Interactive Effects of Soil-Applied Nitrogen and Foliar Nano-Urea on Growth and Grain Yield of Maize (Zea mays L.)
Abstract
A field experiment was conducted in the spring season of 2025 in Sumer district, Al-Qadisiyah, Iraq, to study the combined effect of soil applied nitrogen and foliar nano nitrogen spray on the growth and grain yield of maize (Zea mays L.). The factorial experiment was laid out in a randomised complete block design with three replications. Three levels of soil nitrogen were tested, namely: N0 (unfertilised control), N1 (50% of the recommended dose) and N2 (100% of the recommended dose). Four concentrations of foliar nano-nitrogen were applied: F₀ (unsprayed control), F₁ (2 mL L⁻¹), F₂ (4 mL L⁻¹), and F₃ (6 mL L⁻¹). X-ray diffraction, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy and field-emission scanning electron microscopy characterised the fertiliser as crystalline urea as the main phase with a mean particle diameter of 38.5 nm. Ten growth and yield traits were measured. Main and interaction effects were significant (P < 0.05) for most traits. The N₂F₂ combination produced the highest plant height (226.8 cm), chlorophyll content (49.6 SPAD), kernels per ear (548), 100-kernel weight (34.7 g), and grain yield (8.62 t ha⁻¹), representing an 82.6% yield increase over the N₀F₀ control (4.72 t ha⁻¹). Raising the spray to 6 mL L⁻¹ gave no significant further gain. N₁F₂ (half the soil nitrogen dose plus 4 mL L⁻¹) gave a grain yield (6.86 t ha⁻¹) statistically equal to that of N₂F₀ (full soil dose without spray, 6.58 t ha⁻¹). Combining soil nitrogen with foliar nano-nitrogen therefore raises maize yield and may reduce soil fertilizer inputs.
Keywords:
Nano-nitrogen fertilizer,, foliar application, maize, Zea mays L., soil nitrogen, grain yield, nano-urea, growth parameters, XRD, FTIR, FESEM
References
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27. Ali S, Mehmood A, Khan N. Uptake, translocation, and consequences of nanomaterials on plant growth and stress adaptation. Journal of Nanomaterials. 2021;2021:6677616. https://doi.org/10.1155/2021/6677616
28. Gopinath KA, Kumari VV, Singh VK, Shanker AK, Reddy KS, Kundu S, et al. Impact of conventional and nano fertilizers on rainfed maize yield, profitability and soil nitrogen. Frontiers in Nanotechnology. 2025;7:1617500. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnano.2025.1617500
29. Gopinath KA, Kumari VV, Singh VK, Shanker AK, Reddy KS, Kundu S, et al. Combined application of nano-DAP and conventional fertilizers improved agronomic and economic performance of rainfed maize, nutrient and energy use efficiency. Frontiers in Agronomy. 2025;7:1723814. https://doi.org/10.3389/fagro.2025.1723814
30. Verma KK, Song XP, Joshi A, Rajput VD, Singh M, Sharma A, et al. Nanofertilizer possibilities for healthy soil, water, and food in future: an overview. Frontiers in Plant Science. 2022;13:865048. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2022.865048
31. Kyebogola S, Onwonga R, Kabiri S, Semalulu O, Mugerwa S, Yost RS, et al. Exploring slow-release plasma nitrogen nano-fertilizer for improved maize production and nutrient use efficiency. Frontiers in Plant Science. 2026;17:1883384. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2026.1883384
2. Taiz L, Møller IM, Murphy A, Zeiger E. Plant Physiology and Development. 7th ed. New York: Oxford University Press; 2022.
3. Dimkpa CO, Fugice J, Singh U, Lewis TD. Development of fertilizers for enhanced nitrogen use efficiency — trends and perspectives. Science of the Total Environment. 2020;731:139113. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.139113
4. Kah M, Tufenkji N, White JC. Nano-enabled strategies to enhance crop nutrition and protection. Nature Nanotechnology. 2019;14(6):532–540. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41565-019-0439-5
5. Zulfiqar F, Navarro M, Ashraf M, Akram NA, Munné-Bosch S. Nanofertilizer use for sustainable agriculture: advantages and limitations. Plant Science. 2019;289:110270. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.plantsci.2019.110270
6. Vasanth P, Sivakumar K, Jeyajothi R, Chandrasekaran P. Foliar spray of urea and nano-urea in yield and economics of maize (Zea mays L.). Journal of Applied and Natural Science. 2025;17(1):383–388. https://doi.org/10.31018/jans.v17i1.6178
7. Rathour SK, Bhatnagar A, Singh G, Kumar A, Hasanain M, Pandey A, et al. Effect of foliar fertilization of nano urea and 2% urea on yield, nutrient uptake, nitrogen use efficiency and economics of maize (Zea mays L.). International Journal of Research in Agronomy. 2024;7(11S):330–336. https://doi.org/10.33545/2618060X.2024.v7.i11Se.1992
8. Hemanth D, Keshavaiah KV, Shekara BG, Shivakumar KV. Effect of different levels of nano urea on growth and yield of maize (Zea mays L.). Journal of Scientific Research and Reports. 2025;31(4):427–435. https://doi.org/10.9734/jsrr/2025/v31i42963
9. Sharma A, Kumari N, Kumar S, Singh R. Improving agronomic performance and biochemical quality of maize (Zea mays L.) through soil application of chitosan nanoparticles coated urea. Environmental Sustainability. 2026;9(2):337–351. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42398-026-00439-2
10. Frank M, Husted S. Is India’s largest fertilizer manufacturer misleading farmers and society using dubious plant and soil science? Plant and Soil. 2024;496(1–2):257–267. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-023-06191-4
11. Swanson HE, Gilfrich NT, Cook MI. Standard X-ray diffraction powder patterns. Vol. 7. National Bureau of Standards Circular 539. Washington, DC: National Bureau of Standards; 1957. p. 61–62. https://doi.org/10.6028/NBS.CIRC.539v7
12. Holder CF, Schaak RE. Tutorial on powder X-ray diffraction for characterizing nanoscale materials. ACS Nano. 2019;13(7):7359–7365. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsnano.9b05157
13. Socrates G. Infrared and Raman Characteristic Group Frequencies: Tables and Charts. 3rd ed. Chichester: John Wiley & Sons; 2001.
14. Silverstein RM, Webster FX, Kiemle DJ, Bryce DL. Spectrometric Identification of Organic Compounds. 8th ed. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons; 2014.
15. Timón V, Maté B, Herrero VJ, Tanarro I. Infrared spectra of amorphous and crystalline urea ices. Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics. 2021;23(39):22344–22351. https://doi.org/10.1039/D1CP03503G
16. Arenas J, Parellada R. 15N isotopic effects on the infrared spectrum of urea (15NH2CO14NH2 and 15NH2CO15NH2). Journal of Molecular Structure. 1971;10(2):253–264. https://doi.org/10.1016/0022-2860(71)87082-5
17. Jeevanandam J, Barhoum A, Chan YS, Dufresne A, Danquah MK. Review on nanoparticles and nanostructured materials: history, sources, toxicity and regulations. Beilstein Journal of Nanotechnology. 2018;9:1050–1074. https://doi.org/10.3762/bjnano.9.98
18. Kumar A, Singh K, Verma P, Singh O, Panwar A, Singh T, et al. Effect of nitrogen and zinc nanofertilizer with the organic farming practices on cereal and oil seed crops. Scientific Reports. 2022;12(1):6938. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-10843-3
19. Ahmed FW, AL-Tameemi AJH. Effect of integrated nano-fertilizer spray and vermicompost in growth and quality of corn yield. Journal of Environmental & Earth Sciences. 2025;7(1):641–653. https://doi.org/10.30564/jees.v7i1.7653
20. Abhiram G. Contributions of nano-nitrogen fertilizers to sustainable development goals: a comprehensive review. Nitrogen. 2023;4(4):397–415. https://doi.org/10.3390/nitrogen4040028
21. Rengel Z, Cakmak I, White PJ, editors. Marschner’s Mineral Nutrition of Plants. 4th ed. London: Academic Press; 2023. https://doi.org/10.1016/C2019-0-00491-8
22. Fernández V, Brown PH. From plant surface to plant metabolism: the uncertain fate of foliar-applied nutrients. Frontiers in Plant Science. 2013;4:289. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2013.00289
23. Khan MN, Mobin M, Abbas ZK, Alamri SA. Fertilizers and their contaminants in soils, surface and groundwater. In: DellaSala DA, Goldstein MI, editors. Encyclopedia of the Anthropocene. Vol. 5. Oxford: Elsevier; 2018. p. 225–240. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-809665-9.09888-8
24. Krogmeier MJ, McCarty GW, Bremner JM. Phytotoxicity of foliar-applied urea. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 1989;86(21):8189–8191. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.86.21.8189
25. Parameshnaik C, Kalyana Murthy KN, Hanumanthappa DC, Seenappa C, Nanja Reddy YA, Prakasha HC. Effect of nitrogen management through nano fertilizers on growth, yield attributes and yield of maize (Zea mays L.). Asian Journal of Soil Science and Plant Nutrition. 2024;10(1):250–257. https://doi.org/10.9734/ajsspn/2024/v10i1231
26. Iqbal MA. Nano-fertilizers for sustainable crop production under changing climate: a global perspective. In: Hasanuzzaman M, Fujita M, Teixeira Filho MCM, Nogueira TAR, editors. Sustainable Crop Production. London: IntechOpen; 2020. https://doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.89089
27. Ali S, Mehmood A, Khan N. Uptake, translocation, and consequences of nanomaterials on plant growth and stress adaptation. Journal of Nanomaterials. 2021;2021:6677616. https://doi.org/10.1155/2021/6677616
28. Gopinath KA, Kumari VV, Singh VK, Shanker AK, Reddy KS, Kundu S, et al. Impact of conventional and nano fertilizers on rainfed maize yield, profitability and soil nitrogen. Frontiers in Nanotechnology. 2025;7:1617500. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnano.2025.1617500
29. Gopinath KA, Kumari VV, Singh VK, Shanker AK, Reddy KS, Kundu S, et al. Combined application of nano-DAP and conventional fertilizers improved agronomic and economic performance of rainfed maize, nutrient and energy use efficiency. Frontiers in Agronomy. 2025;7:1723814. https://doi.org/10.3389/fagro.2025.1723814
30. Verma KK, Song XP, Joshi A, Rajput VD, Singh M, Sharma A, et al. Nanofertilizer possibilities for healthy soil, water, and food in future: an overview. Frontiers in Plant Science. 2022;13:865048. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2022.865048
31. Kyebogola S, Onwonga R, Kabiri S, Semalulu O, Mugerwa S, Yost RS, et al. Exploring slow-release plasma nitrogen nano-fertilizer for improved maize production and nutrient use efficiency. Frontiers in Plant Science. 2026;17:1883384. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2026.1883384
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Nashi, A. A.-R. (2026). Interactive Effects of Soil-Applied Nitrogen and Foliar Nano-Urea on Growth and Grain Yield of Maize (Zea mays L.). Journal of Integral Sciences, 9(2), 93-101. https://doi.org/10.37022/jis.v9i2.158
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