Effect of Zeolite Soil addition under Different Irrigation Intervals on Maize Yield (zea mays L.) and some Soil Properties

The adequate supply of irrigation water is a crucial factor controlling the growth and productivity of crops.Under water poverty conditions in Egypt and most arid regions, sustaining the irrigation water in the root zone as long as possible becomes very necessary.Consequently, two field trials were performed aiming  to evaluate the effect of zeolite soil addition of as main plots[ Z₀:without zeolite(control)and Z₁: with zeolite at rate of 10 Mg h^-1]under three irrigation intervals as subplots [I₁: irrigation every 12 days (traditional irrigation) in addition to irrigation every 14(I₂)and 16(I₃) days, which represented the deficit irrigation treatments]. The execution of the research trail was done in a split-plot design with three replicates. Maize was used as an experimental plant based on its significant response to water alterations in the root zone. Biochemical plant characters including total chlorophyll, total phenols and proline contents were measured in leaves at period of 60 days from sowing. In addition, vegetative growth parameters (plant height) as well as quantitative (e.g., No.of grain ear^-1,No.of rows ear^-1, grain and biological yield) and qualitative (i.e.,carbohydrates, protein and oil)yield characteristics were determined at harvesting stage. Findings of this study showed that the zeolite soil addition before sowing (Z₁) with irrigation interval of maize plants every14days (I₂) as combined treatment realizes better results for improving quantitative and qualitative yield characteristics than non-addition of zeolite (Z₀) under traditional irrigation interval (I₁:every12days).Post-harvest soil analysis indicatedthat the usage of zeolite improves some studied soil properties e.g., bulk density, total porosity, CEC and FC.