Evaluation of Nitrogen Absorption and Use Efficiency in Relay Intercropping of Winter Wheat and Maize

Document Type : Research Article

Authors

A Koocheki

Z Borumand Rezazadeh

M Nasiri mahalati

S Khorramdel

10.22067/gsc.v10i2.16215

Abstract

In order to evaluate the effect of nitrogen absorption and use efficiency in relay intercropping for winter wheat and maize, a field experiment was conducted during 2008-2009 at the Agricultural Research Station of Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Iran. A randomized block design with three replications was used. Treatments included four combinations of relay intercropping of wheat and maize (three rows of wheat + one row of maize (3:1), three rows of wheat + two rows of maize (3:2), four rows of wheat + two rows of maize (4:2) and six rows of wheat + two rows of maize (6:2)) and their monoculture. Results indicated that the effect of relay intercropping on the absorbed nitrogen, nitrogen relative absorption, nitrogen absorption and use efficiency of maize and wheat was significant (p≤0.05). The highest and the lowest nitrogen absorption efficiency of wheat and maize were observed in three rows of wheat + two rows of maize (33.70 and 36.50 kg tissue N content kg-1 soil N) and monoculture (14.73 and 19.37 kg tissue N content kg-1 soil N), respectively. Range of nitrogen relative absorption of intercropped wheat and maize were 1.47-1.08 and 0.41-0.54, respectively. Nitrogen use efficiency of wheat and maize were 88.62 and 147.33 kg seed N content kg-1 tissue N content, respectively. In general, relay intercropping of winter wheat with maize increased nitrogen absorption and use efficiency.

Keywords

Absorption productivity

Land use ratio

Relative nitrogen absorption

20.1001.1.20081472.1391.10.2.9.0

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