EFFECT OF PLANTING CONFIGURATION ON THE GROWTH AND YIELD OF WHITE MAIZE

Abstract

The present piece of work was performed at the experimental field of Sher-e- Bangla Agricultural University, Sher-e-Bangla Nagar, Dhaka during the period from November, 2015 to April, 2016 to study effect of effect of planting configuration on the growth and yield of white maize. The experiment comprised of two factors viz. factor A: Two white maize varieties (V = KS510

and V 2 = PSC-121) and factor B: five plant spacing (T = 40 cm × 25 cm spacing, T 2 = 50 cm × 25 cm spacing, T 3 1 = 60 cm × 25 cm spacing, T = 70 cm × 25 cm spacing and T = Double rows of 50 cm × 25 cm spacing). The experiment was laid out in Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with three replications. The results of the experiment revealed that, both varieties of white maize showed similar result in most of the plant characters. The highest grains cob -1 5 (506.5), grains row -1 (36.05) and rows cob -1 (14.11) were recorded from plant spacing 70 cm × 25 cm. Plant spacing double rows of 50 cm × 25 cm performed best among five plant spacing in case of 100 grain weight (40.17 g), grain yield (9.68 t ha -1 ), stover yield (13.62 t ha -1 ), biological yield (23.30 t ha -1 ) and harvest index (41.47 %). Plant spacing 40 cm × 25 cm showed the lowest result in all yield and yield contributing characters. Interaction of variety PSC-121 with double rows of 50 cm × 25 cm plant spacing gave highest 100 grain weight (40.33 g), grain yield (10.50 t ha -1 4 ), stover yield (14.01 t ha ), biological yield (24.51 t ha -1 ) and harvest index (42.84 %). On the other hand interaction of variety PSC-121 with plant spacing 40 cm × 25 cm showed the lowest results. So, it may be concluded that white maize variety PSC-121along with double rows of 50 cm × 25 cm plant spacing might be suggested to be followed in white maize production.