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

پژوهشهای زراعی ایران

Article 9, Volume 10, Issue 2 - Serial Number 26, July 2012, Pages 327-334   

Document Type: Research Article

DOI: 10.22067/gsc.v10i2.16215

Authors

A Koocheki^* ; Z Borumand Rezazadeh; M Nasiri mahalati; S Khorramdel

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