Morphological and Phenological Attributes of Maize Affected by Different Tillage Practices and Varied Sowing Methods

Shakeel A. Anjum, Ehsanullah  , Umair Ashraf, Mohsin Tanveer, Rafi Qamar, Imran Khan

Department of Agronomy, University College of Agriculture, University of Sargodha, Sargodha, Pakistan.
Department of Agronomy, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Pakistan.

DOI: 10.4236/ajps.2014.511180                

Abstract

To check the performance of maize under different tillage practices and varied sowing methods, an experiment was conducted at Agronomic Research Area, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad. The experiment was carried out in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with split plot arrangement with three replications. Different tillage practices viz, conventional tillage, minimum tillage and deep tillage were kept in main plots while sowing methods viz, flat sowing, ridge sowing and bed sowing were allocated to subplots. The maize hybrid “Pioneer-32T16” was sown on 24^th February, 2012. Data pertaining to morphological and phenological attributes of maize showed that tillage practices and sowing methods had a significant effect on Germination count·m^-2 (7.8), leaf area per plant (5010 cm²), leaf area index (4.87), crop growth rate (20.69 g·m^-2·d^-1), plant height (213.04 cm), number of leaves per plant (11.89), days to 50% tasseling (72.44) and days to 50% silking (73.77). Economically, maize sown on ridges under deep tillage gave maximum net income of Rs. 85162 ha^-1 while minimum net income of Rs. 56984 ha^-1 was found where flat sowing was adopted under minimum tillage system and also more BCR of 1.70 was recorded in ridge sown maize under deep tillage.

Keywords

Maize, Growth, Tillage, Sowing Methods

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

References

[1]	Hunje, R., Hanegave, A. and Nadaf, H. (2011) Effect of Seed Priming on Seed Quality of Maize (Zea mays L.). Karnataka Journal of Agricultural Sciences, 24, 237-238.
[2]	Ullah, I., Ali, M. and Farooqi, A. (2010) Chemical and Nutritional Properties of Some Maize (Zea mays L.) Varieties Grown in NWFP, Pakistan. Pakistan Journal of Nutrition, 9, 1113-1117. http://dx.doi.org/10.3923/pjn.2010.1113.1117
[3]	Kumar, M.A.A., Gali, S.K. and Hebsur, N.S. (2007) Effect of Different Levels of NPK on Growth and Yield Parameters of Sweet Corn. Karnataka Journal of Agricultural Sciences, 20, 41-43.
[4]	Chaudhry, A.R. (1983) Maize in Pakistan. Agri. Res. Co-Ordination Board, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, 85-86.
[5]	Government of Pakistan (2011) Agricultural Statistics of Pakistan. Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Livestock, Government of Pakistan, Islamabad.
[6]	Kepner, R.A., Bainer, R. and Barger, E.L. (1982) Principles of Farm Machinery. 3rd Edition, AVI Publishing, INC., Westport.
[7]	Khurshid, K., Iqbal, M., Arif, M.S. and Nawaz, A. (2006) Effect of Tillage and Mulch on Soil Physical Properties and Growth of Maize. International Journal of Agriculture and Biology, 8, 593-596.
[8]	Ali, M., Khalil, S.K., Ayaz, S. and Marwat, M.I. (1998) Phenological Stages, Flag Leaf Area, Plant Height, and Leaves per Plant of Corn Influenced by Phosphorus Levels and Plant Spacing. Sarhad Journal of Agriculture, 14, 515-522.
[9]	Lal, R. (1990) Ridge-Tillage. Soil and Tillage Research, 18, 107-111. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0167-1987(90)90053-G
[10]	Bewley, J.D., Black, M. and Halmer, P. (2006) The Encyclopedia of Seeds, Science, Technology and Uses. CABI Publishers, Cambridge, 509.
[11]	Watson, D.J. (1947) Comparative Physiological Studies on the Growth of Field Crops. I. Variation in Net Assimilation Rate and Leaf Area between Species and Varieties and between Years. Annals of Botany, 11, 41-76.
[12]	Hunt, R. (1978) Plant Growth Analysis. Edward Arnold, London, 37.
[13]	Steel, R.G.D., Torrie, J.H. and Dicky, D.A. (1997) Principles and Procedures of Statistics: A Biological Approach. 3rd Edition, McGraw Hill, Inc. Book Co., New York, 352-358.
[14]	CIMMYT (1988) From Agronomic Data to Farmer Recommendations: An Economic Training Manual. Completely revised Edition, Mexico. http://apps.cimmyt.org/
[15]	Memon, S.Q., Baig, M.B. and Mari, G.R. (2007) Tillage Practices and Effect of Sowing Methods on Growth and Yield of Maize Crop. Agriculture Tropica et Subtrop, 40, 89-99.
[16]	Bakht, J., Ahmad, S., Tariq, M., Akber, H. and Shafi, M. (2006) Response of Maize to Planting Methods and Nitrogen Fertilizer. Journal of Agricultural and Biological Sciences, 1, 8-14.
[17]	Arif, M., Ihsanullah, Khan, S., Ghani, F. and Yousafzai, H.K. (2001) Response of Maize Varieties to Different Planting Methods. Sarhad Journal of Agriculture, 17, 159-163.
[18]	Borghei, A.M., Taghinejad, J., Minaei, S., Karimi, M. and Varnamkhasti, M.G. (2008) Effect of Sub-Soiling on Soil Bulk Density, Penetration Resistance and Cotton Yield in Northwest of Iran. International Journal of Agriculture and Biology, 1, 120-123.
[19]	Wasaya, A., Tahir, M., Manaf, A., Ahmed, M., Kaleem, S. and Ahmad, I. (2011) Improving Maize Productivity through Tillage and Nitrogen Management. African Journal of Biotechnology, 10, 19025-19034.
[20]	Najafinezhad, H., Javaheri, M.A., Gheibi, M. and Rostami, M.A. (2007) Influence of Tillage Practices on the Grain Yield of Maize and Some Soil Properties in Maize-Wheat Cropping System of Iran. Journal of Agriculture and Social Sciences, 3, 87-90.
[21]	Aikins, S.H.M., Afuakwa, J.J. and Owusu-Akuoko, O. (2012) Effect of Four Different Tillage Practices on Maize Performance under Rainfed Conditions. Agricultural and Biology Journal of North America, 3, 25-30. http://dx.doi.org/10.5251/abjna.2012.3.1.25.30
[22]	Rasheed, M., Mahmood, T. and Shafi Nazir, M. (2003) Response of Hybrid Maize to Different Planting Methods and Nutrient Management. Pakistan Journal of Agricultural Sciences, 40, 39-42.
[23]	Balasubramaniyan, P. and Palaniappan, S.P. (2001) Nutrient Management. Principles and Practices of Agronomy. Agrobios (India), Jodhpur, 185-188.
[24]	Majid, A., Shafiq, M. and Iqbal, M. (1986) Deep Tillage and Sowing Techniques in Maize Production under High Rainfed Conditions. Pakistan Journal of Agricultural Research, 7, 181-185.
[25]	Rehman, A., Saleem, M.F., Safdar, M.E., Hussain, S. and Akhtar, N. (2011) Grain Quality, Nutrient Use Efficiency and Bioeconomics of Maize under Different Sowing Methods and NPK Levels. Chilean Journal of Agricultural Research, 71, 586-593. http://dx.doi.org/10.4067/S0718-58392011000400014