Effect of different nitrogen levels, plant population and soil nutrient status on yield and yield components of maize (Zea mays L.) in different ecological zones of Nigeria

Abstract

Field studies on the effect of nitrogen levels, plant population and soil nutrient status on maize yield and yield components at eight different sites representing six different ecological maize growing zones of Nigeria conducted during 1976Nigeria conducted during , 1977Nigeria conducted during and 1978 indicated that N significantly influenced yield at six of the eight sites, NIFOR, Umudike and Uyo (rain forest zone), Mokwa and Samaru (Savanna zone) and Riyom (derived savanna zone). Optimum N required for maize varies between 50 and 100 kgN in the different zones. There was no response to spacing except at Umudike, Uyo and Riyom, and no significant interaction between N and spacing at any location.Nitrogen application significantly influenced earweight at lkenne, NIFOR, Umudike, Uyo and Mokwa.Nitrogen application had a significant effect on the number of cobs at NIFOR, Uyo and Mokwa, while spacing significantly influenced number of cobs at all locations except Uyo. Husk weight was significantly increased by nitrogen application at four locations, NIFOR, Uyo, Mokwa and Samaru, but spacing had no effect on this yield component in any of the other locations except Umudike. There was an N by spacing interaction on husk weight at Umudike and Mokwa.Nitrogen application significantly influenced lodging at tasseling at Uyo, Mokwa and Riyom, whilst there was a significant effect of spacing at Uyo and Samaru. At harvest, lodging was not influenced by N application but spacing significantly affected lodging at Ibadan and NIFOR.Both N application and spacing had no significant effect on shelling percentage at any location.The high correlation between relative yield and available Zn(r = 0.77"), Cu (r = 0.63) and Fe (r = --0.66) of the soil at all the locations has shown that:(i) other nutrients besides N, P and K affected maize yield, therefore the inclusion of other nutrients besides N, P and K in the fertilizer recommendation for maize should be encouraged; (ii) different levels of NPK fertilizer plus other nutrients are required in each ecological zone and this can be determined by soil testing.Response of maize to varying plant population at different soil fertifity status depends on climatic conditions, spacing and genetic factors. It has been shown that differences in light utilization by varieties are related to their level *Significant at 5% level. Fertilizer Research 2:1 77-191 {1981) 016 7-1 731/81/0023-01 77 ¢02.25

Effects of NPK Fertilizer on Tuber Yield, Starch Content and Dry Matter Accumulation of White Guinea Yam (Dioscorea rotundata) in a Forest Alfisol of South Western Nigeria

“…The optimum nitrogen required for successful yam production on Alfisols that have been cultivated for at least two years was shown to be 35 kg ha" 1 , but there was no response to applications of phosphorus or potassium despite the wide variation in soil ^ status, thus confirming the work of Irving (1956) and Vanderzaag et al (1980). The significant correlation of tuber yield with soil nitrogen and potassium content suggests that soil nutrient status can exert a significant influence on crop yield, as shown for maize by Kayode and Agboola (1981). Obigbesan (1973) reported that applications of potassium significantly increased dry matter accumulation and starch content of cassava, but in this study on yam large applications of potassium had no significant effect on starch content although they reduced dry matter accumulation.…”

Effects of density of planting and time of nitrogen application on maize varieties in different ecological zones of West Africa

“…Planting of maize at high densities had been found to require correspondingly high rates of N (Lucas and Sagbohan, 1984). Also for effective utilization of N by maize, time and frequency of application had been found to be important (Kayode and Agboola, 1981). In this study, the range of density used was wide enough to bring out the actual relationship between total dry matter yield per unit area and density of planting and total grain yield per Downloaded by [University of Aberdeen] at 23:38 27 December 2014 hectare and density of planting.…”

Interaction of crude oil and manure treatments and its effects on the agronomic characteristics of maize (<i>Zea mays</i> l.)

“…Many researchers have reported the effect of crude oil on the soil and the capacity of some organic manure in the remediation of oil polluted soils (Kayode & Agboola 2003). Although several methods have been used to remediate soils contaminated with inorganic chemicals, the recent is the use of micro-organisms (James et al 1996) through a process called Bioremediation (Sasikumar & Taniya 2003).…”