Effect of Different Sources and Levels of Sulphur under Irrigated Condition in Maize

Maize has a greater significance in irrigated condition and is used as human food and animal feed. In recent years, it is being realised that apart from the major nutrients, the role of secondary nutrients in general and sulphur in particular in increasing yield and quality of maize is of paramount importance. A field experiment was conducted during rabi season of 2011 at Saidapur farm, University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad, India to evaluate the response of maize to different sources and levels of sulphur in sandy clay loam soil. The results revealed that grain yield differed significantly due to different sources and levels of sulphur applied. Among the sources, application of sulphur through Bentonite recorded significantly higher grain yield (42.35 q ha-1) as against gypsum (38.98 q ha-1). This increase in grain yield was 31.60 and 21.3% with the application of bentonite and gypsum, respectively compared to control. With respect to levels, increasing levels of sulphur significantly increased the grain yield of maize from 33.02 to 48.56 q ha-1 with rise in sulphur level of 10 to 50 kg ha-1. Among the treatment combinations 50 kg S ha-1 through Bentonite recorded significantly higher grain yield of 48.56 q ha-1 compared to other treatment combinations but was on par with treatment receiving 40 kg S ha-1 through Bentonite (45.64 q ha-1). The lowest yield was recorded under control (32.18 q ha-1). A similar trend was followed for growth and yield parameters.