Effects of Microelement Fertilizers on Main Economic Characters and Yield of Peanut

Hongjie TANG

Abstract The main purpose of this study was to explore and master the optimal types and application methods of microelement fertilizers suitable for peanut cultivation in Linyi City. The results showed that the application of zinc， magnesium， sulfur， calcium and other microelement fertilizers to peanut plants had a certain yield-increasing effect， and zinc had the most significant yield-increasing effect. Compared with the control check （CK）， the yield per unit area increased by 1 431 kg/hm2， equivalent to an increase of 38.4%. Meanwhile， according to field investigation and observation， the treatment of increasing zinc fertilizer had a certain promotion effect on peanut emergence rate， seedling growth potential， and yield components.

Key words Microelement fertilizer; Peanuts; Economic character; Yield

Received： December 18， 2022  Accepted： February 20， 2023

Supported by Peanut Innovation Team Project of Shandong Modern Agricultural Industry Technology System （SDAIT-05-022）; Special Fund for Agricultural Technology Promotion in Shandong Province （SDTG-2016-08）.

Hongjie TANG （1979-）， male， P. R. China， senior agronomist， master， devoted to research about agricultural quality safety and standards and crop genetic improvement.

*Corresponding author. E-mail： gene2006@163.com.

Chinas peanut planting area only accounts for one fifth of the global total， but the yield per unit area and total yield are far ahead in the world. The yield per unit area has reached twice the global average level， and the total yield has reached 40% of the global total， ranking first in the world. The rapid economic development in China has brought about the improvement of the requirements for quality of life， and how can we meet peoples requirements for edible oil and enhance its competitiveness has become a focus issue that needs to be addressed urgently. Currently， China needs to import a large amount of soybeans from abroad in the import and export of oil crops， while rapeseed is not competitive internationally. Peanuts， unlike other crops， have the ability to compete with other countries. Meanwhile， various measures can be taken to promote peanut production. With the advantages of good oil products， high nutritional value， and low planting conditions， the development prospects are very promising［1-4］.

Currently， in Chinas import and export of oil crops， soybeans need to be imported in large quantities from abroad， and rapeseed is not competitive internationally， while peanuts are different， as they have the ability to compete with other countries. Meanwhile， various measures can be taken to promote peanut production. With the advantages of good oil products， high nutritional value， and low planting conditions， the development prospects of peanuts are very promising［1-4］. The yield and quality of peanuts are closely related to the level of fertilization. How can we further increase peanut yield and improve peanut quality is the primary issue to be urgently resolved. At present， there are problems in peanut cultivation， such as applying more nitrogen， phosphorus， and potassium compound fertilizers， and abandoning the use of microelement fertilizers， resulting in microelements reaching critical values， affecting the yield and quality of peanuts. There have been many studies on the impact of combined use of nitrogen， phosphorus， and potassium fertilizers on peanut yield and quality， but few reports have been conducted on the application of other trace element fertilizers［5］. Therefore， it is necessary to carry out research on the impact of microelement fertilizers on peanut yield and quality， in order to provide technical guidance for high-yield and high-quality peanut production in the field. In order to explore and master the optimal types and application methods of microelement fertilizers suitable for peanut cultivation in Linyi City， this study was conducted in Linshu Daxing Experimental Base in Linyi City according to the arrangement of Linyi Comprehensive Experimental Station of Peanut Industrial Technology System. The experimental results were summarized as below.

Materials and Methods

General situation of test site

The experiment was conducted at the base of Daxing Town， a peanut experimental demonstration base in Linyi City. Before the experiment， the field was a piece of winter fallow land for corn. The soil was limestone red soil， with a clay texture， flat terrain （dry farming field）， and the fertility was moderate.

Experimental materials

The tested variety was Fenghua 1， a new peanut variety provided by the peanut industry system in Shandong Province. The tested microelement fertilizers included ammonium molybdate， boric acid， zinc sulfate， magnesium sulfate， gypsum （calcium sulfate） and lime.

Experimental design

This experiment consisted of five treatments， in two replicates， totaling 10 plots， which adopted a randomized block arrangement， and each of which had a ridge area of 21.6 m2 （3.6 m×6.0 m） and a ridge width of 0.3 m （half of the width of the compartment trench was included in the area of the plot）. Seeds were sown by ridges， in fixed rows and holes， and there were 10 rows per plot， 30 holes per row， and two seeds per hole. The average density was 130 050 holes/hm2 and 260 100 seeds/hm2. Guard rows were set around plots. Detailed experimental treatment design was shown in Table 1.

Experimental management

In late March， ploughing and land preparation were conducted， with the application of 375 kg of compound fertilizer with a content of 48% （16：16：16） as a base fertilizer per hectare. On April 10， the seeds were sown in separate compartments by rows， and covered with local soil， and all seeds were mixed with 70% imported thiophanate-methyl. During the full emergence stage， shallow hoeing and soil loosening were carried out to promote full emergence， and during the seedling stage， intermediate tillage and weeding were conducted once. During the initial flowering stage， intermediate tillage and soil loosening were conducted to promote peg penetration. Other management operations were strictly in accordance with the requirements in the experimental design.

Investigated items

Relevant records were made in a timely manner. The emergence rates in different plots were investigated after full emergence， and the number of seedlings was investigated when they were mature. Samples were collected for laboratory test， and the plants were harvested for weighing and yield measurement.

Results and Analysis

Effects of various treatments on main characters

As can be seen from Table 2， treatment 4 showed the highest plant height， and the main stem height and the length of the first pair of lateral branches were， respectively， 39.8 and 41.3 cm， which were 5.2 and 5.6 cm higher than the CK， respectively. Treatment 2 and treatment 3 took the second place and were basically close. Treatment 5 was the shortest， with a main stem height of 34.6 cm， and the first pair of lateral branches was 35.7 cm in length. The significant increases in plant height （within a moderate range） in treatment 2， treatment 3， and treatment 4 might be due to the beneficial effects and promoting effects of the three microelement fertilizers on seedling growth and development. There were significant differences in the total fruit number and the full fruit number per plant between various treatments， with the variation ranges of 20.1-25.5 and 12.9-15.2， respectively. Treatment 4 showed the highest total pod number and full pod number per plant， at 25.5 and 15.2， respectively. The values were the lowest in treatment 5， at 20.1 and 12.9， respectively. The total pod number and full pod number per plant were， respectively， 22.3 and 24.4 in treatment 1， and 14.1 and 14.2 in treatment 2. The full pod percentage showed a downward trend with the increase of the total pod number per plant. The 100-pod weight in treatment 4 was the highest， at 273 g， followed by treatment 3， at 264 g， and treatment 5 showed the lowest value of 248 g. The variation ranges of branch number per plant and effective branch number were 7.7-9.0 and 5.5-6.4， respectively， and their variation laws were consistent with the changes in plant height.

Effects of various treatments on yielding ability

From Table 3， it can be seen that the yield per unit varied from 3 729.0 to 5 160.0 kg/hm2 in various treatments， among which treatment 4 had the highest yield， reaching 5 160.0 kg/hm2， 1 431.0 kg/hm2 higher than the CK， an increase of 38.4%. Treatment 3 ranked second， and the yield was 4 509.0 kg/hm2， 780.0 kg/hm2 higher than the CK， with an increasing rate of 20.9%. The CK （treatment 5） was the lowest with a yield of only 3 729.0 kg/hm2. Although the increases in treatment 2 and treatment 1 were not significant compared with the CK， there was still a certain yield-increasing effect. Among all treatments， there were two treatments with a unit yield more than 4 500.0 kg/hm2， and three treatments with a unit yield less than 4 500.0 kg/hm2， with an order of treatment 2， treatment 1， and treatment 5.

Conclusions and Discussion

Some studies have shown that calcium can resist the effects of salt stress， enhance the scavenging ability of active oxygen species， maintain a high level of cell membrane stability， and reduce salt stress damage to peanut plants， thereby improving pod yield［6］. Cong Huifang et al. （2008） believe that boron and zinc could promote the growth of peanut pods， improve their fullness， and achieve the effect of increasing yield. The results of this study showed that the application of trace element fertilizers such as zinc， magnesium， sulfur and calcium to peanuts all had a certain yield-increasing effect， and zinc had the most obvious effect. Compared with the CK， the yield per unit area increased by 1 431 kg/hm2， equivalent to an increase of 38.4%， which is consistent with previous studies. Meanwhile， from field investigation and observation， it was also shown that the treatment of increasing zinc fertilizer had a certain promotion effect on peanut emergence rate， seedling growth potential， and yield components.

Although microelement fertilizers are very important for promoting the growth of peanuts， attention should be paid to appropriate amounts of microelement fertilizers in the promotion and application of microelement fertilizers. Excessive use of lime can easily lead to soil compaction and reduction of soil fertility. Due to soil formula fertilization， it is unnecessary to apply microelement fertilizers to fields and crops that are not deficient in trace elements. The application of micronutrient fertilizers also requires balanced use of other nutrient fertilizers， such as nitrogen， phosphorus， and potassium， together with supporting cultivation and management techniques， in order to fully play the role of increasing production.

Hongjie TANG. Effects of Microelement Fertilizers on Main Economic Characters and Yield of Peanut

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