Vol. 10 No. 2
Performance of baby corn (Zea mays L.) under the influence of in situ green manuring and phosphorus in acid soil of Meghalaya
Author(s): I. Kar and V. Ram
Abstract: Baby corn (Zea mays L.) is dehusked maize ear harvested within 2-3 days of silking, i.e. prior to fertilization. Being a short duration crop, it fits easily in an intensive cropping system. Depending upon the agro climatic conditions, 3 to 4 crops of baby corn can be taken up in a year with good profit and in addition to baby corn; it provides palatable green fodder to cattle. Baby corn crop, owing to its more profitability than grain maize, may be helpful in raising the income of the farmers of the North East region. Phosphorus is an essential element required for the growth of plants. It is an integral part of nucleic acid and plays a fundamental role in metabolism of fats, protein and starch. Despite its wide distribution in nature, P is a limited resource for plant growth and its low availability is a major constraint to crop production in acid soils (Redel et al., 2011). P fixation is the most limiting factor in acid soil particularly in the North Eastern region of India and P fertilizers are required to sustain optimum crop yields. Green manure has the ability to utilize the inaccessible fraction of phosphorus and make it available for crops. It is an important tool to improve soil fertility by enhancing organic carbon, nitrogen and other nutrients in available form in soil and lead to sustainable crop production (Fageria, 2007). The combined use of green manure with inorganic source of P fertilizer will increase the availability of phosphorus due to dissolution of sparingly soluble P sources and reduced Pretention (Bah et al., 2006). Hence the present investigation was carried out to study the combined effect of green manure and phosphorus on the performance of baby corn.
Download Full Article: Click Here