Nitrogen Responsiveness of Maize Hybrids Under Dryland Conditions

Mandić, Violeta; Krnjaja, Vesna; Girek, Zdenka; Brankov, Milan; Mićić, Nenad; Marinković, Miloš; Simić, Aleksandar

doi:10.3390/agriculture15131387

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Open AccessArticle

Nitrogen Responsiveness of Maize Hybrids Under Dryland Conditions

by

Violeta Mandić

^1,*

,

Vesna Krnjaja

¹

,

Zdenka Girek

²

,

Milan Brankov

³

,

Nenad Mićić

¹,

Miloš Marinković

¹ and

Aleksandar Simić

⁴

¹

Institute for Animal Husbandry, 11080 Belgrade, Serbia

²

Institute for Medical Research, University of Belgrade, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia

³

Maize Research Institute “Zemun Polje”, Zemun, 11185 Belgrade, Serbia

⁴

Faculty of Agriculture, University of Belgrade, 11080 Belgrade, Serbia

^*

Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Agriculture 2025, 15(13), 1387; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture15131387 (registering DOI)

Submission received: 22 May 2025 / Revised: 16 June 2025 / Accepted: 25 June 2025 / Published: 27 June 2025

(This article belongs to the Section Crop Production)

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Abstract

Nitrogen (N) plays a decisive role in the growth and yield of crops. Hence, a high maize grain yield depends upon substantial N inputs. In the present study, morphological traits and yield components, grain yield, rain use efficiency (RUE), and N partial factor productivity (NPFP) were analyzed in two maize hybrids (ZP666 and NS6030) for 2 yr using four N rates (0 (N0), 60 (N60), 120 (N120), and 180 (N180) kg N ha⁻¹). In a climatically more favorable year (2022), the studied traits and NPFP were higher, while RUE was lower. Hybrid ZP666 had higher values of morphological traits and yield component traits, except 1000-grain weight, grain yield, RUE, and NPFP, than hybrid NS6030. The highest values for morphological traits, yield components, grain yield (9383 and 9456 kg ha⁻¹), and RUE (27.1 and 27.2 kg ha⁻¹ mm⁻¹) were obtained at 120 and 180 kg N ha⁻¹. The NPFP decreased significantly with increasing N input, from 137.6 (control) to 52.5 kg grain per kg fertilizer N (180 kg N ha⁻¹). A suitable hybrid selection and the application of a moderate N fertilizer rate of 120 kg N ha⁻¹ could contribute to high yields and lower nitrogen losses to the environment and promote sustainable agriculture.

Keywords: maize; N fertilizer; morphological traits; yield components traits; grain yield; N partial factor productivity; rain use efficiency

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MDPI and ACS Style

Mandić, V.; Krnjaja, V.; Girek, Z.; Brankov, M.; Mićić, N.; Marinković, M.; Simić, A. Nitrogen Responsiveness of Maize Hybrids Under Dryland Conditions. Agriculture 2025, 15, 1387. https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture15131387

AMA Style

Mandić V, Krnjaja V, Girek Z, Brankov M, Mićić N, Marinković M, Simić A. Nitrogen Responsiveness of Maize Hybrids Under Dryland Conditions. Agriculture. 2025; 15(13):1387. https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture15131387

Chicago/Turabian Style

Mandić, Violeta, Vesna Krnjaja, Zdenka Girek, Milan Brankov, Nenad Mićić, Miloš Marinković, and Aleksandar Simić. 2025. "Nitrogen Responsiveness of Maize Hybrids Under Dryland Conditions" Agriculture 15, no. 13: 1387. https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture15131387

APA Style

Mandić, V., Krnjaja, V., Girek, Z., Brankov, M., Mićić, N., Marinković, M., & Simić, A. (2025). Nitrogen Responsiveness of Maize Hybrids Under Dryland Conditions. Agriculture, 15(13), 1387. https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture15131387

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