Exogenous application of plant bio-regulators improve yield and water use efficiency of maize under drought stress
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.59797/ija.v69i2.5504Keywords:
Drought stress, Plant bio-regulator, Rainfed maize, Salicylic acid, Water use efficiencyAbstract
Moisture stress in rainfed areas has significant adverse impact on plant growth and yield. Exogenous application of plant bio-regulators (PBRs) plays an important role to mitigate drought stress in plants. A field experiment was conducted during rainy (kharif) seasons of 2018 and 2019 to explore the positive role of PBRs on the yield, economic feasibility and water use efficiency of maize grown under rainfed conditions. Ten treatments including PBRs, mulching and control were evaluated in a randomized block design. The result showed that foliar spray of salicylic acid (0.5 mM) with 1% urea solution improved the grain yield of maize by 24% as compared to control plot. Other PBRs such as glycine betaine, gibberellic acid and thiourea also increased the grain yield in the range of 10–21%. Application of 1% urea solution with PBRs synergise the effect of PBR to alleviate drought stress. The foliar applied PBRs maintained higher membrane stability index (73–78%), significantly increased relative water content (5–11%), chlorophyll content and decreased the proline content (11–21%) as compared to plants grown in control plot. Significant increase were noted in the rain and crop water use efficiency of maize with the foliar application of PBRs. Net returns were improved by 33% with application of salicylic acid (0.5 mM) + 1% urea as compared to control (₹49 × 103 /ha). Thus, foliar spray of salicylic acid (0.5 mM) with 1% urea solution could be an economic feasible strategy to reduce the adverse effects of drought and may increase the maize yield and water use efficiency.
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