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Maize is the most widely grown cereal staple. Maize generates the biggest global tonnage, highest yield on a per hectare basis and the biggest above ground biomass of all the major, mainstream cereal crops.
Maize is the most widely grown crop in sub-Saharan Africa and a staple food for an estimated 50 per cent of the population. Maize is grown the length and breadth of Africa and key countries dominating maize production in the various regions are: South Africa (17.10 million tonnes – mt) and Malawi (3.72 mt) in Southern Africa, Nigeria (12.74 mt) and Ghana (3.40 mt) in West Africa, Ethiopia (10.20 mt), Tanzania (5.90 mt), Kenya (2.90 mt) and Uganda (2.80 mt) in Eastern Africa and Egypt (7.44 mt) in North Africa
Maize is a prime target for foliar feeding with soluble nutrients says Ben Odunlami (Technical Sales Manager, Africa) and Oskar Winkler (Export Sales Manager, Africa) at Omex Agrifluids in the United Kingdom and clearly with an eye on African maize production which is fast approaching 100 mt.
Soluble zinc as a seed treatment
Essential nutrients in the right amounts and proportions are, by definition a must for all crops including maize although some are ‘more essential than others’ depending on the crop. Zinc is the ‘make or break’ nutrient for maize. Zinc plays a crucial role in basic plant metabolism and enhances growth, yield, and the quality of maize grain by stimulating chlorophyll production, photosynthetic activity, uptake of other nutrients and protein biosynthesis.
As the ‘make or break’ nutrient for maize, zinc is required throughout the entire period of crop growth to ensure the harvest of zinc-enriched grain. Zinc enrichment of maize grain is a growing global challenge to ensure the health and well-being of human populations who rely on maize as the main staple. Many African countries fall into this category.
There are major constraints on zinc moving from the soil and into the roots of the maize plant. Soils may be inherently deficient in zinc or deficient in plant available zinc because the micronutrient is locked up due to specific soil or climatic conditions. Zinc deficiency is aggravated by in soils with high organic matter, a high pH (alkaline) and those rich in phosphorous, which locks up zinc as insoluble zinc phosphate. Clearly there has to be another way to get zinc into the maize plant and that avenue is through the leaves using soluble zinc as a foliar spray.
“Top of our product list for treatment of maize with zinc is Kingfol Zn formulated with the highest quality mineral elements, marketed as a highly concentrated liquid formulation (70% Zn w/v) and in this instance applied as a seed treatment @ 0.25l/100kg seed,” says Ben. The constituents disperse easily with no requirement for pre-mixing and ideal for correcting a specific zinc deficiency.
Bio boost for maize seedlings
“Targeted at the seedling stage is a pair of products that boost maize seedling growth and establishment”, said Oskar Winkler. They are Omex 3X Emulsion with a full complement of macro and micronutrients and Omex Bio 20 offering the same nutrient profile, but with an added biostimulant boost to root development, and achieved by inclusion of organic material sourced from a specific marine alga (seaweed). “These products are must for maize farmers”, says Oskar.
The beauty of Bio 20 is how it allows maize to ‘max-out’ in yield and production even when at risk from damage caused by high atmospheric temperatures, unfavourable soil conditions including moisture availability and disease; and risks that will sound highly familiar to maize farmers across Africa. “African maize producers can use either depending upon the availability in their country. Both are applied as foliar sprays in the early vegetative stages of the crop,” Oskar told Arab World Agribusiness.
Potassium – the gatekeeper nutrient
Potassium is required in large amounts for normal growth and development and during its pivotal role in plant metabolism and water relations. As such potassium is called ‘the gatekeeper’. Potassium plays an important role in regulating the water content of the plant and with an adequate supply of potassium plants can survive drought stress more easily.
Potassium is essential for the transport of sugar from the leaves to the storage organs where the sugar is converted to starch. It plays a major role in maintaining the turgor (rigidity) of plant tissue. Leaves need to be turgid to remain fully extended to maximise the surface exposed to sunlight that provides the energy to convert carbon dioxide in the atmosphere to sugars in the leaves. Plants well supplied with potassium also seem to be less susceptible to pest attacks and infection by pathogenic fungi.
“Potassium is clearly major requirement for fast growing maize crops and in quantity,” says Ben Odunlami. Omex offers two equivalent products – Omex K41 (41.00% potassium w/v) and Omex Sequential 2 (40.00% potassium w/v) and applied as foliar sprays at, respectively, 3.0 -5.0 l/ha and 2.5 l/ha. Maize growers can use either depending upon availability in their country to rest assured they are furnishing the very high requirement for potassium,” says Ben.
More zinc required
In general maize crops ‘cannot get enough zinc’. Oskar and Ben told Arab World Agribusiness how zinc has gone foliar in application to growing maize crops, so I asked them what Omex had to offer African maize growers to satisfy this high requirement for zinc during the active growth stages of the crop.
“This high and essential requirement can be provided by one of our newest and most novel products. Omex Zynergy containing zinc (4.72% w/v) but also copper (2.66% w/v) and sulphur (9.10% w/v). Zynergy is applied as a foliar spray at 0.5 – 1.0 l of product per ha. This unique complex of copper and zinc corrects deficiencies and improves plant health and tolerance to abiotic stress,” Oskar and Ben told Arab World Agribusiness.
Zinc is at the very heart of maize metabolism and the most common micronutrient deficiency in this cereal crop. Zinc is involved in the formation and activation of plant hormones (auxins), like Indole Acetic Acid (IAA) and which regulate root development, water uptake, flowering and fruit and seed set. The micronutrient plays a key role in chlorophyll production, carbohydrate metabolism and cell elongation which in turn impacts leaf size and early corn ear development. Zinc is also reported as crucial in attaining and maintaining high pollen viability and minimising the occurrence of inferior grains in the mature corn ear.
Copper plays an important part in photosynthesis and the binding of cells that support plant structure. And thus positively affecting stem strength and the development of new shoot and root tissue. Copper is also a co-factor for a number of enzymes involved in protein synthesis and carbohydrate metabolism. Last but not least copper forms part of phenolic compounds that plants use to suppress infection by pathogenic microbes.
Sulphur – a ‘new’ nutrient requirement for maize
Last but not least in the Omex portfolio of products for African maize is Omex Sulphomex containing nitrogen (15.00% w/v) and sulphur (87.50% w/v). Deficiencies of either nutrient are reflected in both crop yield and quality with deficiency symptoms as various forms of foliar chlorosis (leaf yellowing), and often difficult to distinguish.
The source of sulphur deficiency is the most interesting. In years gone by sulphur from industrial pollution was an important source for cereal crops including maize. But as countries across the world including those in Africa strive to clean up their industries, so sulphur deficiency has shown itself with farmers required to rectify the situation. “Omex Sulphomex is applied as a foliar spray to maize at a rate of 1.5 – 3.0 l/ha, Dr Ben Odunlami told Arab World Agribusiness.
Sulphur is a structural component of two major amino acids, cysteine, and methionine, which are essential for the formation of proteins with numerous roles in the maize plant such as: chlorophyll production, tissue growth and cell development, carbon and nitrogen metabolism and the production of energy via light-powered photosynthesis.
Foliar feeding the way forward for maize Foliar feeding is clearly the way forward for maize. It allows farmers to rapidly treat crops with appropriate products at the right time in relation to specific stages in crop growth and development and any specific nutrient deficiency. Omex Agrifluids has a comprehensive portfolio of high quality soluble nutrient products in both liquid and water soluble suspension to meet maize farmers’ needs across the continent of Africa