EFFECT OF SEED TREATMENT VERSUS FIELD SPRAYING ON GROWTH AND YIELD PERFORMANCE OF MAIZE (Zea Mays)

Abstract

This experiment examined the effect of seed treatment versus field spraying on the agronomic performance of three new maize varieties in Abeokuta. These maize varieties were 1) DMR-ESR-Y 2) SAMMAZ 15 and, 3) OBA SUPER 2. Treatments were 1) Control 2) Seed treatment with Dressforce (Active ingredient Imidacloprid) 3) Seedling spraying with Cypermethrin. The experiment was carried out during the early growing season between March and June, 2017 at the Teaching and Research Farm, Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta. The experiment was carried out on the field in a Randomized Complete Block Design with three replicates. Observations were recorded on Plant height, Number of leaves, Step girth, Leaf area, Percentage germination, Percentage tasselling, Number of cobs per plot, and 100- seed weight. Analysis of variance revealed that there were significant differences between the varieties except for Leaf area, Plant height, and the number of leaves and also there were significant differences among the treatment except for Percentage germination, Percentage tasselling, and Number of cobs per plot. Analysis of variance also revealed that there was no significant difference in the interaction between the varieties and treatment except for 100-seed weight. Mean separation among varieties revealed that DMR-ESR-Y had the best performance in terms of Percentage germination, Percentage tasselling, Number of cobs per plot, and 100-seed weight. SAMMAZ 15 had the best performance in the terms of leaf area, stem girth, plant height, and the number of leaves while OBA SUPER 2 had the lowest performance in all the parameters evaluated. The treated seed had the best performance in all the parameters evaluated except for Percentage germination and Percentage tasselling which shows no significant differences with other treatments. DMR-ESR-Y and OBA SUPER 2 among the maize showed a better performance when treated with Imidacloprid before planting while SAMMAZ 15 had a better performance when sprayed with cypermethrin. It can be concluded from this research work that to produce fast-growing plants with a high yield, seeds for these maize varieties should be treated with insecticide before planting.