127-10 Usefulness of Leaf Greeness Intencity to Determine Sulfur Status of Corn.



Monday, October 17, 2011
Henry Gonzalez Convention Center, Hall C, Street Level

Agustín Pagani, Agronomy, Iowa State University, Ames, IA and Hernán E. Echeverría, National University of Mar del Plata - INTA Balcarce, Argentina, Balcarce, Argentina
Sulfur diagnostic tools are essential for rational use of S fertilizers. There is little information about the utility of leaf greenness intensity to detect S deficiency in corn. This work evaluates, under controlled high S-stressed conditions, i) the performance of leaf greenness intensity as an indicator of the degree of S deficiency in corn, and ii) the advantage of the upper leaves in relation to the middle leaves for S deficiency determination. A sand-pot experiment was conducted in greenhouse with corn at S rates of 0, 5, 10, 20, and 40 mg kg-1 and sufficiency of other nutrients. Measurements of aboveground biomass (AB), total N and S concentration and chlorophyll meter readings (CMR) in upper and middle leaves, were performed at V6-V7, V11-V12, and V14-V15 growth stages. Sulfur application significantly increased AB, leaf S concentration, and CMR but decreased leaf N concentration. Significantly positive relationships were obtained between leaf S concentration and CMR but negative relationships between leaf N concentration and CMR. A sulfur sufficiency index (SSI) based on CMR measured in both plant leaves was significantly associated with AB. It was concluded that leaf greenness intensity could be useful for predicting/characterizing corn S status, although no significant advantage was found for taking CMR from the upper leaves since S deficiency symptoms during vegetative stages were generalized in the whole plant. More field work is needed to validate this methodology and develop interpretations and S recommendations.
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