A two-year field trial was carried out in order to outline reasons of maize grain yield increase due to foliar application of zinc, and to evaluate its effects on the dynamics of nitrogen and dry matter accumulation in the course of the growing season. Growth analysis methods were applied to describe the trends exhibited by the canopy and plant’s growth. Maize plants fertilized with zinc were able to increase the rate of nitrogen uptake, as indicated by the values of absolute crop uptake rate for N (CUR-N), at two distinct time-separated phases of growth, i.e., (i) from 7th to 9th leaf and (ii) from milk to physiological maturity of kernels growth. Physiological processes occurring in these two time-separated phases resulted in an increase of maize yielding capacity. The effect of zinc as recorded in the first phase resulted in extension rate of new organs or tissues ingrowth, as confirmed by the RGR analysis. At the reproductive phase of maize growth, plants well supplied with zinc accumulated more nitrogen, which was a prerequisite for significantly higher rate of dry matter accumulation, as confirmed both by CGR and RGR analyses. The amount of extra nitrogen taken up by Zn treated plants was sufficiently high to increase grain yield by 1.5 t ha-1, which was achieved in the conducted experiment.
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