COMBATING THE NEGATIVE EFFECT OF SOIL SALINITY STRESS AT SAHL EL-TINA AREA ON MAIZE GROWTH AND PRODUCTIVITY USING SOME FERTILZATION MANIPULTIONS | ||||
| Fayoum Journal of Agricultural Research and Development | ||||
| Article 8, Volume 25, Issue 1, January 2011, Page 107-123 PDF (647.38 K) | ||||
| Document Type: Research articles. | ||||
| DOI: 10.21608/fjard.2011.195480 | ||||
 View on SCiNiTO | ||||
| Authors | ||||
| Kadria M. El-Azab; Ahmed Kh. Amer; Ibrahim A.E. Hegab A.E. Hegab; Tarek A. Abou El-Defan | ||||
| Soils, Water and Environ. Res. Institute, Agric. Res. Center, Giza, Egypt | ||||
| Abstract | ||||
| A field study was conducted on a sandy loam soil that is suffering from salinity stress and Zn-deficient at a newly reclaimed area of Galbana Village No. 7, Sahl El-Tina, North Sinai, Egypt during a growing summer season of 2009 to identify some scientific approaches for alleviating the negative effect of soil salinity stress on the future projects in agricultural utilization. The applied treatments were two solid N-mineral forms (i.e., urea of 46 N% and ammonium sulfate of 20.6 N%) were added at the recommended dose of 120 kg N/fed as soil application as well as three liquid mixtures of (1.0 g K-humate of 85 % + 0.5 g Zn SO4, which dissolved in 1 L water), (0.5 g Zn SO4 dissolved in 1 L of soaking water extract of compost tea) and (0.75 g ZnSO4 dissolved in 1 L water) were added at two equal doses of 300 L/fed for each one either as foliar spray on plants or as soil application on the soil rows of growing plants. Maize (Zea mais L., Three cross 321 cv.) was undertaken as plant indicator to identify its possible response to grow under soil salinity stress of Sahl El-Tina area as well as the relationship between either maize yield or grain quality and the expected amelioration process in the experimental soil properties as a result of the applied treatments. The obtained results indicated that the experimental soil could be classified as "Typic Torriorthents, loamy skeletal, mixed, thermic". Also, wetness, soil texture, CaCO3, gypsum and salinity/alkalinity represent the main limitations for soil productivity, with an intensity degree of moderate (65-75%), for wetness, soil texture and salinity/alkalinity as well as slight (90-85 %) for the other ones. The suitability classes for irrigated agriculture land in both current and potential conditions could be belong the marginally (S3ws1n) and moderately (S2s1) suitable classes, respectively. Moreover, the resultant adaptations of soil suitability class for cultivating maize plants could be considered as marginally suitable (S3s1n), and limiting factors of soil texture and salinity/alkalinity in the current condition. Soil suitability becomes a moderately suitable (S2s1) in the potential condition, and soil texture still becomes a limiting factor. The obtained results showed also that the studied maize plant parameters such as growth characters (i.e., nutrient contents uptake by leaf tissues), ear characters (i.e., length and diameter), biological yield (i.e., grain and stalk yields fed-1), grain quality (i.e., weight of 100 kernels and crude protein %) and grain nutritional status (i.e., N, P, K, Fe, Mn and Zn contents) were recorded the best values at the applied rates of ammonium sulfate as a main source of Nmineral as compared to the same applied rats of urea. In addition, the liquid fertilizer mixture of (0.5 g Zn SO4 dissolved in 1 L of soaking water extract of compost tea) surpassed the other applied two mixtures for the previous plant parameters. Moreover, the applied liquid fertilizer mixtures, in general, were more effective on plant parameters when added as soil application on soil rows of grown plants as compared with directly foliar spray on plants. Thus, fertilizing maize plants with ammonium sulfate should be enhanced soil availability of plant nutrient, due to the effective role of both accompanied cationic (NH4+) and anionic (SO42-) forms. However, the applied N- NH4+ causes a N-soil potentially safe over a wide range due to lower risks of volatilization, leaching and de-nitrification losses as well as lowering soil pH due to for the SO42- ions. Also, it was found that both soaking water extract of compost tea and K-humate as a soil liquid fertilizer are not only considered as a strategic storehouse for essential plant nutrients but also enhancing nutrients uptake, reducing the uptake of some toxic elements and supporting Zn-deficient as well as improving the nutrients balance in the soil solution and many of the physiological processes in plants under soil salinity stress. Such favourable conditions were positively reflected on ameliorating maize growth parameters and grain yield with high quality of nutritional status. | ||||
| Keywords | ||||
| Maize; saline soil; N-mineral; K-humate; urea; ammonium sulfate and soil salinity stress | ||||
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