Abstract
ABSTRACT Irrigation with saline water affects the agronomic performance of the maize crop; however, the use of vegetal mulch may mitigate salt stress and promote an increase in yield. In this way, this study aimed to evaluate the grain yield of the maize plants submitted to different water salinity levels in the presence and absence of mulch. The experiment was conducted in a randomized block design arranged in a 2 × 2 factorial scheme. The first factor was the salinity of the irrigation water (1.0 and 4.0 dS m-1) and the second, with and without mulch, and five replicates. The variables analyzed were: unhusked ear mass, husked ear mass, cob mass, straw mass, husked ear diameter, husked ear length, and yield. The irrigation water with higher electrical conductivity affects negatively the ear mass with and without straw, ear diameter and ear length. The use of vegetation cover on the soil increased the unhusked ear mass with and without straw, ear diameter and length. The water with higher salinity (4.0 dS m-1) reduces the maize grain yield but with less intensity in the presence of mulch.
Highlights
Maize, known as corn (Zea mays L.), can be used in human, animal, and bioenergy production (Lopes et al, 2019)
This study aimed to evaluate the grain yield of the maize plants submitted to different water salinity levels in the presence and absence of mulch
This study aimed to evaluate the yield of the maize crop submitted to different irrigation water salinity in the presence and absence of mulch
Summary
Known as corn (Zea mays L.), can be used in human, animal, and bioenergy production (Lopes et al, 2019). It is considered moderately tolerant to irrigation with saline water with electrical conductivity of up to 1.7 dS m-1, with no reduction in grain yield (Ayers & Westcot, 1999). Investigating and using different varieties of corn that are more tolerant to salinity may promote the better performance of the plant in environments with salt. Salt stress causes a reduction in osmotic potential. It results in disturbances in water relations, changes in the absorption and use of essential nutrients (Oliveira et al, 2014), in physiological functions, causing the partial closure of stomata, limiting CO2 assimilation, and reducing photosynthesis, the yield of crops (Taiz et al, 2017; Rodrigues et al, 2020)
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