Fertilization and uptake of macroelements with maize biomass - a pot experiment with Haplic Vertisol
Iliyana Gerasimova
, Ana Katsarova
, Zdravka Petkova
Abstract: The study was conducted in a pot experiment on Leached Smolnitsa (Haplic Vertisol, FAO). The aim was to evaluate the effect of different norms and combinations of nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, and silicon fertilizers and their impact on the content and uptake of some main macro elements on the growth of maize (Zea mays L.), an early to medium-early hybrid, Р-8834 from group 310 FAO “Pioneer”. The experiment includes 16 variants of fertilization with three repetitions. Solid granular ammonium nitrate was used as a source of nitrogen, triple superphosphate as a phosphorus (P) fertilizer, solid potassium sulfate as a potassium (K) macronutrient, and silicon (Si) as diatomic earth. These fertilizers varied in the amounts of active substances in mg/pot and were added to the experimental containers, each with a 3 kg capacity, before sowing the seeds. Data were obtained on the yield of fresh and dry biomass from the above-ground part, as well as the content of N, P, K, and Si in the resulting dry biomass from the plants. According to the experimental data obtained, the content and export of the examined macroelements in maize biomass were significantly influenced by the imported norms and combinations of fertilizers. The highest uptake of nitrogen was observed in the variants with the following norms: N400, N300, and N200. On the Leached Smolnitsa, the export of K with maize was higher compared to the exports of all other elements examined. It was established that the changes in the uptake of macroelements significantly follow changes in the quantities of the relevant aspects in dry biomass across the experiment variants, with increasing rates of K fertilization, not only the content but also its export with maize increases. For the remaining elements, N, P, and Si, exports increase with the increase in the fertilization rate up to the N300, P240, and Si 1200 rates. At the same time, at the highest rates, respectively, P320 and Si2000, their exports with plants slightly decrease.
Keywords: fertilization rates; N, P, K, Si export by dry matter of maize biomass; nitrogen; phosphorus, potassium, and silicon fertilizers
Citation: Gerasimova, I., Katsarova, A. & Petkova, Z. (2025). Fertilization and uptake of macroelements with maize biomass – a pot experiment with Haplic Vertisol. Bulg. J. Agric. Sci., 31(5), 887–894
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| Date published: 2025-10-28
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