Plant Soil Environ., 2014, 60(1):1-7 | DOI: 10.17221/208/2013-PSE

The impact of nitrogen fertilizer injection on kernel yield and yield formation of maizeOriginal Paper

K. Kubešová, J. Balík, O. Sedlář, L. Peklová
Department of Agroenvironmental Chemistry and Plant Nutrition, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Prague, Czech Republic

In field experiments over three vegetation periods (2010-2012) we studied impact of the CULTAN (controlled uptake long term ammonium nutrition) method on yield and yield parameters of kernel maize. The field experiments were conducted at three sites with different soil-climatic conditions. CULTAN treatments were fertilized once with the total amount of nitrogen using an injection machine (at the canopy height of 20 cm) and compared to conventional fertilization with calcium ammonium nitrate application at pre-sowing preparations. In all treatments the amount of nitrogen was the same, 140 kg N/ha. In 2010 at Humpolec site, CULTAN urea ammonium nitrate + inhibitor of nitrification treatment gave by 20.5% higher number of ears compared to CULTAN urea ammonium nitrate treatment. In 2011 at Ivanovice all CULTAN treatments reached statistically significantly higher number of kernels per ear. The higher 1000 kernel weight at CULTAN treatments was observed in 2012 at the Ivanovice site; a statistically significant difference between conventional and CULTAN urea ammonium nitrate + inhibitor of nitrification treatment was observed. Fertilization of maize with nitrogen using the CULTAN method under the conditions of the Czech Republic provides the same yield certainty as the conventional surface application and the CULTAN method of fertilization increases the yield certainty at delayed sowing. Harvest index was statistically significantly influenced by year, fertilization treatment and site.

Keywords: ammonium; number of ears per plant; number of kernels per ear; thousand weight kernel; harvest index

Published: January 31, 2014  Show citation

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Kubešová K, Balík J, Sedlář O, Peklová L. The impact of nitrogen fertilizer injection on kernel yield and yield formation of maize. Plant Soil Environ. 2014;60(1):1-7. doi: 10.17221/208/2013-PSE.
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