Temporal dynamics of dry matter accumulation andcropgrowth in sweetcorn under residual phosphorus andcrop-residue

Introduction

Maize (Zea mays) ranks as third important crop among the cereals globally, following wheat and rice (Ram et al., 2023) [14] . It occupies 8 % of the total cereal area and contributes to 25% of global cereal production (Pinjari et al., 2017) [12] . Known as the "queen of cereals" worldwide, maize possesses the highest genetic potential among all cereal crops (Tollenaar et al., 2006) [17] . Sweet corn (Zea mays saccharata L.) is a subgroup of corn (Zea mays) that is categorized based on kernel traits. The distinction between sweet corn and standard corn primarily lies in the genes that influence starch production in seed endosperm; in sweet corn, one or more simple recessive alleles modify the carbohydrate composition of the endosperm, resulting in elevated levels of water-soluble polysaccharides and reduced starch content. The kernels of sweet corn have a significantly sweeter flavour compared to regular corn. The revenue generated from sweet corn is comparatively higher than grain maize. In the year 2023-2024, India's overall maize output reached 33.5 million metric tons from a cultivated area of 9.98 million hectares (Kumari et al., 2025) [7] . In the North East region of India, maize has the potential to emerge as an important crop, with its share of total area coverage ranking second after rice. The utilization of sweet corn and its byproducts has significantly risen globally in past thirty years. The primary products consist of the sweet corn pericarp and its endosperm tissue. As the endosperm has both sugar and starch, it possesses a syrupy taste until it fully develops and dries out more than other types of corn (Ghuman et al., 2024) [3] . Sweet corn is a lucrative crop because of its greater market value in relation to other typical corn types. Nevertheless, effective production necessitates effective management and marketing. Robust market connections and a strong grasp of consumer preferences can assist farmers in optimizing their earnings from the production of sweet corn. Efficient management strategies involve selecting appropriate varieties, prompt sowing and gathering, and enforcing pest and disease management mainly nutrient management. The profit margins of maize production can be significantly impacted by management, and improving yield requires improving management, especially with regard to fertilisation. Due to its involvement in many physiological processes like photosynthesis, respiration, and energy transfer, phosphorus (P) is a crucial macronutrient for plant growth and development [Chowdhury er al., 2021 [2] ]. It is essential for ATP synthesis, phospholipids, and nucleic acids all of which is required for DNA replication, cell division, and the storage and transfer of energy [Khan et al., 2009 [5] ]. A sufficient amount of P is required for healthy root development, plant growth, and an ideal crop output. P is regarded as the second most important nutrient after nitrogen for improving crop productivity. Moreover, it aids in the rapid formation and expansion of roots, enhancing crop tolerance to agricultural diseases. However, P deficiency in soils is a widespread issue that limits crop production and global food security [Yadav et al., 2017 [22] ]. Thus, the use of P fertilizers is essential to replenish P levels in soils and meet the nutritional demands of crops. The studies have found that excessive P addition does not increase light-saturated photosynthetic rates or growth rates understory plants. Furthermore, excessive P application can have negative effect on surface water that disrupt the functioning of biological systems [Minhas, 2020 [10] ]. Additionally, excessive P can run off into nearby bodies of water, leading to an overgrowth of algae and pathogenic bacteria that reduce oxygen levels in the water and make it unsafe for drinking or recreation [Pierzynski and Logan, 1993 [11] ]. Therefore, it is crucial to determine the current P levels in the soil, the adequate P levels needed by the crop, and amount of fertilizer that should be applied to soil to meet crop's optimal P needs before suggesting a P fertilizer. These results emphasize the need to consider the effects of P addition not only on individual plants but also on the functioning and diversity of plant communities [Mao et al., 2021]. The integrated use of crop residue mulch and phosphorus fertilizer is one of the option for mitigating the reliance on excess P utilization. The usage of crop residue as a mulch may provide many beneficial effects, such as improvement of soil biological, physical properties, nutrient cycling, conservation of soil moisture, etc. The use of crop residue as mulch and incorporation helps to aid the availability nutrients, ultimately improve crop yield and reduce the reliance on synthetic fertilizers. When inorganic nutrients and organic waste are treated jointly in tests, the combinatorial effect outweighs the beneficial effects of each component alone [Titab et al., 2011 [16] ]. Grain production may be impacted by the negligent management of agricultural waste accumulation in several agricultural nations [Huang et al., 2012 [4] ; Zheng et al., 2012 [25] ]. When compared to the total amount of returning stover, a suitable amount of plant waste greatly boosts yield, increases leaf area and chlorophyll concentration, and protects plants from habitation [Bunna et al., 2011 [1] ]. By releasing organic acids to solubilise conserved insoluble soil P or by substituting them with affordable and sustainable natural P sources, such as agricultural crop wastes, the use of organic nutrient sources can reduce dependency on expensive chemical P fertilisers. Previous studies demonstrated that combining plant residues such as sarson and sesbania with phosphate sources can enhance soil quality [Ullah et al., 2023]. Similarly, it has found that applying sugarcane filter mud (SFM) [Salman et al., 2023], chicken manure [Marlina et al., 2017 [9] ], and household trash together to crop brassica residues improves plant development and yield. The combined and combinatorial effects of applying phosphorus and crop stover as mulch (henceforth, straw return) have not assessed in sweetcorn. This study set out to determine whether a mix of crop residues and phosphorus sources could be effective for improving sweet corn's growth and production. In order to do this, we tested the possible advantages of this strategy in an experiment on a tiny piece of land, to study the residual effect of mulch which has applied as mulch in potato crop, which was not decomposed fully has taken advantage to study incorporation of residual mulch and P on potato crop.

Materials and Methods

The field experiment was conducted over a 2-year period during summer season of 2023 and 2024 at experimental farm College of Post Graduate Studies in Agricultural Science, Umiam, Meghalaya. The study area is located in the district's mild tropical hill zone, which has a subtropical humid climate with heavy monsoon rainfall and minimal winter rainfall. The area receives 2450 mm of rainfall annually, with about 80-85% of being received between May and October. The average minimum and maximum temperatures range from 12.5 to 21.5 °C and 21.9 to 29.5 °C, respectively, and the monsoon typically starts in the first two weeks of May or the first week of June and lasts until the second fortnight of September or the first week of November.

Treatment details

The experiment was conducted over split-plot design, consists of 3 residual organic mulch levels (which was mulched during preceding winter potato crop), viz., M 0: un mulch, M 1: rice straw mulch (RSM), M 2: maize straw mulch (MSM) under main plot, four subplot levels include residual rate of phosphorus (P) (applied during preceding winter potato crop) and the experiment was replicated three times. Sweetcorn crop was grown during summer season following winter potato crop in same research plot to study effect of rate of P and organic mulch levels which was applied during winter potato crop. Therefore, residual P and mulch effects which was applied in potato was studied on the succeeding sweetcorn crop. The sweetcorn variety Sugar-75 has been taken for the study. The growth duration of sweetcorn was reported 98 and 97 days during 2023 and 2024, respectively. Ride and furrow method of cultivation was adopted with ridges 50 cm apart and plant to plant was 20 cm apart (50×20 cm), resulting plant density of 100000 plants ha -1 . The major nutrients, N (120 kg ha -1 ) and K (80 kg ha -1 ) were applied through urea and MOP, respectively. However, P has not applied to study the residual effect of P applied in preceding potato crop. Same experimental plot has used to conduct the research for two years of the experiment. The growth parameters, viz., plant height, dry matter, CGR, LAI was studied at 15 days interval during crop duration. Plant height of 10 tagged plants was measured with metre tape up to the tallest leaf length. For dry matter measurement, 3 plants from each plot are cut up to the base and chopped into small parts oven dried for 2 days at 60°C, then observations were recorded later averaged to a single value. LAI was measured with the help of planimeter. The yield, parameters, viz., no of cobs, cob weigh, cob length, green cob yield, stover yield was measured at the time of harvest.

Results

Plant height

Residual P and organic mulch had significantly affected plant height during entire growing season of sweetcorn (Fig. 1.). The rice straw mulch (RSM (M 1 )) has reported significantly highest plant height over the entire growing period over maize straw mulch (MSM (M 2 ), in turn reported significantly highest over un mulch (UM (M 0 )). Plant height reported increasing trend up to 60 DAS, thereafter increasing at slower rate. RSM has recorded highest plant height (184.50 (2023) and 188.03 cm (2024)) followed by MSM (176.71 (2023) and 181.75 cm (2024)) followed by UM (163.45 (2023) and 164.24 cm (2024)). Among the residual rate of P application P 120 has reported significantly highest over P 80 , P 40 and P 0 . P 120 has recorded highest plant height of 187.11 and 191.33 cm, during 2023 and 2024 respectively followed by P 80 (178.67 (2023) and 179.14 cm (2024)), P 40 (170.96 (2023) and 171.65 cm (2024)) and P 0 (162.80 (2023) and 169.91 cm (2024)).

Figure 1.

Residual effect of Organic mulch (un mulch (UM), rice straw mulch (RSM) and maize stover mulch (MSM) and rate of P (P 120 (120 kg P ha -1

)), P 80 (80 kg P ha -1 ), P 40 (40 kg P ha -1 ) and P 0 (0 kg P ha -1 ) on plant height of sweetcorn during 2023 (a, b) and 2024 (c, d). Note: Different lower-case alphabets within same legend (continued on next page) indicate significant difference at p = 0.05 as per DMRT post-hoc analysis

Dry matter and CGR

The residual effect of rate of P and organic mulch on dry matter is represented in Fig. 2. The dry matter content was increased with the crop duration up to 60 DAS, thereafter, increased at a decreasing rating up to harvest of the crop. RSM has reported significantly higher dry matter over MSM and UM. During the of harvest, RSM reported highest dry matter accumulation (42.80 (2023) and 43.23 g plant -1 (2024)) followed by MSM (38.00 (2023) and 38.92 g plant -1 (2024)) and UM (35.14 (2023) and 36.34 g plant -1

(2024)). Among the residual rate of P application P 120 has reported significantly highest dry matter accumulation over the other treatments. At the time of harvest P 120 has reported highest dry matter (41.67 and 42.05 g palnt -1 ) followed by P 80 (39.83 and 40.97 g plant-1), P 40 (37.53 and 38.85 g plant -1 ) and P 0 (35.55 and 37.32 g plant -1

Figure 2.

Residual effect of Organic mulch (un mulch (UM), rice straw mulch (RSM) and maize stover mulch (MSM) and rate of P (P 120 (120 kg P ha -1

)), P 80 (80 kg P ha -1 ), P 40 (40 kg P ha -1 ) and P 0 (0 kg P ha -1 ) on dry matter of sweetcorn during 2023 (a, b) and 2024 (c, d). Note: Different lower-case alphabets within same legend indicates significance at p = 0.05 as per DMRT post-hoc analysis Crop Growth Rate (CGR) has increased up to 45 days after sowing then maintained constant up to 75 DAS, then declined up to harvest during both the experimental years. Over the entire growing period, highest CGR was recorded during 60-75 DAS over all the treatments. RSM has reported highest CGR (6.65 and 6.95 g m -2 day -1 ) over MSM (6.11 and 6.42 g m -2 day -1 ) and UM (4.80 and 5.29 g m -2 day -1

). Among the residual rate of P application P 120 has reported significantly highest CGR over other treatments during both experimental years. During 60-75 DAS, P 120 (6.57 and 6.67 g m -2 day -1 ) has reported highest CGR followed by P 80 (6.47 and 6.58 g m -2 day -1 ), P 40 (5.54 and 6.13 g m -2 day -1 ) and P 0 (4.82 and 5.51 g m -2 day -1 ).

Figure 3. Residual effect of Organic mulch (un mulch (UM), rice straw mulch (RSM) and maize stover mulch (MSM) and rate of P (P 120 (120 kg P ha -1

)), P 80 (80 kg P ha -1 ), P 40 (40 kg P ha -1 ) and P 0 (0 kg P ha -1 ) on CGR of sweetcorn during 2023 (a, b) and 2024 (c, d). Note: Different lower-case alphabets within same legend indicate significance at p = 0.05 as per DMRT post-hoc analysis

LAI

LAI was reported increasing trend up to 75 DAS, thereafter has decreased up to harvest (Fig. 3.). Residual organic mulch levels had significantly affected LAI, with RSM has reported significantly highest LAI followed by MSM and UM over the entire growing period.

During 75 DAS, RSM (5.42 and 5.63) has reported highest LAI followed by MSM (5.17 and 5.30) and UM (4.94 and 5.03). Among the rate of P, P 120 (5.40 and 5.75) treatment has reported significantly highest LAI, followed by P 80 , (5.25 and 5.36), P 40 (5.07 and 5.16) and P 0 (4.97 and 5.00). )), P 80 (80 kg P ha -1 ), P 40 (40 kg P ha -1 ) and P 0 (0 kg P ha -1 ) on LAI of sweetcorn during 2023 (a, b) and 2024 (c, d). Note: Different lower-case alphabets within same legend indicate significance difference at p = 0.05 as per DMRT post-hoc analysis

Yield parameters

The residual effect of organic mulch and rate of P is presented in ) and UM (3.64 and 3.84 t ha -1 ). Green fodder yield followed the same trend. Harvest Index was not significantly affected by organic mulch levels. Rate of P has significantly influenced yield and yield attributes of sweetcorn crop (Table .1.). P 120 (23.96 ) has reported highest cob weight per plant followed by P 80 (79.83 and 80.51 g plant -1 ), P 40 (76.10 and 78.70 g plant -1 ) and P 0 (73.08 and 75.69 g plant -1 ). Green cob yield was reported significantly highest under P 120 (4.37 and 4.57 t ha -1 ) followed by P 80 (4.19 and 4.40 t ha -1 ), P 40 (4.09 and 4.12b t ha -1 ) and P 0 (3.90 and 3.89 t ha -1 ). The results for green fodder yield have followed similar trend. Harvest index of sweetcorn crop was not affected significantly by rate of P.

Discussions

Increased agricultural productivity has been linked to organic mulching practices, particularly live and leaf litter mulching. The fundamental causes may include mulching offers, reducing excessive evaporation to guarantee steady water supply for plants, inhibiting weed growth, promoting thermal balance, and enhancing nutrient cycling after breakdown and decomposition [Wu et al., 2016 [21] ]. Because of their higher capacity to recycle nutrients, living and leaf litter mulching specifically outperforms paddy straw mulching in terms of increasing crop yields. By strengthening soil fertility, this improved nutrient cycling ensures that plants receive nutrients continuously [Petrikovszki et al., 2021 [13] ]. The experiment has reported the significantly highest growth and yield under mulched conditions especially rice straw mulch over un mulch. Khan et al., 2024 reported that chichpea residue has reported more ear m -2 (7.2), grains ear -1 (442), 1000 grain weight (319.28 g), and grain yield (8993 kg ha -1 ) over wheat residue and control. Mulching could also promote the root growth (root length, root diameter, root surface area, and root volume), and also average root biomass by 17.27% (Yang et al., 2023). Ghuman et al., 2024 [3] reported that bulk density was not substantially impacted by the various tillage and residue retention combinations; nevertheless, conventional tillage with residue had lower BD values than other tillage techniques. The explanation for this could be the addition of organic matter through the assimilation of crop wastes. Adequate P availability is necessary for maintaining photosynthetic efficiency and normal crop growth [39,40]. Within an ideal range, a number of studies have reported a positive correlation between P application and crop yield. But adding excess P above a certain point doesn't boost production any more, in fact, it might cause a plateau or drop in yield along with resource waste and environmental hazards [Vance et al., 2010 [19] ; Kumari et al., 2021 [6] ]. Beyond the ideal range, excessive P application hinders the synthesis and transport of organic molecules, interferes with plant physiological processes, and decreases tolerance to biotic and abiotic stressors, all of which eventually limit crop output [Lü et al., 2025 [8] ]. The highest grain yields were recorded at 90 kg•P 2 O 5 ha -1 in 2021 (9520 kg ha -1 ) and 60 kg P 2 O 5 ha -1 in 2022 (12,880 kg ha -1 ) (Yang et al., 2025) [24] . Overall, this study suggest integrated use of crop residue mulch has significantly increased growth and yield of sweetcorn crop even as a residual effect of preceding potato crop.

The results of this study indicate that the benefits (and necessity) of combining organic mulch (rice straw mulch) with adequate residual phosphorus application for sweetcorn growth and productivity are very strong. Clearly, the crop may have the potential to reach a level beyond that which could be achieved by relying on conventional practices without consideration of the residual value of nutrients and organic inputs. The consistent performance of the RSM + P 120 combination in sweetcorn based cropping systems would support its adoption in sweetcorn based cropping systems, in our view. Such sustainable inputs should be the priority in future nutrient management strategies to maximize yield as well as soil fertility and system resilience over time.

References

1. Bunna S, Sinath P, Makara O, Mitchell J, Fukai S. . 2011;124:295-301.
2. Chowdhury RB, Zhang X. Phosphorus use efficiency in agricultural systems: A comprehensive assessment through the review of national scale substance flow analyses. Ecological Indicators. 2021;121:107172.
3. Ghuman RS, Singh H, Singh KB. Tillage, crop residue management and nitrogen application impacts on soil properties under maize-wheat (Zea mays-Triticum aestivum) cropping system. Indian Journal of Agronomy. 2024;69(2):137-143.
4. Huang GB, Luo ZZ, Li LL, Zhang RZ, Li GD, Cai LQ, Xie JH. Effects of stubble management on soil fertility and crop yield of rainfed area in Western Loess Plateau, China. Applied and Environmental Soil Science. 2012;2012:256312.
5. Khan ZH, Khalil SK, Nigar S, Khalil I, Haq I, Ahmad I, Ali A, Khan MY. Phenology and yield of sweet corn landraces influenced by planting dates. Sarhad Journal of Agriculture. 2009;25:153-157.
6. Kumari K, Samantaray S, Dinabandhu S, Tripathy B. Nitrogen, phosphorus and high CO₂ modulate photosynthesis, biomass and lipid production in the green alga Chlorella vulgaris. Photosynthesis Research. 2021;148:17-32.
7. Kumari S, Tzudir L, Gohain T, Singh AP, Nongmaithem D, Yadav R, Dutta M. Response of sweet corn (Zea mays saccharata L.) to varying tillage methods and seaweed bio-stimulant application. Indian Journal of Agricultural Research. 2025;1:6. International Journal of Research in Agronomy https://www.agronomyjournals.com 26180618, 2026, 9(9), Downloaded from https://www.doi.org/10.33545/2618060X.2026.v9.i9j.6592 by International Journal of Research in Agronomy on [23/09/2026]. See the Terms and Conditions (https://www.agronomyjournals.com) for rules of use; OA articles are governed by the applicable Creative Commons License
8. Lü SY, Yu XY, Wu XQ, Hu Q, Zhu X, Wu M, Hu Q, Zhao SS, Hu J, Wu JG et al. The microRNA399d-PHOSPHATE2 module alters rice sensitivity to rice ragged stunt virus by manipulating phosphate uptake. Plant Physiology. 2025;197:517.
9. Marlina N, Rahim SE, Hawayanti E. Utilization of organic fertilizer . 2017;97:1103.
10. Minhas R. Paradoxically vicious cycle of agriculture pollution: A contextual bibliographical review for prospective agenda. Plant Archives. 2020;20:3068-3075.
11. Pierzynski GM, Logan TJ. Crop, soil and management effects on phosphorus soil test levels: A review. Journal of Production Agriculture. 1993;6:513-520.
12. Pinjari S, Chavan S. Cultivation technology of sweet corn. Balti, Republic of Moldova: LAP LAMBERT Academic Publishing; 2017.
13. Petrikovszki R, Zalai M, Bogdanyi FT, Toth F, Nagy PI. Mulching with leaf litter from municipal green waste favours predatory mononchid nematodes. Agronomy. 2021;11:2522.
14. Ram KV, Raj AD, Patel KH. Effect of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium on yield quality, nutrient content and uptake of hybrid maize (Zea mays L.). Agricultural Science Digest. 2023;43(3):295-300.
15. Salman M, Inamullah, Jamal A, Mihoub A, Saeed MF, Radicetti E, Ahmad I, Naeem A, Ullah J, Pampana S. Composting sugarcane filter mud with different sources differently benefits sweet maize. Agronomy. 2023;13:748.
16. Titab D, Shri R, Nand R. Effect of long-term application of inorganic fertilizers and manure on yields, nutrient uptake and grain quality of wheat under rice-wheat cropping system in a Mollisol. Pantnagar Journal of Research. 2011;9:214-220.
17. Tollenaar M, Lee EA. Dissection of physiological processes underlying grain yield in maize by examining genetic improvement and heterosis. Maydica. 2006;51:399.
18. Ullah J, Shah S, Mihoub A, Jamal A, Saeed MF, Székely Á, Radicetti E, Salman M, Caballero-Calvo A. Assessing the effect of combining phosphorus fertilizers with crop residues on maize (Zea mays L.) productivity and financial benefits. Gesunde Pflanzen. 2023:1-14.
19. Vance CP, Claudia US, Allan DL. Phosphorus acquisition and use: Critical adaptations by plants for securing a non-renewable resource. New Phytologist. 2010;157:423-447.
20. Wu Y, Huang F, Zhang C, Jia Z. Effects of different mulching patterns on soil moisture, temperature and maize yield in a semi-arid region of the Loess Plateau, China. Arid Land Research and Management. 2016;30:490-504.
21. Yadav H, Fatima R, Sharma A, Mathur S. Enhancement of applicability of rock phosphate in alkaline soils by organic compost. Applied Soil Ecology. 2017;113:80-85.
22. Yang J, Zhou Y, Ye X, Liu E, Sun S, Ren X, Zhang P. Continuous ridge-furrow film mulching enhances maize root growth and crop yield by improving soil aggregates characteristics in a semiarid area of China: An eight-year field experiment. Plant and Soil. 2024;499(1):173-191.
23. Yang Q, Zhang H, Zhang X, Geng S, Zhang Y, Miao Y, Wang Y. Optimized phosphorus application enhances canopy photothermal responses, phosphorus accumulation and yield in summer maize. Agronomy. 2025;15(3):514.
24. Zheng YH, Wei JG, Li J, Feng SF, Li ZF, Jiang GM, Lucas M, Wu GL, Ning TY. Anaerobic fermentation technology increases biomass energy use efficiency in crop residue utilization and biogas production. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 2012;16:4588-4596.