Effects of phosphorus application on biomass and quality formation, fertilizer and water use efficiency of forage maize

A field experiment was conducted to study the effects of phosphorus application on biomass and quality formation, fertilizer and water use efficiencies of forage maize named Baimaya with different phosphorus rates in meadow-chestnut soil in the agriculture-animal husbandry eco-zone of North China. The results indicated that phosphorus application increased forage maize biomass yield by 10.5%–25.1% and improved nitrogen and phosphorus absorption significantly. Compared with no-phosphorus treatment, phosphorus application increased nitrogen and phosphorus uptake by 26.03–51.10 kg/ha and 8.63–28.95 kg/ha, respectively. As phosphorus application rate increased, the contents of crude protein, ether extract and crude fiber in maize plant were significantly increased. The yields of crude protein and ether extract in maize plant were increased by 9.26%–37.82% and 14.95%–33.33%, respectively. The results also indicated that phosphorus application increased water use efficiency of forage maize by 10.44%–16.77%, which was equivalent to supply 27.51–47.36 mm more water. Thus the use of phosphorus fertilizer for forage maize is an effective technique to increase biomass yield, improve the nutritional quality, and fertilizer and water use efficiencies.