Journal of Vegetables Sciences

Journal of Vegetables Sciences

Evaluation of the effect of ascorbic acid foliar spraying on sweet corn under water stress

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
Azizollah Ghassemi 1
salim farzaneh 1
Sajjad Moharramnejad 2
Seyedeh Yalda Raisi Sadati 1
raouf seyed sharifi 1
Negin Taleschian Tabrizi 2
1 Department of plant genetics and production, Faculty of agriculture and natural resources, University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil, Iran.
2 Crop and Horticultural Science Research Department, Ardabil Agricultural and Natural Resources Research and Education Center, AREEO, Moghan, Iran.
10.22034/iuvs.2024.1978441.1255
Abstract
Extended Abstract
1. Introduction: Zea mays chase is used as a vegetable because of its unique characteristics. It is affected by abiotic and biotic environmental stress factors. Among these environmental stresses, the drought stress is the most dominant. Drought stress is the main cause of environmental stress conditions in the growth of plants, which has a negative effect on the growth and productivity of plants. Plants that reduce and prevent damage from environmental stresses react by decreasing grain yield, morphophysiological, and even phenological traits. Ascorbic acid (vitamin C) is a small molecule with high antioxidant properties and is soluble in water, which plays a role as a primary substrate in cyclic pathways for detoxification and neutralization of superoxide and singlet oxygen radicals. Therefore, the use of ascorbic acid to increase yield under conditions of minimal water consumption can be a viable alternative to traditional methods that are often lengthy and expensive. The main objective of this research was to investigate the effect of drought stress and its interaction with ascorbic acid foliar application on some plant growth characteristics and economic performance in sweet corn.
2. Materials and Methods: This experiment was carried out in the spring of 2015 as a split-plot in the form of a randomized complete block design with three replications on sweet corn plants (Chase cultivar) at the research station of Islamic Azad University, Tabriz branch. The main factor of dehydration stress at four levels (70 as a control), 100, 130, and 160 mm of evaporation from the surface of the class A pan, and the secondary factor, including spraying with ascorbic acid at four concentrations (zero (control), 150, 200, and 250 mg/liter). The sweet corn seed under experiment (Hybrid no. Chase) was purchased from Seminis Company. Before planting sweet corn in field conditions, a composite soil sample was taken to determine the physical and chemical properties. The experimental area had a silty loam soil. The planting density in the field was 8.3 plants per square meter. The 16 treatment combinations studied in this experiment were in the main and sub-plots. In this research, from the beginning of planting corn seeds until the plants reach the stage of six to eight leaves, irrigation was carried out based on 70 mm of evaporation from the surface of the class A pan in the whole field, and at this stage, after applying the treatment in each experimental unit Ascorbic acid treatment levels were used. Stress treatment was applied after spraying ascorbic acid solution on the leaves in the early morning and general irrigation of the field based on the class A evaporation pan.
3. Results and Discussion: The results of studied traits showed that drought stress caused a significant decrease in cob diameter, cob wood diameter, number of seeds in the main cob, leaf width, plant leaf area, seed weight and seed yield per unit area of corn, but leaf length, a significant increase was observed in the number of fallen leaves, the number of days until flowering, and the days of growth degree until the appearance of tassel flowers. Foliar spraying of ascorbic acid improved the economic performance. Also, a positive and significant correlation was observed between the grain yield and the variables of seed weight in the main cob and the leaf area of the sweet corn plant compared to the control.
4. Conclusion: It was found that increasing the irrigation time, in addition to reducing the growth characteristics of the plant, also causes a decrease in economic performance. It appears that the sweet corn plant is sensitive to water shortages, and irrigation exceeding 70 mm causes a significant decline in the economic performance of the sweet corn plant. The highest yield was related to the treatment of lack of water stress and foliar spraying of 250 mg/L of ascorbic acid, which showed a 19.16% increase in yield compared to the control treatment. In general, it can be stated that the use of ascorbic acid is a suitable solution to increase the performance of sweet corn plants (Chase cultivar) under the conditions of minimal water consumption and also to increase the tolerance to water deficit stress.
Keywords
Growth characteristics
Vitamin C
Water limited
Yield
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Journal of Vegetables Sciences
Volume 9, Issue 17
July 2025
Pages 21-42

  • Receive Date 12 December 2022
  • Revise Date 23 May 2024
  • Accept Date 31 August 2024