Influence the phosphorous and silicon on growth and yield of sweet corn

Introduction

Maize (Zea mays L.) is a cereal crop and it is called as "queen of cereals" and "non-tillering plant". Maize is one of the three major world food crops, is recognized as the "golden food" because of its high grain yield and nutrition value, and plays a very important role in the daily calorie intake of humans. Maize is the third most important crop in India after rice and wheat. In the world, India's ranks 5th in acreage and 8th in production of maize. Globally, total area of maize was 186.86 m/ha, production 1078.56 million tone and in India area under maize cultivation is about 9.63 m/ha, production 25.90 million tonne in 2017. Maize is grown in an area of 9.43 million hectares with production of 24.35 million tonnes and productivity of 2583kg/ha. Sweet corn is a medium plant type and provides green Cobs in 65 to 75 days after sowing. These are harvested earlier by 35 to 45 days compared to normal grain maize. The demand for sweet corn as a crunchy bite in the amusement parks, theatres, circus and exhibitions is increasing with increasing urban population. Due to its increasing demand, there is an increasing tendency for commercial production of sweet corn (Thakur et al. 2015) [28] of late, sweet corn is emerging as one of the important enterprises projecting diversified and value-added uses of maize. sustainability of sweet corn scientific cultivation practices must be ensured to attain the goal of agricultural sustainability. Sweet corn is picked at milk stage and eaten as a vegetable, rather than a grain. Its consumption at immature stage as roasted and boiled ears is a popular practice as the kernels are sweet (12-20% sugar). Phosphorus is an essential factor for cell division because it is a constituent element of nucleoproteins which are involved in the cell reproduction processes. It is also a component of a chemical essential to the reactions of carbohydrate synthesis and degradation. It is important for seed and fruit formation and crop maturation. Phosphorus hastens the ripening of fruits thus counteracting the effect of excess nitrogen application to the soil. It helps to strengthen the skeletal structure of the plant thereby preventing lodging. It also affects the quality of the grain and it may increase the plant resistance to diseases. Since the phosphate availability is usually low in the soils, the plants have developed special adaptations to acquire the same with the help of multiple high affinity transporters. (Raghothama, 1999) [19] .

Silicon (Si) is the second most common element on earth's crust. It comprises approximately 28% of the earth crust and supposed to be beneficial element to improve plant growth, development and productivity. Besides this, silicon is also helpful in promoting mechanical strength, light interception and resistance to various biotic and abiotic stresses, improving both quantity and quality of production. Although Si is universal in nature, evidence of its essence for higher plants is still lacking. According to scientific literature, however, Si is conducive to the healthy growth of plants directly or indirectly. Si may be applied through soil as well as foliar application. Under stressful conditions, it acts as a bio stimulant and exhibits optimistic results. Solubilization of silicon in situ in soil by silicatesolubilizing bacteria is also being attempted, and some bacterium is used as a biofertilizer to solubilize silicon and potassium bound in silicates. The use of silicon fertilizers provides rigidity and reverses the succulence induced by high nitrogen, paving the way for a higher crop yield.

Materials and Methods

The experiment was carried out during Kharif season of 2023 at the C.R.F (Crop Research Farm) Department of Agronomy, Naini Agricultural Institute, Sam Higginbottom University of Agricultural, Technology and Sciences, Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh, India which is located at 25° 24' 42'' N latitude, 81° 50' 5'' E longitude and 98 m altitude above the mean sea level. This area is located on the right side of river Yamuna which is 11 km away from Prayagraj city. Geographical location of Prayagraj is 25° 24' 41.2'' N latitude, 81° 51' 3.42'' E longitude and 98 m altitude above mean sea level. The experiment was conducted in Randomized Block Design consisting of 10 treatment combinations which are replicated thrice and was laid out with the different treatments allocated randomly in each replication. Factor 1: Levels of Phosphorous as basal at 45kg/ha, 60kg/ha and 75kg/ha and Factor 2 :Levels of silicon as foliar at 1.5ml/l, 3.0 ml/l and 4.5ml/l. Allocation of the treatment was done by the randomization. Sweety vareity was used in experiment. Fertilizers were applied as band placement, for which 4-5cm deep furrows were made along the seed rows with a hand hoe. The nutrient sources were Urea, SSP and MOP to fulfil the requirement of nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium. The recommended dose of 120 kg/ha nitrogen, 60 kg/ha phosphorous and 60 kg/ha potassium was applied according to the treatment details.

Results and Discussion

Plant dry weight At 60 DAS, significant and higher plant dry weight (76.64 g) was observed in the treatment 8 [Phosphorus (75 kg/ha) + Silicon 3.0 ml/L of water]. However, treatment 5 [Phosphorus (60 kg/ha) + Silicon 3.0 ml/L of water] and treatment 1 [Phosphorus (45 kg/ha) + Silicon 1.5 ml/L of water] was found to be statistically at par with treatment 8 [Phosphorus (75 kg/ha) + Silicon 3.0 ml/L of water]. Significant and higher plant dry weight was with the application of phosphorus (75 kg/ha) due to Phosphorus encourage formation of new cells, promote plant vigour sly and hastens leaf development, which help in harvesting more solar energy and better utilization of nitrogen, which help towards higher plant dry weight. Similar results also found by Alias et al. (2003) [3] . Further, significant and higher plant height was with application of silicon 3.0 ml/L of water due to Si improved chlorophyll content and net photosynthesis rate of leaves, which promoted dry matter accumulation of maize seedlings. Similar results were also reported by Yang et al. (2008) [30] .

Number of cobs/plants

The number of cobs/plant was recorded at harvest, the data reveals that there was significant effect among different treatments on number of pods/plant. Significant and higher number of cobs/plant (2.21) was observed in the treatment 8 [Phosphorus (75 kg/ha) + Silicon 3.0 ml/L of water]. However, treatment 5 [Phosphorus (60 kg/ha) + Silicon 3.0 ml/L of water] was found to be statistically at par with treatment 8 [Phosphorus (75 kg/ha) + Silicon 3.0 ml/L of water]. Significant and maximum number of cobs/plant was with the application of phosphorus (75 kg/ha) due to the fact that optimum availability of Phosphorus has associated with increase rapid growth and development thus those plots which received optimum Phosphorus produced more cobs/plant. Similar result was also reported by Sabu et al. (2021) [23] . Further, significant and higher number of cobs/plant was with application of silicon 3.0 ml/L of water due to silicon increases more number of functional leaves and leaf area resulting in increased photosynthetic activity, carbohydrate formation and nutrient uptake which might have increased the number of cobs/plant. Similar result was also reported by Ashok (2013) [7] .

Number of rows/cob

The number of rows/cob was recorded at harvest. The data reveals that there was significant effect among different treatments on number of rows/cob. Significant and higher number of rows/cob (19.15) was observed in the treatment 8 [Phosphorus (75 kg/ha) + Silicon 3.0 ml/L of water]. However, treatment 5 [Phosphorus (60 kg/ha) + Silicon 3.0 ml/L of water] was found to be statistically at par with treatment 8 [Phosphorus (75 kg/ha) + Silicon 3.0 ml/L of water]. Significant and maximum number of rows/cob might be due to the combined effect of Phosphorus (75 kg/ha) + Silicon 3.0 ml/L of water that play a vital role in producing growth hormone, pollen tube formation, increasing the efficiency of fertilization process and hence the number of grain increases. Similar results was also reported by Meena et al. (2016) [13] .

Number of grains/row

The number of grains/row was recorded at harvest, is presented in Table 1. The data reveals that there was significant effect among different treatments on number of grains/row. Significant and higher number of grains/row (31.15) was observed in the treatment 8 [Phosphorus (75 kg/ha) + Silicon 3.0 ml/L of water]. However, treatment 5 [Phosphorus (60 kg/ha) + Silicon 3.0 ml/L of water] was found to be statistically at par with treatment 8 [Phosphorus (75 kg/ha) + Silicon 3.0 ml/L of water]. Significant and higher grains/row was with phosphorus (75 kg/ha) might be due increased fertility level might have enhanced number of flowers and their fertilization resulting in higher number of filled cobs or grain per cob. Further, in most of cereals greater assimilating surface at reproductive developments results in better grains formation because of adequate production of metabolites and their translocation towards grains. Similar results was also reported by Sankadiya and Sanodiya (2021) [24] . Further, significant and higher number of grains/row was with application of silicon 3.0 ml/L of water due to silicon significantly improved the photosynthetic rate and decreased the transpiration rate, which ultimately increases the number of grains per row of the crop. Similar result was also reported by Amin et al. (2018) [5] .

The observations recorded on Cob yield of sweet corn have been presented in Table 4.2.1. Significant and higher cob yield (6.37 t/ha) was observed in the treatment 8 [Phosphorus (75 kg/ha) + Silicon 3.0 ml/L of water]. However, treatment 4 [Phosphorus (60 kg/ha) + Silicon 1.5 ml/L of water], treatment 5 [Phosphorus (60 kg/ha) + Silicon 3.0 ml/L of water] and treatment 7 [Phosphorus (75kg/ha) + Silicon 1.5 ml/L of water] were found to be statistically at par with treatment 8 [Phosphorus (75 kg/ha) + Silicon 3.0 ml/L of water]. Significant and higher cob yield was with phosphorus (75 kg/ha) might be due to Phosphorus application is attributed to source and sink relationship. It appears that greater translocation of photosynthates from source to sink might have increased Cob yield. Similar results was also reported by Sharma et al. (2018). Further, significant and higher cob yield was with application of silicon 3.0 ml/L of water due to silicon enhances the sturdiness in plant and helps to grow erect without lodging. The erectness exposed the plant to sunlight and enhanced the photosynthetic activity and better assimilation of organic constituents (carbohydrates). This assimilation promoted the growth and development of crop, as well as reduced the incidence of pest and diseases. The crop grown vigorously and utilized the nutrients and moisture from soil which were turned into the economic yield of the crop. Similar results were also reported by Anand et al. (2018) [6] .

Benefit-cost ratio

Benefit cost ratio (2.39) was found to be highest in treatment 8 [Phosphorus (75 kg/ha) + Silicon 3.0 ml/L of water] and minimum benefit cost ratio (1.64) was found in control as compared to other treatments. Application of treatment 8 recorded maximum B:C ratio (2.39) compared to all other treatments.

Conclusion

On the basis of one season experimentation, it can be concluded that with the application of Phosphorus (75 kg/ha) + Silicon 3.0 ml/L (T8) was found to be more desirable in terms of increasing in yield and economics of sweet corn.

References

1. Abdelgalil A, Mustafa A, Ali S, Yassin O. Effect of irrigation intervals and foliar spray of zinc and silicon treatments on maize growth and yield components of maize. Curr Chem Lett. 2022;11(2):219-26.
2. Ahmad M, Hussain N, Jan A, Ahmad K, Hussain S. Response of maize to phosphorus levels and plant density. Sarhad J Agric. 2007;23(1):69-74.
3. Alias A, Usman M, Ullah E, Warraich EA. Effects of different phosphorus levels on the growth and yield of two cultivars of maize (Zea mays L.). Int J Agric Biol. 2003;5(4):632-634.
4. Amin M, Ahmad R, Ali A, Aslam M, Lee DJ. Silicon fertilization improves the maize (Zea mays L.) performance under limited moisture supply. Cereal Res Commun. 2016;44(1):172-185.
5. Amin M, Ahmad R, Ali A, Hussain I, Mahmood R, Aslam M, et al. Influence of silicon fertilization on maize performance under limited water supply. Silicon. 2018;10:177-183.
6. Anand L, Sreekanth B, Jyothula DPB. Effect of foliar application of sodium silicate on yield and grain quality of rice. Int J Chem Stud. 2018;6(6):1711-1715.
7. Ashok KG. Effect of diatomaceous earth (as a source of silicon) on growth, yield and quality of banana cv. Grand Naine (Musa AAA). M.Sc. (Hort.) Thesis. Univ Hort Sci, Bagalkot, India, 2013.
8. Bose PC, Srivastava DP, Kar R, Bajpai AK. Effect of phosphorus on growth, yield and nutrient uptake of rain fed mulberry (Morus Alba L.) and its economics in Chotanagpur plateau of Jharkhand. J Crop Weed. 2009;5:23-6.
9. Jasim AH, Arat AAK. The effect of planting dates, plant density, and silicon spraying on the growth and yield of sweet corn. South Asian J Agric Sci. 2021;1(1):38-42.
10. Khan W, Singh V. Response of phosphorus application on yield, quality and economics of sweet corn (Zea mays L. saccharata) varieties. J Pharmacogn Phytochem. 2017;6(5):2205-2208.
11. Manojkumar S, Karthikeyan R, Maragatham N. Effect of silicon fertilization on growth and yield of hybrid maize under irrigated and rainfed conditions. Madras Agric J. 2018;105(12):530-534.
12. Masood T, Gul R, Munsif F, Jalal F, Hussain Z, Noreen N, Khan H. Effect of different phosphorus levels on the yield and yield components of maize. Sarhad J Agric. 2011;27(2):167-170.
13. Meena OP, Patel KC, Malav JK. Influence of silicon and phosphorus on growth, yield and nutrient uptake by maize (Zea mays L.) in Typic Ustochrepts soils. Indian J Ecol. 2016;43(1):89-92.
14. Mir AH, Lal SB, Salmani M, Abid M, Khan I. Growth, yield and nutrient content of black gram (Vigna mungo L.) as influenced by levels of phosphorus, sulphur and phosphorus solubilizing bacteria. SAARC J Agric. 2013;11(1):1-6.
15. Modhvadia JM, Rathod AD, Patel RJ, Bairwa DD. Effect of phosphorus and sulphur on the yield and quality of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) crop. The Pharma Innovation J. 2023;12(12):3509-13.
16. Naik BSSS, Sharma SK, Choudhary R, Yadav SK, Jat G, Prajapth BS. Effect of FYM and silicon on productivity of organic sweet corn (Zea mays saccharata). Indian J Agric Sci. 2021;91(11):1660-4.
17. Ojha AK, Dawson J, Rana A. Effect of phosphorus and boron on growth, yield and economics of sweet corn (Zea mays L.). Int J Plant Soil Sci. 2023;35(9):91-98.
18. Priya P, Ashoka P, Karakkannavar SJ, Guruprasad GS. Effect of soil and foliar application of micronutrient (Zn, Fe, & B) on field performance of maize (Zea mays L.) in Northern Karnataka. J Pharmacogn Phytochem. 2020;9(6S):467-470.
19. Raghothama KG. Phosphate acquisition. Annu Rev Plant Physiol Plant Mol Biol. 1999;50:665-693.
20. Raskar SS, Sonani VV, Shelke AV. Effect of different levels of nitrogen, phosphorus and zinc on yield and yield attributes of maize (Zea mays L.). Adv Res J Crop Improv. 2012;3(2):126-128.
21. Reddy KSH, Singh S, Nawhal A. Effect of phosphorus levels and micronutrients on growth and yield of baby corn. Int J Environ Climate Change. 2023;13(9):1216-1221.
22. Rohnipoor A, Norouzi M, Moezzi A, Hassibi P. Effect of silicon on some physiological properties of maize (Zea mays) under salt stress. J Biol Environ Sci. 2013;7(20):7179.
23. Sabu A, Dawson J, Thomas T. Effect of phosphorus and potassium levels on growth and yield of baby corn (Zea mays L.). The Pharma Innovation J. 2021;10(10):19591963.
24. Sankadiya S, Sanodiya L. Effect of phosphorus and potassium levels on growth and yield of maize (Zea mays L.). The Pharma Innovation J. 2021;10(10):1347-1350.
25. Sharma PP, Pandey G, Jawahar S, Kalaiyarasan C, Suseendran K. Effect of different levels of nitrogen and phosphorus on yield and economics of hybrid maize (Zea mays L.). Int J Res Anal Rev. 2018;5(4):2349-2338.
26. Singh S, Singh G, Singh RS, Abhineet, Singh N. Effect of phosphorus and biofertilizers on yield and economics of summer green gram (Vigna radiata L.) after wheat crop. The Pharma Innovation J. 2021;10(7):262-265.
27. Snyder GH, Matichenkov VV, Datnoff LE. Silicon. In: Handbook of plant nutrition. Barker AV, Pilbeam DJ, editors. CRC Press, 2007, p. 551-68.
28. Thakur AK, Thakur DS, Patel RK, Pradhan A, Kumar P. Effect of different plant geometry and nitrogen levels in relation to growth characters, yield and economics on sweet corn (Zea mays saccharata L.) at Bastar plateau zone. The Bioscan. 2015;10(3):1223-1226.
29. Umeri C, Moseri H, Onyemekonwu RC. Effects of nitrogen and phosphorus on the growth performance of maize (Zea mays) in selected soils of Delta State, Nigeria. Adv Crop Sci Tech. 2016;4:207.
30. Yang Y, Li J, Haichunshi YK, Jichao Y, Tang Z. Alleviation of silicon on low-P stressed maize (Zea mays L.) seedlings under hydroponic culture conditions. World J Agric Sci. 2008;4(2):168-172.