Combined Effects on Nitrogen Fertilization and Soil of CaCO3 Contents on Corn Performance in Al-Marj Soil,Libya

A two-year field trial was conducted at Al-Marj Research Center, northeast Libya, during the summers of 1996 and 1997 to examine the effect of nitrogen (N) fertilizers on corn (Zea mays L.) growth in a Libyan soil (fine mixed thermic, Typic Haploxerolls) amended with different calcium carbonate (CaCO₃) levels. Two N fertilizer sources (urea and diammonium phosphate, or DAP) were used at three application rates (0, 80, and 160 kg N/ha). The CaCO₃ treatments were 1%, 6%, and 12% based on the soil weight of a 15 cm furrow slice. A basal phosphorus (P) dose of 46 kg P₂O₅/ha as triple superphosphate was applied to all experimental plots before planting. The experimental plots were arranged in a randomized split-split plot design with three replications. The parameters measured included corn grain weight, plant dry-matter content, leaf contents of N, P, potassium (K), calcium (Ca), and magnesium (Mg). The plant dry matter and corn-grain yield were significantly decreased by CaCO₃, but were significantly increased by N fertilizer rates. Average grain yield dropped from 8 to 3 Mg/ha at 1% and 12% soil CaCO₃ content, respectively. Generally, the N source did not have a significant effect on dry matter or on grain yield. The negative effect of CaCO₃ on yield was associated with concomitant significant reduction in leaf N, P, K, and Mg contents, and an increase in Ca content. However, the leaf levels of these nutrients were considered sufficient for corn growth. Therefore, the reduction of leaf-N by CaCO₃ in fertilized soils might have been the major cause of corn dry-matter and grain-yield reductions.