Ammonia volatilization and yield components after application of polymer-coated urea to maize

• Autor(a) principal: Zavaschi,Eduardo
• Data de Publicação: 2014
• Outros Autores: Faria,Letícia de Abreu, Vitti,Godofredo Cesar, Nascimento,Carlos Antonio da Costa, Moura,Thiago Augusto de, Vale,Diego Wyllyam do, Mendes,Fernanda Latanze, Kamogawa,Marcos Yassuo
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: Revista Brasileira de Ciência do Solo (Online)
• Texto Completo: http://old.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0100-06832014000400016
• topic: nitrogen; polymer-coated urea; N fertilizer; ammonia volatilization; Zea mays; SPAD reading

A form of increasing the efficiency of N fertilizer is by coating urea with polymers to reduce ammonia volatilization. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of polymer-coated urea on the control of ammonia volatilization, yield and nutritional characteristics of maize. The experiment was carried out during one maize growing cycle in 2009/10 on a Geric Ferralsol, inUberlândia, MG, Brazil. Nitrogen fertilizers were applied as topdressing on the soil surface in the following urea treatments: polymer-coated urea at rates of 45, 67.5 and 90 kg ha-1 N and one control treatment (no N), in randomized blocks with four replications. Nitrogen application had a favorable effect on N concentrations in leaves and grains, Soil Plant Analysis Development (SPAD) chlorophyll meter readings and on grain yield, where as coated urea had no effect on the volatilization rates, SPAD readings and N leaf and grain concentration, nor on grain yield in comparison to conventional fertilization.