Effect of graded levels of NPK fertilizers and microbial consortia on yield and yield attributes of maize in vertisol

The field experiment was conducted during Kharif season of 2024-25 at Wheat and Maize Research Unit of Vasantrao Naik Marathwada Krishi Vidyapeeth, Parbhani. The study involved eight treatment combinations, including different graded levels of NPK and microbial consortia (comprising Azotobacter, Bacillus megaterium, and Frateuria aurantia), namely: control, microbial consortia alone, 50% NPK alone, 75% NPK alone, 100% NPK alone, 50% NPK + microbial consortia, 75% NPK + microbial consortia, and 100% NPK + microbial consortia. Treatments were arranged in a Randomized Block Design (RBD) with three replications. Seeds were treated with microbial consortia @ 200 ml per 10 kg of seed and applied at sowing along with the respective fertilizer doses. The findings revealed that plant height (tasselling-189.60 cm and harvest-195.67 cm), chlorophyll content (30 DAS-53.89 and 60 DAS-45.92), cob length (without husk) i.e. 21.17 cm and cob girth (without husk) i.e. 17.27 cm were significantly improved by the integrated use of 100% NPK + microbial consortia. The highest grain (3794.98 kg ha-1) and straw yield (4680.20 kg ha-1) were observed with the application of 100% NPK + microbial consortia.