Abstract
Nutrient stress has been known as the main limiting factor for maize growth and yield. Nitrapyrin, as a nitrification inhibitor—which reduces nitrogen loss—and foliar fertilizer treatments have been successfully used to enhance the efficiency of nutrient utilization, however, the impacts of these two technologies on physiological development, enzymatic responses, and productivity of maize are poorly studied. In this paper, the concentration of each stress indicator, such as contents of proline, malondialdehyde (MDA), relative chlorophyll, photosynthetic pigments, and the activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD) were measured in maize leaf tissues. In addition, biomass growth, as well as quantitative and qualitative parameters of yield production were examined. Results confirm the enhancing impact of nitrapyrin on the nitrogen use of maize. Furthermore, lower activity of proline, MDA, SOD, as well as higher photosynthetic activity were shown in maize with a more favorable nutrient supply due to nitrapyrin and foliar fertilizer treatments. The obtained findings draw attention to the future practical relevance of these technologies that can be implemented to enhance the physiological development and productivity of maize. However, this paper also highlights the importance of irrigation, as nutrient uptake from soil by the crops decreases during periods of drought.
Highlights
Climate change and its adverse effects on maize production have been widely studied [1,2,3,4,5]
The efficiency of soil-applied nitrapyrin was monitored by a regular measurement of nitrate content changes in nitrapyrin-treated (NP) and untreated (CT) soil which was paired with soil temperature data
The obtained results indicate that the inhibitory effect of nitrapyrin decreased with a considerable rise in soil temperature, which began on the seventh week after the application
Summary
Climate change and its adverse effects on maize production have been widely studied [1,2,3,4,5]. An increasing number of researchers examining the impacts of abiotic stress on crop health published that nutrient stress has the greatest impact on growth [7]. Increased emphasis must be put on studies addressing the effects of nutrient deficiencies since appropriate and balanced nutrition supports maize health and its tolerance to abiotic stress [8]. In recent years, attention has increased to research focusing on nutrient-enhancing technologies. Biomass production, and yield are largely determined by the amount of available nitrogen (N) in soils [9] since it is the most limiting nutrient for growth [10].
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