Root Morphology and Early Development of Maize at Varying Levels of Nitrogen1
- Agronomy Journal, 72, p.5-31, 1980 .
Organization of root growth information for maize (Zea moys L.)indicated a lack of data on the N response of make roots. Thus, the objective of this study was to quantify the morphological response of maize roots to N. Growth chamber and field studies were conducted. Fieldgrown maize was sampled during the 4 weeks after emergence to evaluate differences between field and growth chamber data. Numbers of seminal roots and lengths of the seminal root system did not increase substantially after 8 days. The nodal root system increased exponentially from 1.6 m at 8 days after emergence to 21 m at 29 days after emergence. Using the slant-board culture technique, maize plants grown in a growth cham. ber received 0, 21, 42, 105, or 210 ppm total N from 50