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Describing Fusarium diseases on maize in 2013 using data from several production sites
60-64Views:180As in other parts of the world, the frequency of weather extremes has increased greatly in Hungary in recent years. This means that maize production is faced with greater risks from all aspects: nutrient replacement, irrigation, plant protection. This is especially true of fusarium diseases. In a continental climate, the pathogens causing the most serious problems are species belonging to the Fusarium genus. They infect the ears, which – besides reducing the yield – poses considerable risk to both human and animal health due to the mycotoxins produced by them. Depending on which Fusarium species are dominant at a given location, changes can be expected in the level of infection and in the quality deterioration caused by the mycotoxins they produce. Fusarium spp. not only damages the maize ears but when pathogen attacks the stalk, the plant dies earlier, reducing grain filling and resulting in small, light ears. In addition, the stalks break or lodge, resulting in further yield losses from ears that cannot be harvested. The degree of infection is fundamentally determined by the resistance traits of the maize hybrids, but also a great role in that region Fusarium species composition as well.
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Phytotoxicity levels in a wet year in an experiment on maize sensitivity to herbicides
92-96Views:199The phytotoxic effects of herbicides applied pre-, early post- and post-emergence were studied in maize in a herbicide sensitivity experiment were set up in Martonvásár and Törökszentmiklós. The herbicides were applied in normal and in double doses to 37 Martonvásár inbred lines and to six parental single crosses. The small-plot experiments were set up in two replications. The wet weather that followed the pre- and early post-emergence treatments promoted the appearance of phytotoxic symptoms on maize. The degree of phytotoxicity was recorded on the 14th day after post-emergence treatment and on the 14th and 28th days after the pre- and early postemergence treatments. Herbicides applied pre-emergence only caused slight symptoms on maize. Although the double dose increased the damage, it was still not more than 5% on average. The symptoms caused by herbicides applied in the early post-emergence stage were more intensive than those detected in the pre-emergence treatments. However, the damage caused by the double dose of isoxaflutol + thiencarbazone-methyl and by the split treatment with nicosulfuron remained below 10%. The symptoms became somewhat more severe at the 2nd scoring date. Among the post-emergence treatments the maize genotypes had the least tolerance of the mesotrione + nicosulfuron combination of active ingredients, where the double quantities resulted in 13–14% damage in average.
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Comparative analysis on the fertiliser responses of Martonvásár maize hybrids in long-term experiments
111-117Views:83The results of experiments carried out in the Agricultural Research Institute of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences clearly show that in the case of hybrids grown in a monoculture greater fertiliser responses can be achieved with increasing rates of N fertiliser than in crop rotations. In the monoculture experiment the parameters investigated reached their maximum values at a rate of 240 kg/ha N fertiliser, with the exception of 1000-kernel mass and starch content. In both cases the starch content was highest in the untreated control, gradually declining as the N rates increased. Among the parameters recorded in the crop rotation, the values of the dry grain yield, the 1000-kernel mass, the protein yield and the starch yield were greatest at the 160 kg/ha N fertiliser rate, exhibiting a decrease at 240 kg/ha. Maximum values for the protein content and SPAD index were recorded at the highest N rate. It is important to note, however, that although the N treatments caused significant differences compared to the untreated control, the differences between the N treatments were not significant.
In the given experimental year the values achieved for the untreated control in the crop rotation could only be achieved in the monoculture experiment at a fertiliser rate of 160 kg/ha N, indicating that N fertiliser rates could be reduced using a satisfactory crop sequence, which could be beneficial from the point of view of environmental pollution, crop protection and cost reduction.
The weather in 2006 was favourable for maize production, allowing comparative analysis to be made of the genetically determined traits of the hybrids. Among the three hybrids grown in the monoculture experiment, Maraton produced the best yield, giving maximum values of the parameters tested at a fertiliser rate of 240 kg/ha N. The poorest results were recorded for Mv 277, which could be attributed to the fact that the hybrid belongs to the FAO 200 maturity group, while the other hybrids had higher FAO numbers. Maraton also gave the highest yields in the crop rotation experiment at the 160 kg/ha N level. All three hybrids were found to make excellent use of the natural nutrient content of the soil.
It was proved that the protein content of maize hybrids can only be slightly improved by N fertilisation, as this trait is genetically coded, while the starch content depends to the greatest extent on the ecological factors experienced during the growing season.