Abstract: Safflower is resistant to drought,salt and alkali,cold and disease,and prefers sunny and dry conditions.Hetao irrigation district is particularly suitable for planting safflower.In order to explore the suitable planting time and planting density of safflower,field experiments on planting density and seeding time of safflower were carried out in Wuyuan County in 2017.The results showed that sowing time and planting density had little effect on the plant height of safflower,while sowing time and planting density had significant effects on the stem diameter.The thickest stems were sown on April 5,and the more sparse the planting density,the thicker the stems.When the sowing date was April 5 in Hetao irrigation area,the yields of both safflower filament and seed were the highest,and they decreased with the delay of seeding.The planting density was correlated with the yield of safflower filaments and seeds with a good quadratic parabolic curve.The planting densities for maximum filament yield and seed yield were 9.13 and 9.28 million plants/hm2,respectively.For the convenience of picking,it is best to use wide and narrow rows.Specifically,1.2-meter mulch film is adopted,with one film in four rows,with row spacing 30 cm on the film,row spacing 60 cm between the film,and spacing 25 cm in the rows.This pattern not only ensures planting density but also facilitates picking.

Key words: Safflower;Sowing date;Planting density;Planting method