Zinc Requirement of Maize Hybrids and Indigenous Varieties on Udic Haplustalf

A pot study was conducted on Gujranwala series (Udic Haplustalf) to compare zinc (Zn) requirement of maize hybrids (FHY- 456, FHY- 396, and FHY- 421) and indigenous varieties (EV-1089, Golden, and Soneri). Uniform rates of nitrogen:phosphorus:potassium (N:P:K) and four rates of Zn were applied in triplicate according to CRD. There was a significant (P 0.05) main and interactive effect of maize genotypes and zinc application on shoot growth and Zn uptake. The three maize varieties uniformly produced maximum shoot dry weight at 3 mg Zn kg-1 soil. The maize hybrids produced maximum shoot dry weight at 9 mg Zn applied kg-1 soil. A 6.3 mg Zn kg-1 plant tissue was optimum for FHY-421 (hybrid) and 9.5 mg Zn kg-1 plant tissue was optimum for Soneri (variety). Hence, more pronounced response in maize hybrids than indigenous varieties require higher rates of Zn application. However, further verification of the results is warranted under field conditions.