What are the control methods for salt and alkali damage in corn?

Salt and alkali damage in corn is a disease caused by its relatively high soluble salt content; it inhibits corn uptake and causes reverse osmosis, resulting in physiological dehydration and wilting of the corn. So how should salt and alkali damage in corn be controlled? Follow the editor to take a look.

1. Symptoms

Soil salinity and pH have an enormous impact on the growth and development of corn; salt and alkali damage can be removed, and among the salts, chloride ions are the most harmful to corn. Salt tolerance is relatively poor at the seedling and jointing stages and at the booting stage; at the seedling stage it manifests as thin, weak growth, and in severe cases the plants are close to wilting. Alkali damage mainly affects the young roots and young sprouts of corn; in mild cases it increases the number of barren stalks and makes the corn prone to lodging, while in severe cases it causes missing seedlings and broken rows. At the same time, it can also cause trace elements such as calcium, manganese, zinc, iron and boron to become fixed, triggering deficiency symptoms.

2. Causes of the disease

The salt concentration in salinized soil is relatively high, which seriously affects the absorption of water by corn, causing reverse osmosis, producing physiological dehydration, and causing the corn plants to wilt. Certain salts inhibit the effective transformation of nutrients by beneficial microorganisms, making the seedlings thin and weak. Alkali damage is mainly due to the presence of exchangeable sodium ions in the soil, which worsens the soil properties and effectively affects the absorption by corn roots and the uptake of nutrients.

3. Control methods

First of all, the salinization of the soil must be changed. Saline-alkali soil can be improved by planting rice; where drainage and irrigation conditions are good, in low-lying, easily waterlogged saline-alkali areas, developing rice cultivation is a successful experience in improving saline-alkali land. In the north, diverting floodwater and silt to improve saline-alkali land and sandy wasteland is a successful experience created by the working people. In areas with sufficient water, the washing method can be used to improve saline-alkali land. In saline-alkali land with large areas of sodic salinized soil and alkali soil, gypsum or sugar factory lime sediment residue, phosphogypsum, urea, humic acid fertilizers and the like can be used for improvement according to local conditions. In addition, measures such as increasing the application of organic fertilizer and other fertility-building measures, and rational crop rotation, can also effectively improve saline-alkali land.

The above is an introduction to the control methods for salt and alkali damage in corn. We hope it can help you. To learn more related knowledge, please stay tuned to us.