Investigating the effect of different sources of nitrogen and organic fertilizers on the yield and yield components of Single Cross 704 corn in Dehlran region.

Dissertation for Master Degree in Agricultural Engineering (M.Sc)

Tension: Agriculture

Abstract

In order to investigate the effect of different sources of nitrogen and organic fertilizers on yield and yield components of single cross corn. 704 in Dehleran region was studied experimentally in the summer of 2013 in the form of split plots in the form of randomized complete block design in four replications. The main factor of the combination of nitrogen fertilizer and compost in 5 levels including A1 (100% compost), A2 (25% nitrogen fertilizer + 75% compost), A3 (50% nitrogen fertilizer and 50% compost), A4 (75% fertilizer) nitrogen and 25 compost), A5 (100% nitrogen fertilizer) and the secondary factor in two levels including (B1) inoculation with fertile biological fertilizer 2 and no inoculation with fertile biological fertilizer 2 (B2). The results of this study showed that the inoculation of corn seeds with Fertilizer 2 increased the yield components such as the number of rows in the cob, the number of seeds in the row and the weight of 1000 seeds and ultimately had a positive effect on increasing the seed yield. Also, the results of this experiment showed that the use of organic fertilizers alone was not able to meet the nutritional needs of corn and ultimately lead to a decrease in grain yield and yield components. Therefore, appropriate amounts of chemical fertilizers such as nitrogen, phosphorus and potash should also be used in using these fertilizers. Therefore, in this study, it was observed that the highest yield of corn was obtained in the treatment of seed inoculation with Fertilizer 2, as well as the treatment of 25% compost + 75% nitrogen fertilizer, with the values ??of 19.57 and 20.68 tons per hectare, respectively.

Key words: corn, fertilizer Nitrogen, Fertilizer 2, Compost

- Introduction

The growth and performance of agricultural plants in many regions of the world are limited by numerous living and non-living environmental stresses. For this reason, there is a significant difference between the actual performance and the potential performance of crops. In the coming decades, with the increase in population, these restrictions will affect the world's agriculture and natural resources in a more serious way. In the past, the first approach to reduce the effects of environmental stress was generally focused on the use of fertilizers, soil amendment, irrigation and the use of pesticides. In some agricultural areas, the widespread use of agricultural chemicals has led to the fragility of the ecosystem, reducing the stability of product quality and environmental protection. Increasing the salinity of water and soil, especially in areas where the intensity of agricultural land exploitation is high, is inevitable and a growing problem. Such approaches are now considered as factors of ecosystem instability, and at least in the short term there is no option to solve these problems. About 2500 thousand tons of seeds are harvested from the mentioned area. Of course, except for seeds, this product is also cultivated to obtain various other products, including industrial products, starch, food processing industries, and use as green fodder and silage. Currently, the area under fodder corn cultivation in the country is about 100 thousand hectares.

This study was carried out with the objectives of evaluating the separate and combined use of chemical, organic and biological fertilizers on the yield and yield components of grain corn in Ilam province. It is hoped that, with God's help, by recognizing the genetic potential of some of these hybrids and by examining the effect of the application of various nutrients and biological fertilizers such as vermicompost on increasing the quantitative and qualitative yield of corn, and by introducing and taking action to produce seeds and promote their cultivation in thousands of hectares of land prone to corn production in Ilamo province and other regions of the country, we will take a small step in increasing the yield and production of agricultural products and self-sufficiency in our country.

1-2- The history and origin of corn

Corn is one of the oldest crops that humans have realized its properties and importance and used it in their nutrition. Archaeological research in Mexico has determined that this plant was cultivated and used there about 4500 years before history.

With all this age, there are many disagreements about the origin and evolutionary process of this plant.. Because no wild plant has been found from which corn could have arisen. Due to the fact that the seeds are attached to the cob and covered by the sheath, this plant has been completely dependent on humans for the survival of its generation. In 1954, Bargun et al. reported that they obtained corn pollen from 70 meters underground in Mexico City, which was 80,000 years old. This report emphasizes that the ancestor of corn was a wild species and did not arise from two interbreedings among other species. It is also clear that the origin of corn is America. In Vaux in 1954, Mangels Dorf in 1965 and Galinat in 1971 discussed the origin of corn, and they all agreed that the original origin of corn is the American continent.

The French botanist Augustine de Saint-Hilaire in 1829 stated that the pod nature of corn was lost during its domestication. In 1986, Dr. Mengelsdorf proposed his hypothesis about the origin of corn by conducting a racial experiment. According to the results of the above-mentioned researches, one-year teosinte is not the ancestor of corn, contrary to some theories, but it is the cross of stable teosinte with a variety of corn selected by humans. This variety was developed over time from pod corn varieties. In addition, it is emphasized in the above report that the place of development of Mexican corn is in South America.

Corn was the main food crop in North, Central and South America before the discovery of the new continent. Archeological research in Mexico has determined that corn was cultivated there around 4500 BC. Domestication and selection of corn began in the same country. It has been found in Mexico and Central America, northeastern United States, the northern coast of South America, the Andes mountains and in the center of Brazil in different groups of corn cultivars. From the sixteenth century, Spain and Portugal rapidly distributed maize throughout the world (Jones, 1985). In most countries, corn has grown more than other grains, and its grain yield is higher than other grains.

The countries of the United States, the former Soviet Union, Romania, Yugoslavia, Hungary, Italy, China, Brazil, Mexico, South Africa, Argentina, India, and Indonesia are the main producers of corn. The main reason for this high dispersion is the presence of many corn additives. Corn is considered not only as the main food of the people, but also has a very important role and importance in people's lives, religious customs and ceremonies, and people's history in South, Central, and North America. Maize is a compactable and easily transportable food source. The husks on the ears protect it from birds and rain. Corn can be harvested and stored over a long period of time. It can also be allowed to dry completely in the field for easy harvesting. Many food products are obtained from corn and corn has gradually replaced sorghum and millet. The chemical composition of corn seed based on dry weight includes about 77% starch, 2% sugar, 9% protein, 5% pentosan, and 2% ash (Pierceglou, 1985), and in 1737 Linnaeus called corn zeaMays. The word zea is a Greek word whose root is zoein, which means life. zea (zeia) refers to covered seeds, especially Triticum spelta (essential plant for human life).

Climatic and soil requirements of corn due to having a large number of varieties with different ripening periods, it can grow in a wide range of environmental conditions. Basically, corn is a plant that grows in tropical countries with adequate humidity. This plant mostly grows in warmer areas of temperate and humid areas. Basically, corn grows in the latitudes of 50 degrees north to 40 degrees south and from sea level to 4000 meters in the mountain range of Andomexico. Water balance in the plant is maintained by evaporation and transpiration, rainfall and soil properties. Available reports indicate that the seasonal changes of evaporation and transpiration in this plant are large (440-1000 mm), which is influenced by the amount of available water and environmental parameters. Lack of water reduces the yield. During the growing period of corn, the amount of rainfall should be about 460-600 mm, and in the case of tropical corn, it should be 600-900 mm during the growing season. Lack of water, even at one stage of growth, reduces grain yield.