Impact of Anti-transpiration, Deficit Irrigation and Soil Organic Conditioners Application on Yield and Water Productivity of Corn Crop

Ibrahim, Abdel-Aty M.; Mohamed, Nagat G.; Hassanin, Sameh A.S.

doi:10.21608/fjard.2025.372505.1117

Impact of Anti-transpiration, Deficit Irrigation and Soil Organic Conditioners Application on Yield and Water Productivity of Corn Crop

Document Type : Research articles.

Authors

Soils and Water Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Fayoum University, Fayoum 63514, Egypt

10.21608/fjard.2025.372505.1117

Abstract

Anti-transpiration and soil organic conditioners play an important role in increasing crop and water productivity. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of anti-transpiration (K₂SiO₃), deficit irrigation (DI), and soil organic conditioners (SOC) on crop and water productivity of corn. Three main plots were used to receive DI treatments: I₁, 100%; I₂, 80%; and I3, 60% of crop evapotranspiration (ETc). Three sub-main plots to receive K₂SiO₃ rates: zero, 5, and 10 mM ha⁻¹. Four sub-sub-main plots to receive SOC applications: zero, 5 t ha^-1 of vermi-compost (VC), 10 t ha^-1 of biochar (Bio), and (2.5 t ha^-1 VC + 5 t ha^-1 Bio). The results indicate that the highest values of relative water content, grain yield, biomass yield, and economic income of the corn crop were 81.30%, 9.948 t ha⁻¹, 73.728 t ha⁻¹, and 95148 L.E. ha⁻¹, recorded at I₁ with VC (5 t ha⁻¹) and K₂SiO₃ rate 10 mM ha⁻¹. The highest value of water productivity was 1.457 kg m⁻³,recorded at I₃ with VC (5 t ha⁻¹) and K₂SiO₃ at a rate of 10 mM ha⁻¹. The effect of SOC application on the plant growth, yield, and economic income could be arranged in descending order as follows: VC > (½VC + ½ Bio) > Bio > control. Under scarcity of irrigation water, the use of K₂SiO₃(10 mM ha⁻¹)and VC application (5 t ha⁻¹) under DI treatment (I₂) could save about 20% of applied irrigation water with a low decrease in corn yield (˂ 10%).

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