Agricultural

Communication

Biosci. Biotech. Res. Comm. 9(3): 382-390 (2016)

Vermicompost and

Azotobacter

as an ecological

pathway to decrease chemical fertilizers in the

maize,

Zea mays

Ali Shirkhani

and Safar Nasrolahzadeh

Agricultural And Natural Resources Research And Education Centre, Kermanshah, Iran

Department of Eco-physiology, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran

ABSTRACT

Iran is a major importer of maize in the world. Maize is one of the most important crops in the western Iran. Maize

production in this region has two major problems: water shortage and low percentage of organic matter in soil. In

this research, effects of vermicompost and Azotobacter as a boifertilizers and chemical fertilizers levels on yield and

Some traits of leaves of Maize under normal and de cit irrigation was investigated in two years (2014 and 2015).

Results showed that grain yield, Leaf Area Index, leaf chlorophyll contents, the normalized difference vegetation

index (NDVI) and Leaf relative water content (RWC) were decreased by de cient irrigation. Use of Azotobacter and

vermicompost signi cantly increased these traits in normal and de cit irrigation. Results also showed that using 6

ton/ha of vermicompost and Azotobacter in soil, 50% of the corn fertilizer supplied. The results showed that combined

use of biofertilizers with chemical fertilizers increased the yield and other traits. Therefore the uses of biological fer-

tilizers signi cantly reduce the consumption of chemical fertilizers and reduce the adverse environmental effects. So

biofertilizers could be considered as a suitable substitute for chemical fertilizer in organic agricultural systems. On

the other hand from this experiment, application of vermicompost in combination with chemical fertilizers showed

better performance than only chemical fertilizers, even in 100% recommendation based on soil test treatments. As a

general conclusion these results suggest that integrating organic sources with 50% of recommended NPK fertilizers

are appropriate for sustainable crop production in normal and de cient irrigation.

KEY WORDS: MAIZE, VERMICOMPOST, AZOTOBACTER, CHEMICAL FERTILIZER, YIELD, LAI, NDVI, RWC

382

ARTICLE INFORMATION:

*Corresponding Author: Ali.shirkhani@gmail.com

Received 6

July, 2016

Accepted after revision 26

Aug, 2016

BBRC Print ISSN: 0974-6455

Online ISSN: 2321-4007

Thomson Reuters ISI ESC and Crossref Indexed Journal

NAAS Journal Score 2015: 3.48 Cosmos IF : 4.006

reserved.

Online Contents Available at: http//www.bbrc.in/

Ali Shirkhani and Safar Nasrolahzadeh

INTRODUCTION

Maize (Zea mays L.) is a major food, feed and industrial

crop around the world. The crop provides food secu-

rity and income to several million small holder farm-

ers in Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America and Asia.

The area, production and productivity of maize have

increased several-fold over the last  ve decades. In

2014, over 180 thousand hectares and 1.223 million tons

of maize produced in Iran. However Iran was imported

6000 (1000 MT) maize grain. Maize is one of the most

important crops in the western Iran and we have short-

age in producing animal feeds, so, maize production is

very important in Iran. The dearth of water is one of

the important factors for maize production. The water

shortage because of decreasing annual precipitation and

the dry climate, and the other hand low fertility and low

percentage of organic matter in soil are major problems

in maize production in Iran. For this reason, overuse of

chemical fertilizers in Iran is rising, leading to environ-

mental pollution and soil degradation.

Soil water de cit reduces yield of maize (Zea mays

L.) and other grain crops by three main mechanisms.

First, whole canopy absorption of incident PAR may be

reduced, either by drought induced limitation of leaf

area expansion, by temporary leaf wilting or rolling dur-

ing periods of severe stress, or by early leaf senescence.

Second, drought stress reduces the ef ciency with which

absorbed PAR is used by the crop to produce new dry

matter. Third, drought stress may limit grain yield of

maize by reducing the harvest index (Earl and Davis,

2003 and Paroda and et al., 2014).

As heavy feeder of nutrients, maize productivity is

largely dependent on nutrient management. Therefore, it

needs fertile soil to express its yield potential. Farmers use

chemical fertilizers to increase production to meet their

needs, but the excessive use of fertilizers leads to contami-

nation of soil and groundwater and reduce soil fertility.

Moreover, Heavy agricultural reliance on synthetic-chem-

ical fertilizers and pesticides is having serious impacts on

public health and the environment. It killed the bene cial

soil organisms & destroyed their natural fertility, impaired

the power of ‘biological resistance’ in crops making them

more susceptible to pests & diseases Runoff of soil and

nitrogen fertilizer from corn-belt corn production has con-

tributed to the anaerobic “dead zone” in the Gulf of Mexico.

The U.S. National Academy of Sciences (2003) reports

that excessive fertilizer use costs $2.5 billion from wasted

fertilizer inputs. Hence, there is a need to search for alter-

native strategies to improve soil health without causing

damage to environment as well as soil. Therefore, biofer-

tilizers are gaining importance as they are ecofriendly,

non hazardous and nontoxic products (Sharma et al.,

2007, Adhikary, 2012).

The new approaches to the use of organic amend-

ments in farming have proven to be effective means of

improving soil structure, enhancing soil fertility and

increasing crop yields. Vermicompost is an important

type of non chemical fertilizers. Bio-fertilize is a densely

populated preservative of one or more types of useful

terricolous microorganism, their metabolic phenomenon

are used to provide the nutrients needed by plants, con-

trol soil-borne diseases and maintain the stability of

soil structure. Vermicomposts are  nely divided, peat-

like materials with high porosity, aeration, drainage,

water-holding capacity, and microbial activity. Natural

humic acids (HA) of vermicompost can be an ecological

alternative to increase tolerance of plants to drought,

precisely because they have been shown to stimulate

protein synthesis in various plant organs and enzyme

synthesis and/or activity (Muscolo et al., 2007).

In addition application of biocompost to consumable

crop minimizes the use of chemical fertilizers improve

the quality of soil (Tripathi et al., 2007). The addition

of organic matter to the soil usually increases the water

holding capacity of the soil. This is because the addition

of organic matter increases the number of micropores

and macropores in the soil either by “gluing” soil par-

ticles together or by creating favourable living condi-

tions for soil organisms. Certain types of soil organic

matter can hold up to 20 times their weight in water.

The consequence of increased water in ltration com-

bined with a higher organic matter content is increased

soil storage of water (Reicosky, 2005 and Pandya et al.

2014).

Lately, a number of studies were carried out inves-

tigating the association of nitrogen- xing microor-

ganisms on the roots of non-leguminous plants, such

as maize (Cvijanovic et al. 2007). Associative nitrogen

 xing bacteria are present in all soils in unequal num-

bers. Their numbers depend on physical and chemical

properties of the soil, the presence of oxygen, the pres-

ence and absence of Ca and P, trace elements content,

organic matter content, the presence of the antagonists

and toxic chemicals, and can also be affected by differ-

ent plant species. Associative nitrogen  xing bacteria

are most abundant in plant rhizosphere and within root

hairs zone (Malik et al. 2005).

The use of associative nitrogen- xing bacteria (Azo-

tobacter, Azospirillum, Derxia etc.) in the production of

wheat, corn, sugar beet, sun ower and some vegeta-

ble crops, show that depending on the strain there is

a possibility of replacing up to 60 kg N ha-1, and pos-

sibly even up to 150 kg N ha-1 of mineral fertilizer. As

heavy feeder of nutrients, maize productivity is largely

dependent on nutrient management. Therefore, it needs

fertile soil to express its yield potential. Ideal soils are

rarely found in nature.

BIOSCIENCE BIOTECHNOLOGY RESEARCH COMMUNICATIONS VERMICOMPOST AND AZOTOBACTER AS AN ECOLOGICAL PATHWAY 383

Nasrolahzadeh and Shirkhani

Organic manures not only supply the plant nutrients

(Duhan and Singh, 2002). To alleviate the problem, INM

is an option as it utilizes available organic and inorganic

nutrients to build ecologically sound and economically

viable farming system. Research has suggested that

integrated nutrient management strategies involving

chemical fertilizers and bio-fertilizers enhance the sus-

tainability of crop production. Integrated plant nutrient

managet (INM) is the combined use of mineral fertilizers

with organic resources such as cattle manures, crop resi-

dues, urban/rural wastes, composts, green manures and

biofertilizers (Kemal and Abera, 2015).

Integrated nutrient management (INM) is a judi-

cious application of fertilizers or manures from different

sources to a  eld in order to maintain the environmental

sustainability. Saini et al., (2004), reported that using of

50 percent of chemical fertilizers and farm yard manure

with inoculation of seeds by Rhizobium bacteria and

phosphor solubilizing bacteria, increased grain yield and

biomass of sorghum and chick pea. According to Akbari

et al., (2009), combination of bio and chemical fertilizers

increased grain yield, plant height, biological yield and

harvest index of sun ower.

Also it has ben shown that application of 50% N through

chemical fertilizer + 25% through biocompost + 25% N

through vermicompost signi cantly improved growth in

terms of plant height, dry matter accumulation per plant

and LAI over the treatment 100% N through chemical fer-

tilizer. Moreover, the use of bio stimulators in condition

of environmental stress can decrease effects of stress and

enhance soil water holding capacity, root growth and yield

(Li and Ni, 1996 and Santosh and et al. 2013).

Furthermore, the concept of leaf area index was  rst

introduced by Watson (1947) and de ned as the ratio

of leaf area to a given unit of land area (Jonckheere

et al., 2004). Leaf area index is the component of crop

growth analysis that accounts for the ability of the crop

to capture light energy and is critical to understand-

ing the function of many crop management practices.

Leaf area index can have importance in many areas of

agronomy and crop production through its in uence

on: light interception, crop growth weed control, crop-

weed competition, crop water use, and soil erosion.To

measure LAI, scientists generally have cut a number of

plants at the soil surface, separated leaves from the other

plant parts, and measured the area of individual leaves

to obtain the average leaf area per plant. The product of

leaf area per plant and the plant population gives the

LAI. Alternatively, LAI could be measured non-destruc-

tively with this procedure if area of individual leaves

was determined by some combination of leaf length and

width measurements.

The SunScan canopy analysis system (Delta-T Devices,

Cambridge, UK) was designed to measure the light levels

of photosynthetically active radiation (PAR), the inter-

ception of solar radiation and make estimates of LAI in

plant canopies. SunScan probe estimates LAI indirectly

from measurements of radiation above and below the

canopy, based on a theoretical relationship between leaf

area and canopy transmittance. Its optical sensor is the

light sensitive “wand” of one meter long, containing 64

photodiodes equally spaced along its length (Potter et

al., 1996). The SunScan canopy analysis system (Delta-T

Devices, Cambridge, UK), rely on the strong dependency

between canopy structure and gap fraction or size distri-

bution of the canopy (Jonckheere et al., 2004).

The chlorophyll meter (or SPAD meter) is a simple,

portable diagnostic tool that measures the greenness or

the relative chlorophyll concentration of leaves. Com-

pared with the traditional destructive methods, this

equipment might provide a substantial saving in time,

space and resources. The Minolta Soil Plant Analysis

Development (SPAD-502) chlorophyll meter is one tool

that enables researchers to determine chlorophyll con-

tent by measuring leaf greenness (Peterson et al., 1993).

The SPAD uses a silicon photodiode to derive the ratio

of transmittance through the leaf tissue at 650 nm com-

pared with transmittance at 940 nm, and a value is given

based on that ratio. SPAD measures relative chlorophyll

content in plant leaves. Because chlorophyll content is

closely related to N supply (Pandey et al., 2000), SPAD

is also used to diagnose corn N status and predict corn

grain yield potential (Vetsch and Randall, 2004).

Janos (2010) reported a close correlation between N

fertilization and SPAD readings. Increasing N applica-

tion increased N content and chlorophyll content in

corn (Rambo et al., 2010). Factors affecting SPAD values

include radiation differences between seasons, variety

and species differences, plant and soil nutrient status

(including N and other nutrients), and biotic and abiotic

stresses (Peterson et al., 1993).

The normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) is

widely used at ground level and from low, high and sat-

ellite altitudes to measure vegetative greenness and can-

opy photosynthetic size. Optical sensors that measure

the re ectance from the corn canopy and then attempt

to use that information to manage the crop have been

available for more than a decade now. GreenSeeker (TM

Trimble) is one of the better known sensors.The Normal-

ized Difference Vegetative Index (NDVI) is a commonly

used measurement of crop health in agricultural applica-

tions. NDVI is calculated as:

NDVI= (NIR re ected – Red re ected) / (NIR re ected

+Red re ected), where Red and NIR stand for the spec-

tral re ectance measurements acquired in the red and

near-infrared regions, respectively. Healthier crop can-

opy will absorb more red and re ect more near infra-

red light, and consequently has a higher NDVI value.

384 IFIS IN CRITICAL CARE SETTING VERMICOMPOST AND AZOTOBACTER AS AN ECOLOGICAL PATHWAY

BIOSCIENCE BIOTECHNOLOGY RESEARCH COMMUNICATIONS VERMICOMPOST AND AZOTOBACTER AS AN ECOLOGICAL PATHWAY 385

Nasrolahzadeh and Shirkhani

Jones and Wechler (2007) has used a GreenSeeker sensor

(NTech Industries, Inc.) to measure NDVI and there was

strong correlation between NDVI and chlorophyll con-

tent per plant of spinach (R²=0.91). The NDVI has been

correlated to many variables such as crop nutrient de -

ciency,  nal yield in small grains, and long-term water

stress (Govaerts and Verhulst, 2010). NDVI was found to

be closely correlated with the Leaf Area Index (Leon et

al., 2003).This present research work was therefore con-

ducted to assess the potential of the recommended dose

of inorganic fertilizers and its 50% amount alone and in

combination with different doses of vermicompost and

Azotoabcter inoculum as biofertilizer in order to explore

the possibility of reducing the use of chemical fertiliz-

ersin maize under drought stress and normal condition.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

Field experiments were conducted for two years (2014 –

2015) at the agricultural research farm, Agricultural and

Natural Resources Research Centre in Kermanshah, Iran.

This farm is located at 34.08 N, 46.26 E, 1345 m altitude,

silty clay soil, pH=7.5-8, 450 mm precipitation Mediter-

ranean climate. In this research, effects of vermicompost

and Azotobacter as a boi- fertilizers and chemical fertiliz-

ers on yield and yield components of Maize under normal

and de cit irrigation was investigated in two sites. Sites

included normal irrigation and de cient irrigation (65%

optimum water requirement) and each site was conducted

as the factorial split plot in a randomized complete block

design with three replications and three factors. Treat-

ments included Azotobacter in the main plots (non-inoc-

ulation and inoculation), vermicompost (consuming 0, 2,

4 and 6 ton/ha) and chemical fertilizers included N,P,K in

tree levels (100% recommendation based on soil test, 50%

recommendation and no fertilizer) in the sub plots. The

Maize cultivar used was “KSC 704” (a grain Maize cultivar

that is commonly planted in the region).

Before planting 7g inoculation with 1g had 107 active

and live bacteria, were used inoculating seeds. Seeds

which must mix with Azotobacter soaked with sugar

water with concentration 2% and with ratio 2kg inocula-

tion 100kg seeds. Plot dimensions using in this study will

be 7m long by 3m wide, each plot will be consisted four

rows spacing at 0.75m. Vermicompost used in this study

has been produced by the activity of Eisenia foetida worm

produced from cattle manure. Phosphorus and potassium

fertilizers were mixed by soil before cultivation. A quarter

of urea fertilizer at planting, one-fourth of 6 to 8 leaf

stage, and the remaining fertilizer was applied prior to

 owering, before planting all quantities of vermicompost

was mixed with soil to a depth of 30 cm. Maize is an

irrigated crop in Iran; therefore, it is not dependent on

the seasonal rainfall. Irrigations were carried out at 7 day

intervals. Water treatments (de cit and adequate irriga-

tion) were initiated during middle vegetative growth stage

(around V6). Beginning on these dates, water was applied

at weekly intervals based on the amount of evapotranspi-

ration for the previous week as determined by the on-site

weather station using a modi ed version of the Penman

FAO equation (O’Neill et al., 2004).

The adequate irrigation treatment received the

amount of water required to fully replace the previ-

ous week evapotranspiration while the de cit treat-

ment received 65 % this amount. This was continued

throughout the remainder of the growing season. Rela-

tive chlorophyll (SPAD) content was measured in corn

leaves with Minolta SPAD-520 meter (Konica Minolta

Sensing, Inc., Japan) at the V8 and R1 stages. At least

ten SPAD meter readings were collected either in the

upper most fully expanded corn leaves (V8 stage) or ear

leaves (R1 stage) from each plot and the average value

was recorded. Leaf Relative water content (RWC) was

calculated by using the following equation:

RWC (%) = [fresh weight- dry weight/ turgid weight – dry weight] × 100

Where FW, TW and DW are fresh weight (g), turgid weight

(g) and dry weight (g) respectively. For this purpose, a

fully expanded young leaf (ear leaf) was selected from

each treatment and replication at the mid-canopy posi-

tion before irrigation in  owering stage (four plants). Ten

leaf pieces (2 cm diameter) were cut from these leaves

and weighed immediately to record fresh weight (FW).

Turgid weight (TW) was determined by weighing the leaf

segments after 24 h of immersion in distilled water in a

sealed  ask at room temperature. Dry weight (DW) was

determined by weighing the leaf segments after 48 h at

70°C in oven (Efeoglu et al., 2009).

For measuring the Leaf area index, SunScan canopy

analysis system (Delta-T Devices Ltd., UK) was used. The

instrument is indirectly measuring leaf area index by

measuring the ratio of transmitted radiation through

canopy to incident radiation. Normalized difference

vegetation index (NDVI) is an estimate of biomass and

nitrogen content in many crops. The NDVI sensor used

in this research was a GreenSeeker Hand Held Data col-

lection and Mapping Unit (NTech Industries, Inc., Ukiah,

Cal.), according to the methodology of Verhulst and

Govaerts (2010). Each plot was harvested at maturity for

yield. The Maize ears located 6 m2 from each plot were

harvested by hand, then allowed drying at 80°C to a

constant weight and then seed yield was obtained.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

The LAI was signi cantly in uenced by de cient irriga-

tion; Results showed that LAI was decreased from 3.7 to

386 VERMICOMPOST AND AZOTOBACTER AS AN ECOLOGICAL PATHWAY BIOSCIENCE BIOTECHNOLOGY RESEARCH COMMUNICATIONS

Nasrolahzadeh and Shirkhani

2.1 by de cient irrigation. Corn yield is strongly depended

on LAI, LAD and leaves ef ciency for absorption of solar

radiation for photosynthesis process. For most plant spe-

cies, the shortage of nitrogen or water causes a reduction

in leaf area development, changes in leaf tissue compo-

sition, leaf cell structure and plant water content (Casa,

2003) and also in maize, drought reduces leaf area, leaf

chlorophyll contents, photosynthesis and ultimately low-

ers the grain yield (Athar & Ashraf, 2005).

Stone et al. (2001) reported that water de cit reduces

crop growth and morphological characteristics of maize

plant. In corn, reproductive growth after the silking and

 owering stages is the critical period for yield, and chlo-

rophyll content and intact chloroplast structure are key

factors for accumulation of dry matter and high yields

(Yu et al., 2010).

Analysis of variance showed that Azotobacter

increased LAI about 0.1 in all treatments. But this

increase was not statistically signi cant. Moreove leaf

area index increased with increasing levels of chemi-

cal fertilizers and vermicompost. The maximum LAI 4.5

was recorded in the plots where 6 ton/ha vermicompost

and 100% chemical fertilizer were applied. But with no

vermicompost and 100% chemical fertilizer LAI was 4

and with use of 6 ton/ha vermicompost and Azotobacter

and 50% chemical fertilizer LAI also was 4, this result

showed that use of vermicompost and azotobacter that

means a 50% reduction in the consumption of chemical

fertilizers. Whereas without chemical fertilizer and with

use of 6 ton/ha vermicompost and Azotobacter, LAI was

3.6 and 1.9 in normal and De cient Irrigation condition

respectively (Table 1).

Using of different Levels of fertilizers had signi cant

effect on leaf area index of corn (Rasheeed et al., 2003).

Yadav et al (2002) revealed that application of incorpo-

ration chemical and biofertilizers increased the biologi-

cal yield, grain yield and LAI of blond plantago (Plan-

tago ovate). In other study, application of incorporation

chemical and bio-fertilizers on corn crop increased plant

height, LAI, dry matter production, leaf area duration

(LAD) and leaf area ratio compared with sole chemical

fertilizers (Eidi Zadeh et al., 2010).

Verma (2011) reported Organic source of nitrogen

application also in uenced the plant height, leaf area

index, dry matter production/plan recorded signi cantly

more with the addition of FYM followed by Azospiril-

lum and control, respectively. Manyuchi et al., (2013)

showed that applying of vermicompost enhance maize

leaves production more than 3 leaves per plant.

The results of this study showed that de cient irri-

gation decreased leaf chlorophyll contents from 40.6

to 37.7.On the other hand bio and chemical fertilizers

had a signi cant effect on leaf chlorophyll contents

(Table 2). Vermicompost and Azotobacter increased leaf

chlorophyll contents and also chemical fertilizers. The

maximum chlorophyll contents (46.6) were observed

from 6 ton/ha vermicompost + inoculation with Azo-

tobacter + 100% chemical fertilizer in normal irrigation

but with use of 6 ton/ha vermicompost and Azotobacter

and 50% chemical fertilizer chlorophyll contents was

45.2 and no signi cant different was observed. Also

without chemical fertilizer and with use of 6 ton/ha ver-

micompost and Azotobacter, This trait was 35.2 and 32.3

in normal and de cient irrigation condition respectively.

Table 1: Effects of chemical fertilizer and vermicompost on LAI

De cient Irrigation Normal Irrigation

Vermicompost (ton/ha)

Chemical Fertilizers

024 60246

No Fertilizer 1.7 1.8 1.9 1.9 2.5 3.2 3.5 3.6

50% Recommendation 1.9 1.9 2 2.3 3.4 3.6 3.6 4

100% Recommendation 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.6 4 4.2 4.4 4.5

Table 2: Effects of Chemical and bio fertilizer on leaf chlorophyll contents

De cient Irrigation Normal Irrigation

Vermicompost (ton/ha)

Chemical Fertilizers

02460246

No Fertilizer 26.9 27.1 28.9 32.4 34.8 35.3 35.4 36.3

50% Recommendation 35 37.1 38.2 44 37.6 38.3 40.3 44.7

100% Recommendation 45.6 45.6 45.7 45.7 46.5 47 47 47

BIOSCIENCE BIOTECHNOLOGY RESEARCH COMMUNICATIONS VERMICOMPOST AND AZOTOBACTER AS AN ECOLOGICAL PATHWAY 387

Nasrolahzadeh and Shirkhani

Ciganda et al (2008) had similar results and reported

that chlorophyll content is among the most important

crop biophysical characteristics. Chlorophyll can be

related to photosynthetic capacity, thus, productivity,

developmental stage, and canopy stresses, also Munne-

Bosch and Alegre (2000) reported the chlorophyll con-

tent was decreased with decreasing the irrigation water

and this decrease was correlated with relative water

content in leaves. Chlorophyll loss is a negative conse-

quence of water stress. In addition, the negative effect of

de cit irrigation was re ected in decreasing the chloro-

phyll content of rosemary leaves.

On the other hand, some authors found an opposite

trend since chlorophyll increased by de cit irrigation.

Khayatnezhad, (2011) reported that drought stress con-

dition increased the leaf chlorophyll content in wheat

genotypes. This is because the exact effect of de cit irri-

gation may vary according to the intensity of the water

stress imposed (Cameron, 1999). These results are similar

with the previous  ndings of Chamle et al. (2006).

Pandurang (2014) reported vermicompost increased

Chlorophyll contents in maize. Casa (2003) reported

that differences in leaf spectral re ectance, in particu-

lar those related to variations in the chlorophyll content

of the leaves, have been used as an indirect means to

assess nitrogen stress and Nitrogen availability typically

affects leaf pigment concentration (e.g. chlorophyll) with

a clear effect on leaf spectral re ectance. Studies show

that when maize plants were subjected to PEG induced

drought stress their chlorophyll a, b and total chloro-

phyll contents were signi cantly decreased due to leaf

senescence acceleration (Efeoglu et al., 2009).

Inoculation with Azotobacter and use of vermicom-

post signi cantly in uenced the NDVI. Two years mean

revealed that maximum NDVI (0.78) was recorded with

the application of recommended dose of chemical ferti-

lizer plus 6 ton/ha vermicompost and Azotobacter inocu-

lation and in normal irrigation, also with use of 6 ton/

ha vermicompost and Azotobacter and 50% chemical

fertilizer NDVI was 0.78 and no signi cant different was

observed. Minimum NDVI (0.61) was observed in de cient

Irrigation and without chemical and bio fertilizer. In both

irrigation treatments with increasing of chemical and bio

fertilizer 0.61 was increased (Table 3). On the other hand

de cient irrigation decreased leaf NDVI from 0.76 to 0.68.

The NDVI was developed to assess plant greenness

and The Chllorophyll in leaves is responsible for the

variability in greenness within a canopy. Data obtained

from greenseeker, can be used for estimate yield pre-

diction, biomass accumulation and growth rate, ground

cover and early vigor, senescence pattern estimates, and

for biotic and abiotic stress detection. NDVI technology

is also used for making decisions in precision agriculture

such as rate and timing of nitrogenous fertilizer applica-

tions (Pask et al., 2012). The NDVI has been correlated

to many variables such as crop nutrient de ciency and

long-term water stress and relationship between leaf N

and leaf chlorophyll has been demonstrated for maize

(Verhulst and Govaerts, 2010 A).

Results obtained in this experiment indicated that

RWC decreased from 80.4% to 66.9% by de cient irri-

gation. Moreover vermicompost and chemical fertilizers

had a signi cant effect on RWC (Table 4). Vermicom-

post and Azotobacter increased RWC, also by increasing

the amount of chemical fertilizer, RWC increased. The

maximum of RWC (81%) was recorded in the plots where

applied 6 ton/ha vermicompost and Azotobacter and

chemical fertilizer but there was no signi cant differ-

ence between 0, 50 and 100 percent of chemical fertiliz-

ers. The largest increased in Leaf relative water content

due to the use of vermicompost. Whereas without chem-

ical fertilizer and with use of 6 ton/ha vermicompost and

Azotobacter, RWC was 80.6% and 69.4% in normal and

De cient Irrigation condition respectively.

Jabasingh & Saravana Babu (2014) had similar results

and reported that the relative water content in leaves

of different maize cultivars decreased signi cantly and

with drought stress, the membrane permeability of the

leaf cell markedly increased. Also Higher RWC indicates

better growth and development, which in turn depends

on leaf area (Sivakumar, 2014).

The yield of maize was signi cantly in uenced by

de cient irrigation; Results showed that grain yield was

decreased from 8.2 ton/ha to 4.4 ton/ha by de cient

irrigation. Water de cit in maize is one of limiting fac-

tors of yield and at the time of pollination, drought may

Table 3: Effects of Chemical and bio fertilizer on NDVI

De cient Irrigation Normal Irrigation

Vermicompost (ton/ha)

Chemical Fertilizers

02460246

No Fertilizer 0.61 0.63 0.65 0.66 0.69 0.73 0.75 0.75

50% Recommendation 0.68 0.69 0.69 0.71 0.77 0.77 0.77 0.78

100% Recommendation 0.72 0.72 0.72 0.72 0.78 0.78 0.78 0.78

388 VERMICOMPOST AND AZOTOBACTER AS AN ECOLOGICAL PATHWAY BIOSCIENCE BIOTECHNOLOGY RESEARCH COMMUNICATIONS

Nasrolahzadeh and Shirkhani

have severe impact on yield. These results are consistent

with previous work; Dagdelen et al. (2006) reported that

water de ciency signi cantly affected maize yield and

the highest maize yield was obtained from the full irri-

gation treatments. Stone et al. (2001) reported that water

de cit reduces crop growth and morphological charac-

teristics of maize plant. Pandey et al. (2000) reported

that yield reduction (22.6 - 26.4%) was found with de -

cit irrigation and this was associated with decrease in

kernel number and weight.

Analysis of variance showed that Azotobacter increased

grain yield about 89 kg/ha in all treatments (Table 5). In

addition the use of vermicompost at 2, 4 and 6 ton/ha

consistently and signi cantly increased grain yield in

normal and de cit irrigation (Table 5). Although, applica-

tion of vermicompost led to increase in grain yield, the

highest grain yield was related to integrated treatments

6 ton/h vermicompost and 100% chemical fertilizers rec-

ommendation based on soil test. Results also indicated

that the use of 6 ton/ha vermicompost and Azotobacter in

soil, 50% of the maize fertilizer supplied.

The results showed that combined use of bio-ferti-

lizers with chemical fertilizers increased the grain yield.

Therefore the uses of biological fertilizers signi cantly

reduce the consumption of chemical fertilizers and

reduce the adverse environmental effects. On the other

hand from this experiment, application of vermicompost

in combination with chemical fertilizers showed better

performance than only chemical fertilizers, even in 100%

recommendation based on soil test treatments. It can be

stated that the increase in growth parameters of maize

are due to greater availability of nitrogen in full organic

and integrated treatments. In full chemical treatments

most of nitrogen would be leached from the soil pro le.

In addition, high porosity and water holding capacity of

vermicompost that helps in better aeration and drain-

age. Moreover use of 6 ton/ha vermicompost and Azo-

tobacter in treatments with no chemical fertilizers pro-

duced 7 and 4.4 ton/ha grain yield in normal and de cit

irrigation respectively. Application of organic manures

either alone or integrated with chemical amendments for

maize, performed better than all amendments tested in

laboratory trails studied by Mujeeb et al. (2010).

Recommendations of organic matter alone with syn-

thetic fertilizers could be helpful for enhancing stagnant

wheat grain yield which have been reported by Tahir et al.

(2011). Similarly Kemal and Abera (2015) reported applica-

tion of recommended dose of inorganic fertilizer along with

vermicompost at 6 ton/ha to maize not only enhanced pro-

ductivity of maize but also improved soil fertility in terms

of higher available N, P, K and organic carbon content over

the control and recommended N, P and K.

CONCLUSION

Results obtained in this experiment indicated that,

although the vermicompost and Azotobacter were not

Table 4: Effects of Chemical and bio fertilizer on RWC

De cient Irrigation Normal Irrigation

Vermicompost (ton/ha)

Chemical Fertilizers

02460246

No Fertilizer 61.3 64.4 65.3 69.4 79.7 80 80.6 80.6

50% Recommendation 62.8 65.3 65.3 69.8 80 80 80.6 80.7

100% Recommendation 62.8 66.7 66 70 80 80 80.8 81

Table 5: Effects of Chemical and bio fertilizer on yield

De cient Irrigation Normal Irrigation

Azotobacter Vermicompost (t/ha)

NPK Recommendation

02460246

non-inoculation No Fertilizer 2.6 3 3.7 4.1 4.3 5.1 5.7 6.8

inoculation No Fertilizer 2.8 3.1 3.9 4.4 4.4 5.4 5.9 7

non-inoculation 50% 3.9 4.6 4.7 5.1 7.2 7.9 8.4 10

inoculation 50% 4.3 4.8 4.9 5.3 7.4 8.1 8.5 10.4

non-inoculation 100% 4.8 5.2 5.2 5.4 10 10.2 10.2 10.5

inoculation 100% 4.7 5.3 5.4 5.5 10.2 10.3 10.3 10.6

BIOSCIENCE BIOTECHNOLOGY RESEARCH COMMUNICATIONS VERMICOMPOST AND AZOTOBACTER AS AN ECOLOGICAL PATHWAY 389

Nasrolahzadeh and Shirkhani

able to provide all the nutritional requirements for

maize, but the results showed that combined use of bio-

fertilizers with chemical fertilizers increased the evalu-

ated characters. Hence the use of biological fertilizers

also signi cantly reduce the consumption of chemical

fertilizers and reduce the adverse environmental effects

however, a good performance can be achieved in maize.

On the other hand, the results showed that under de -

cient irrigation vermicompost and Azotobacter increased

grain yield. As a general conclusion these results sug-

gest that integrating organic sources with 50% of rec-

ommended NPK fertilizers are appropriate for sustain-

able crop production in normal and de cient irrigation.

Similary Vanlawe et al (2002) reported that the conjunc-

tive application of organics with inorganic sources of

nutrients reduces the dependence on chemical inputs.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

This work was supported by Agricultural and Natural

Resources Research And Education Centre, Kermanshah,

Iran

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