Saline stress in maize grown in soil under different mulches

Abstract

The use of mulch in the soil attenuates saline stress in corn plants. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of irrigation with brackish water in soil under different plant mulches on the productive performance of corn. The study was carried out under field conditions, at the Piroás experimental farm at the Universidade da Integração Internacional da Lusofonia Afro-Brasileira, UNILAB, Redenção, Ceará, Brazil, from August to November 2020. The design was in a 5 × 3 factorial scheme, with four replications, the first factor being the electrical conductivity of the water, in which A1, A2, A3, A4, and A5, refers to 1.0, 2.0, 3.0, 4.0, and 5.0 dS m^-1, respectively, and the second factor the different types of mulch (no mulch - NM; mulch with banana leaves - MBL, and mulch with spontaneous plants - MSP. The following were evaluated: ear mass with and without straw, mass of 1,000 grains, length and diameter of the ear, and yield. Saline stress reduces the mass of 1,000 grains, the length and diameter of the ear of corn, the mass of the ear with and without straw in the presence mulch of weeds and banana leaves. The use of mulch of weeds and banana leaf mulch is more efficient for a smaller reduction in the weight of 1,000 grains compared to the control treatment (without mulch). Banana leaves and spontaneous plants associated with water of 1.0 and 3.0 dS m^-1 enabled higher yield compared to the treatment without mulch.