

The appropriate disposal of municipal wastewater sludge as an organic fertilizer, alongside the production of wastewater effluents, has posed significant technical and environmental challenges in wastewater treatment plant management worldwide, including Iran. Contamination with heavy metals and pathogenic microorganisms has been a major limiting factor in the use of sludge as an organic fertilizer, rich in nutrients, for improving soil quality in agricultural fields. An experiment was conducted on the pot marigold Parpar cultivar, using a randomized complete block design with three replications. The sludge treatments were utilized at three levels, including control (no sludge), 10, and 20 t.ha-1. The sludge was applied to field plots in a greenhouse located in Taft County, Yazd Province, Iran. Eleven plant performance indices were measured, and wool yarn was dyed with petal extracts. The hunter parameters in the CIE Lab system were used to assess lightfastness and washfastness. The results revealed that sludge application (20 t ha-1) significantly enhanced six performance indices, including plant height (61%), the number of flowers per plant (58%), fresh weight of plant(42%), flower yield (74%), 1000-seeds weight (47%), and the number of capitula.m-2 (84%). Additionally, sludge application at a rate of "10 t.ha-1" increased the peak absorption of the dye. The color of plants treated with 10 t.ha-1 of sludge exhibited significantly higher washfastness, while those treated with 20 t.ha-1 of sludge exhibited higher lightfastness compared to the control treatment.

Graphical Abstract

Utilization of Municipal Wastewater Sludge for Enhancing Growth and Dye Yield in Pot Marigold Plants

Highlights

  • Municipal wastewater sludge enhanced the growth and yield of marigold (Calendula officinalis L.) under greenhouse conditions.
  • Sludge application at 20 t ha⁻¹ increased six key plant performance indices by 42–84%.
  • Sludge treatment improved the dye absorption and colorfastness of marigold petal extracts on wool yarn.

Keywords

Main Subjects

References

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Agrotechniques in Industrial Crops

Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 21 September 2026

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