Amjad H. Badran
General Commission for Scientific Agricultural Research-
Lattakia Research Center
Tishreen University, Faculty of Agriculture
2008

Abstract

Field and pot experiment at Dabba Research Station 12 km to the east of Lattakia city in were done in 2007-2008 to test the efficiency of mycorrhiza (M) isolated for this purpose in phosphorus releasing from phosphate rock powder (PR) and its effect on maize growth, production and nutrition. Every experiment had 8 treatments and 3 replicates, 2 concentrations of PR, one of tri-super phosphate (TSP) and control with/without M were used. An obvious increase in growth and height of the plants was caused by M addition. Mycorrhizal plants had high dry matter weights for shoots, roots and grains comparing with non-mycorrhizal ones. There was an important increase in production estimated to16.5% in the field vs. 6.8% in the pot experiment when M was added alone but, when M was added with 55 kg\dunum of PR the increase was about 14.2% in the field vs. 10.9% in the pot experiment.
On another hand, M with the same average of PR caused an increase in nutrient absorption so that total contents of N, P, Mg, Cu, Mn, Zn were increased in both roots and shoots but not to the same degree for B, Ca, K. Mycorrhiza had an obvious role in Fe nutrition in spite of high content of CaCO3 in soil. Root invasion by M was high in mycorrhizal treatments with/without PR comparing with TSP treatment.