Nutrient Deficiency and Physiological Disorders in Maize

ByMr. Allah Dad Khan

Nitrogen deficiency

Symptoms• Pale green plants; chlorosis

or necrosis advance from the leaf tip along the midrib

Nitrogen deficiency

Nitrogen deficiency

Phosphorus deficiency

Symptoms• Dark green plants; dark

yellow chlorosis advancing alon#DDFFDDpurple color

Phosphorus deficiencySevere phosphorus deficiency in corn plants.

Phosphorus deficiency

Potassium deficiency

Symptoms• Dark green plants with

chlorosis along the leaf margins developing to brown striping and necrosis

Potassium deficiency

Potassium deficiency

Potassium deficiency

Potassium deficiency

Potassium deficiency

Potassium deficiency

Potassium deficiency

Potassium deficiency

Calcium Deficiency

Symptoms• Calcium (Ca) is used by plants to

form sturdy cell walls and functions in N uptake, for proper enzyme activities, and for flowering and reproduction. Soil Calcium has a rôle in buffering pH to ensure other nutrients, especially trace elements, are to the plant in a “balanced diet”. It plays a major role in improving soil structure and drainag

Magnesium deficiency

Symptoms• Green-yellow plants with

dark yellow interveinal chlorosis advancing to rust-brown necrosis

Magnesium deficiency

Magnesium

Copper Deficiency

Symptoms• Copper (Cu) and Boron (B). These

have vital roles in plant growth and function, and can become deficient in soil due to pH problems, or to mere depletion by growing crop after crop without soil testing. Soil and plant tissue testing are vitally important for these trace elements because they are normally present in such small amounts in the soil, problems can arise quickly during rapidly growing crops such as corn.

Copper Deficiency

Iron deficiency

Symptoms• Symptoms are prominent

interveinal chlorosis or necrosis; veins are prominent over length of leaf

Manganese Deficiency

Sulfur deficiency

Symptoms• Pale yellow plants;

uniformly yellow leaves without necrosis

Sulfur deficiency

Sulfur deficiency

Sulfur deficiency

Sulfur deficiency

Zinc deficiency

Symptoms• Pale green plants; white to

pale yellow bands in the lower half of the leaf which advance to pale brown or gray necrosis

Zinc deficiency

Symptoms

Zinc deficiency

Symptoms

Zinc deficiency

Symptoms

Zinc deficiency

Zinc deficiency

Boron Deficiency

Boron Deficiency

Drought damage to corn plants.

Symptoms • Weather is also a determining factor. Too

much, or more commonly lately, too little rain can reduce growth and nutrient uptake, exposing the plants to greater disease and insect pressures. Drought has taken a terrible toll on corn crops in the past few of years. Maintaining good nutrition will help minimize losses due to drought, but water is always the most crucial factor. Plant water uptake is the main path by which nutrients are taken up, if water is in deficit, or if it is of low quality, i.e. salty irrigation water, nutrient uptake will be affected, causing several related nutrient and soil problem

Nitrogen fertilizer burn seen in corn plant.

Symptoms• Water shortage can also

lead to fertilizer burn when fertilizer salts cannot be dispersed sufficiently and moved away from plants roots. This concentrates the fertilizer salts around the roots and results in burning.