Abstract
Poor nutrient management is one of the key factors contributing to decline in the productivity of maize in Nepal. Few studies have been done on developing site and variety specific fertilizer recommendation. Therefore, a field experiment was conducted at National Maize Research Program (NMRP) Rampur, Chitwan during winter season in September 2016 to study the response of hybrid maize (RML95/RML96) to different doses of soil application of nitrogen (N) and phosphorous (P). The treatments included were 120:60, 120 :( 40+20), 160:60, 160 :( 40+20), 200:60, 200 :( 40+20), 240:60, and 240 :( 40+20) N: P kg ha-1. Potassium fertilizer was fixed and applied as per the Government recommendation i.e., 40 kg K ha-1.Eight treatments were replicated three times in randomized complete block design and maize was planted in six rows of four meter long plot. The research findings revealed that each level of N significantly increased grain yield up to 240 kg N ha-1. The grain yield (8.8 t ha-1) obtained under 240 kg N ha-1 was significantly higher than that obtained under 120,160 and 200 kg N ha-1. However, the results revealed that split application of P failed to bring about any significant difference in the grain yield as well as yield parameters of maize. We can, thus conclude that the addition of increasing rate of N increases the yield and yield attributing characters of maize. Int. J. Appl. Sci. Biotechnol. Vol 5(4): 537-541
Highlights
Nitrogen (N) and phosphorous (P) deficiency are key constraints in Maize production (Adediran et al, 1995; Asghar et al, 2010) which covers nearly 0.9 million hectare with low productivity (2.5 t/ha) (MOAD, 2015/16) in Nepal as compared to other countries
The results revealed that split application of P failed to bring about any significant difference in the grain yield as well as yield parameters of maize
Harvesting was done from 2nd -3rd week of March, 2017.Observations on plant height, ear height, ear length, ear diameter, kernel rows/ear, kernels/ear, test weight, grain yield and soil pH was made.Detailed statistical analysis of data was performed by using GENSTATCTM Discovery version
Summary
Nitrogen (N) and phosphorous (P) deficiency are key constraints in Maize production (Adediran et al, 1995; Asghar et al, 2010) which covers nearly 0.9 million hectare with low productivity (2.5 t/ha) (MOAD, 2015/16) in Nepal as compared to other countries. N is a vital plant nutrient that determines the yield; important for maize production (Adediran et al, 1995). Muhammad et al (2004) found that in soils which are deficient in available P, application of higher level of P enhances emergence of seedlings through its effect on development of root, and thereby enhances days to flowering and maturity and increases the grain yield of maize. Optimum levels of N and P fertilizers application are important to achieve desirable crop growth and productivity. This study was undertaken to determine the optimum levels of N fertilizer for maize production and to see the response of split application of P on growth and yield of maize
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