Measuring the Influence of Seedling Age and Nutrient Sources on the Performance of Sweet Corn (Zea mays L.) under Temperate Climatic Conditions

Bisma Jan; M Anwar Bhat; Tauseef A Bhat; Aijaz Nazir; Khursheed A Dar; Muhammad Kamran; Walid Soufan; Magdi T Abdelhamid; Ayman El Sabagh

doi:10.1021/acsomega.3c01518

Measuring the Influence of Seedling Age and Nutrient Sources on the Performance of Sweet Corn (Zea mays L.) under Temperate Climatic Conditions

ACS Omega. 2023 May 16;8(21):18981-18989. doi: 10.1021/acsomega.3c01518. eCollection 2023 May 30.

Authors

Bisma Jan¹, M Anwar Bhat², Tauseef A Bhat¹, Aijaz Nazir³, Khursheed A Dar¹, Muhammad Kamran⁴, Walid Soufan⁵, Magdi T Abdelhamid^{6

7}, Ayman El Sabagh⁸

Affiliations

¹ Division of Agronomy, Faculty of Agriculture, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir, Wadura, Sopore 193201, India.
² Directorate of Extension, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir, Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir 190025, India.
³ Agromet Unit, Faculty of Horticulture, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir, Shalimar, Srinagar 190025, India.
⁴ College of Pastoral Agriculture Science and Technology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730020, China.
⁵ Plant Production Department, College of Food and Agriculture Sciences, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2460, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia.
⁶ Department of Soil and Crop Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843-2474, United States.
⁷ Botany, National Research Centre, Cairo 12622, Egypt.
⁸ Department of Agronomy, Faculty of Agriculture, Kafrelsheikh University, Kafr El-Sheikh 33516, Egypt.

Abstract

An experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of the age of a seedling and sources of nutrients on the growth and yield of sweet corn at SKUAST-K during Kharif-2020. The experiment was performed under a factorial arrangement in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications. Factor A was the age of the seedling with three levels, viz., 12-day-old seedlings, 22-day-old seedlings, and 32-day-old seedlings. Factor B was the source of nutrients with five levels, viz., control, recommended dose of fertilizer (RDF), 1/2 RDF + 12 t ha^-1 farmyard manure, 1/2 RDF + 4 t ha^-1 vermicompost, and 1/2 RDF + 2 t ha^-1 poultry manure. The experiment was tested using variety Sugar-75 with a spacing of 75 × 20 cm². The findings of this study indicated that the age of the seedling and sources of nutrients extended a significant influence on growth parameters, yield attributes, and yield of sweet corn. Significantly highest values for various growth parameters of sweet corn, viz., plant height, number of functional leaves, leaf area index (LAI), and dry matter accumulation from 30 days after transplanting up to the harvest, were noted by transplanting A₂ seedlings (22 day old). A similar trend was observed for yield attributes and yield with higher values with transplanting A₂ seedlings (22 day old). Plots fertilized with 1/2 RDF + 2 t ha^-1 poultry manure registered a significantly higher plant height, leaf area index (LAI), dry matter accumulation, and number of functional leaves, which eventually resulted in a higher green cob yield and green fodder yield under the same treatment. Overall, this study indicated that among different ages of seedlings, transplanting A₂ seedlings (22 day old) outperformed other seedling ages, and plots treated with 1/2 RDF + 2 t ha^-1 poultry manure outperformed other treatments; a combination of both proved superior in realizing a higher yield and profitability with a benefit-cost ratio (BCR) of 6.57 under temperate climatic conditions.