Production of crops, especially corn, showed improvement increasing from year to year. Population growth and community nutrition improvement program through diversification of diet, encouraging demand for corn is increasing and becoming one of the Commodity Trading that are still open chances. In addition to commodity corn as raw material increases with the number of livestock food industry, oil industry and product corn ethanol, which has the advantage of hybrid maize varieties of maize composite that is 25-30% higher production, lodging resistance, disease and drought as well as short-lived.
Besides the corn crop a lot of good, because almost all parts of the plant can be used for various purposes, among others, stems and young leaves for animal feed, stems and old leaves after harvest for green manure and compost, stems and leaves dry for firewood, rods maize for the linear (pillar), corn stalks for pulp (paper material), processed corn to vegetables, stir-fry, corn kernels older can be processed as a substitute for rice, corn bread, flour, rice noodles, a mixture of ground coffee, biscuits, fodder, raw materials beer industry, pharmaceutical industry, dextrin, adhesives, textiles, etc.
Conditions of Growth in Maize
Ideal rainfall of about 85-200 mm / month and must flatten. In the phase of flowering and seed filling needs to get enough water. Should be planted early rainy season or towards the end of the dry season. Requires sunlight, the plants are shaded, its growth will be hampered and the results are not optimal seed. The optimum temperature is between 23-30 degrees Celsius. Corn does not require any special soil requirements, but the loose soil, humus rich soil will produce optimal. soil pH between 5.6 to 7.5. Aeration and good water availability, the slope of the land is less than 8%. Areas with slopes of more than 8%, should be the formation of ancient terraces. Altitude between 1000 - 1800 m asl with optimum height of between 50-600 m asl
Classification and morphology of Corn
Corn Plant classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Liliopsida
Sub-class: Commilinidae
Order: Poales
Family: Paceae
Genus: Zea
Species: Zea mays L
Corn Plant morphology
Leaf.
Corn leaves classified into the leaves are perfect, the leaves on corn light green when they begin to show their leaves and dark green when mature and yellow when aging, bone leaves with midrib are aligned and leaves on corn there is a smooth hairless and some coarse fur circuitry.
Rod.
Corn plant stems upright and sturdy, stalks of corn plants consist of segments and each wrapped in a leaf midrib that always appear in any of her books, but not a lot of corn stalks contain lignin, but its trunk remains upright and sturdy.
Root.
The roots of the corn plants have root fibers to reach a depth of about 8 m, however the average root of the corn crop is only in the range of 2 m, in addition to fiber, adventitious roots will also appear when the maize plants aged adult who works to help strengthen the enforcement of corn stalks.
Flower.
Male and female flowers on separate plants corn, therefore pollination in corn plants need the help of wind, insects and even humans. Each male and female flowers on maize should be powdered with the help of nature (naturally) or with human assistance, the male flowers are at the ends of cobs of corn plants.
Fruit.
Fruit corn yellow colored light moment before adulthood or milky white in a state of formation, each stem of corn plants have at least 1-2 corncobs, although now the renewal of improving the quality of corn hybrids but generally each rod is only one ear only, and when the fruit of corn grown will be transformed into yellow.
Technical Guidelines for Corn Crops
Land preparation
Ideal Soil conditions Required:
- Soil loose, fertile, not easily flooded by water / drainage is good.
- Have enough organic material.
- Neutral to slightly acidic pH (5.5 to 7).
- The slope of the land is not more than 8%.
- Height of 0-700 meters above sea level.
- Argillaceous clay type, clay or sandy loam soil.
- Areas that have a supply of water (source water) is quite
- Full sunlight (not shaded trees or tall buildings).
Perform processing of land well, so that the soil becomes loose and the plant can grow well.
Benefits of Land Management:
- Soil structure repair.
- Soil Aeration fix.
- Killing Plant Pest Organisms (OPT)
- Inhibits the growth of weeds.
- Launched Drainage (revenue and disposal of water)
Better made tracks towards the east-west width of ± 150 cm or customized with a disc-plow that is used, so that smooth drainage.
Land Management Type:
- Sports Land Conventional / Perfect
- Processing system which is generally done farmers by plowed and raked manually or mechanically so that the soil becomes more friable, fertile and easily cultivated.
If Land Systems TOT (Sports Without Land)
A system of minimum tillage to reduce costs, making it more efficient and land conservation objectives achieved.
Preparation Seed
Seed Quality:
In determining the quality of seeds can be seen from several aspects, namely:
Physical
- Uniform seed size.
- Free mold / pest warehouse.
- Good germination.
Morphological
- Typical properties.
- Uniform crop.
- Hold environmental stress.
Growth
- Initial growth / vigor sturdy.
- Resistant to pests and diseases.
- Response to fertilization.
- Lodging resistance because it has strong roots.
Results
- Husk closed.
- Size large cobs.
- High production.
- High yield.
- Meeting and seed weight.
- Seeds neat.
With the selection of quality hybrid corn seeds, can increase production and increase farmers' profits.
Planting
Manual
- Perform planting when the soil is moist conditions, after rain or after irrigated.
- Planting manually done by the planting hole.
- Drill deep holes in the ground with a ± 3 cm, 1-2 seeds enter the seed into the hole and then covered with soil or organic fertilizer.
- Use the rope to make the planting lines neatly and according to the desired spacing.
Mechanical
- Planting can be done mechanically using a tractor drawn PLANTER.
- By using Planter not only be done but also the planting of fertilization.
Fertilization
- Fertilization is manually done using drill. Make a hole next to the plant at a distance of ± 5-10 cm, then fertilizer is inserted into the hole and covered with soil.
- After fertilization did watering.
- Perform balanced fertilization, ie fertilization to complete all the necessary plant macro elements, namely the elements N, P element, the element of K. In order for all of these elements fulfilled encouraged to use the NPK 15:15:15 fertilizer application.
Fertilizer application manually is as follows (per hectare):
Fertilization is first performed in conjunction with the sowing 5 cm planting of the planting hole. Fertilizer needs, for this is the basic fertilizers: Urea 200 kg / hectare, SP36 150 kg / hectare and Kcl 100 kg / hectare or the use of NPK Grand S-15200-250 kg / hectare.
Old plants 21-25 days after planting and 35-40 days after planting the second and third fertilization is done by providing urea 200 kg / ha or 2.5 - 3 grams per plant. The second and third fertilization is done by sowing 10 cm from the plant and close to the ground as well as hoarding.
Deficiency Fertilizer
- Shortage of phosphorus (P element) is characterized by reddish-purple leaves, especially on young plants.
- Lack of nitrogen (element N) is characterized by a yellowish color in the leaves and growing tip of the bone along the main leaf.
- Magnesium deficiency (micro elements mg) was marked by the emergence of whitish stripes along the veins and often arise purple on the underside of old leaves.
- Potassium deficiency (K elements) is characterized by the formation of imperfect cob cob do not have seeds which the tip is full, and seeds rarely.
- Corncobs due to lack of Nitrogen (N elements) at a critical time, marked with a small cob, low protein content and the end of the cob is not seeded.
- Due to lack of phosphorus (P element) are marked with a small cob, dried bent with seed formation is not perfect.
Irrigation
- Watering is an important factor in maize cultivation. Water shortages affect plant productivity. Excess water (stagnant land in the long term) also led to corn plants die.
- If the land is used has a network of irrigation and water supply are enough then do watering once every 10 days by flowing on the array and immediately discarded, and certainly there is no stagnant.
- If the land use is a land without irrigation or land area that does not have a supply of water (rivers, lakes, swamps, etc.) then it can be done with irrigation wells or irrigation systems watered manually (basically corn does not require much water).
- Create an artesian wells in the nearby land and water stream by using a pump.
10 days before harvest irrigation should be stopped in order cobs drying process can be accelerated.
Planting Corn
Manual
- Perform planting when the soil is moist conditions, after rain or after irrigated.
- Planting is done manually by means of the planting hole.
- Drill deep holes in the ground with a ± 3 cm, 1-2 seeds enter the seed into the hole and then covered with soil or organic fertilizer.
- Use the rope to make the planting lines neatly and according to the desired spacing.
Mechanical
- Planting can be done mechanically using a tractor drawn PLANTER.
- By using Planter not only be done but also the planting of fertilization.
Corn Plant Pests and Diseases
Pest
Flies seeds (Atherigona exigua Stein).
Symptoms: The leaves change color to yellow, the affected part decay, eventually the plants wither, the growth of the plants become stunted or die.
Cause: fly seeds with traits flies colors of gray, yellow-green color striped backs, abdomen yellowish brown color, egg white color pearl and flies 3-3.5 mm long.
Control:
- Concurrent planting and application of crop rotation.
- The affected plants immediately removed and destroyed.
- Garden sanitation.
Caterpillars cutter.
Symptoms: plants clipped a few centimeters above the ground, characterized by the bite marks on its trunk, consequently young plants collapse.
Cause: some kind of caterpillar cutter: Agrotis ipsilon; Spodoptera litura, corn borer (Ostrinia furnacalis), corn and fruit borer (Helicoverpa armigera).
Control:
- Concurrent cropping or crop rotation.
- Find and kill the caterpillars (usually found in the soil).
Disease
Downy mildew (Downy mildew).
Cause: The fungus Peronosclerospora maydis and P. javanica and P. philippinensis, rampant at temperatures of 270 C and above as well as the state of humid air.
Symptoms:
- Age 2-3 week pointed leaves, small, rigid, inhibited stem growth, yellow color, the undersides of leaves there is a layer of white fungus spores.
- Age 3-5 weeks of impaired growth, the leaves change color from the base of the leaves, cobs change form and content.
- On mature plants, there is a brownish stripes on old leaves.
Control:
- Planting ahead or early rainy season.
- Cropping patterns and crop rotation patterns, planting resistant varieties.
- Unplug and destroy infected plants.
Leaf spot disease (Leaf Bligh).
Cause: The fungus Helminthosporium turcicum.
Symptoms on the leaves appear elongated and irregular patches of yellow and surrounded by a brown color, spotting develops and extends from the leaf tip to the base of the leaf, spotting originally looked wet, and then it turns brown yellowish, later changed to dark brown. Eventually the entire surface of the leaves turn brown.
Control:
Crop rotation.
Regulate land conditions are not humid.
Rust disease (Rust).
Cause: The fungus Puccinia sorghi Schw and P.polypora Underw.
Symptoms in adult plants, the old leaves are dotted brownish red stains such as rust and are brownish yellow powder, powder of this fungus to grow and elongate.
Control:
- Regulate humidity.
- Plant varieties resistant to the disease.
- Garden sanitation.
Hirst disease swelling (Corn smut / boil smut).
Cause: corn smut fungus (DC) Cda, Ustilago zeae (Schw) Ung, Uredo zeae Schw, Uredo maydis DC.
Symptoms: This fungus influx into the seed on the cob, causing swelling and remove the gland (gall), this leads to swelling of the wrapping is damaged and dispersed spores.
Control:
- Regulate humidity.
- Cut off the plant and burned.
- Seeds to be planted mixed with PGPR bacterial, please find an article about PGPR and How can breed in search menu, because I've been reviewing them.
Cob rot and rotten seeds.
Cause: The fungus Fusarium or Gibberella include Gibberella zeae (Schw), Gibberella fujikuroi (Schw), Gibberella moniliforme.
Symptoms can be seen after unwrapping the cob, corn seeds pink or brownish red then turns into brown color brown.
Control:
corn planting resistant varieties, cropping rotation, set the distance of planting, seed treatment.
2 weeks before planting can be sprayed bacteria trichoderma, I've been discussing the benefits and how to breed trichoderma, so more details please find the article.
Harvest
Corn can be harvested in a state of physiological maturity at the age of 105-115 days after planting in the lowlands (according to varieties).
So that the moisture content of corn grain harvest is low then let the corn in the trunk until totally dry ± 115-120 DAT (days after planting).
The characteristics of corn ready for harvest:
- Corn has a brown leather
- Black hair and dry
- Population skin dry corn 90%
- Seed corn when pressed with a fingernail no imprint
- There is a black spot on the institution corn kernels
Manual harvesting
- It is advisable to not do pruning the leaves (leaves above the cob cut) at the age of 90-100 days after planting the corn plant, because it causes a drop in corn production.
- Picking corn is ready to harvest from the stem and insert it into the sack. Corn and send it to the house or to the warehouse to dry or immediately separated from the cob.
Mechanical harvest
- In the vast land and a shortage of labor, a better harvest is done mechanically using HARVESTER.
- By using this tool, the corn is picked will be immediately separated from the cob. It is necessary to note the moisture content of corn when harvested.
- Corn can then be sent directly to feed mills, or sent to the warehouse for the water level is lowered within the required standards.
- Corn can then be sent directly to feed mills, or sent to the warehouse for the water level is lowered within the required standards.
Post Harvest
- Corn that has been harvested, sorted. Corn ugly separated from the good maize corn to maintain quality and avoid transmission of the fungus.
- Once at home, the corn must be dried in the sun, in order to lower the water content becomes 25-28%.
- Once the corn is dry enough or have KA 25-28%, it can be directly separated corn seed corn. Intake of corn kernels can be done either manually or mechanically.
- To get a good price then corn kernels that have been separated from the cob should be dried again to obtain a lower water content.
- Corn is already quite dry (KA = 20-25%) put into sacks and stored in a warehouse and then taken to the Market, Trader Gatherer or to the Feed Mill.
Tips:
Organic fertilizer when the soil if at least 5 tons / ha can increase the productivity of maize crop. Organic fertilizer will be maximized when combined with the provision of biological fertilizers and pesticides biological PGPR both insecticides and fungicides in tackling pests and diseases.
So little information I can say about Corn Cultivation Complete Guide For Maximum Results, hopefully what I say could be useful to readers, especially for those who want to start for the cultivation of corn, do not forget to share an article that could be useful for people Another, and if there are any questions we can discuss together about cultivation of maize. and please read the guide also cultivating others, including banana cultivation, cultivation of pomegranate, pineapple cultivation, and cultivation of coffee.