FACULTY OF FISHERIES AND FOOD SCIENCE

UNIVERISITI MALAYSIA TERENGGANU

GTN3383 PLANTATION CROP

SEMESTER I 2022/2023

PRACTICAL REPORT
SWEET CORN CROP
(Zea mays conva. Saccharata var. rugosa)

LECTURER: PROF. DR. SHAMSUL BAHARI ABD RAZAK

STUDENT NAME: MUHAMMAD HILMI BIN SHAHRUNNIZAR
MATRIC NO.: S56256
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

CONTENT PAGES

1.0 Introduction of Corn 2-6

1.1 Taxonomy
1.2 Morphology and Botany of Maize

2.0 Cultural Practices 7-8

2.1 Seed Preparation

2.2 Land Preparation

3.0 Planting Management 9 - 11

3.1 Water Management

3.2 Fertilization Management
3.3 Weeds Management

3.4 Pest Management

4.0 Harvesting Activities 12 - 13

4.1 Post-Harvest Handling

5.0 Conclusion 14

6.0 References 15

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1.0 INTRODUCTION OF CORN

Corn, scientifically known as Zea mays, is a cereal plant that is extensively farmed
around the world in a variety of agro-ecological conditions. Furthermore, corn is generated
annually from various seed shapes and sizes. At the same time, there are roughly fifty kinds of
cereals that come in a range of colours, textures, forms, and sizes. Corn also comes in white,
beige, and red varieties. Most regions prefer white and yellow variants. Corn likewise grows
seasonally, grows, eliminates grains, and finally dies. Depending on the variety of maize, it
usually takes 8-12 weeks to generate a choice.

Apart from wheat and rice, maize is one of the most essential plants on the planet. Maize is a
key source of carbohydrates in Central and South America, and it is also an alternate source of
food in the United States; to fulfil consumer demand, most farmers utilise hybrid corn seeds
from Taiwan and Thailand. Corn has a high carbohydrate content. According to several
research, the carbohydrate content of maize makes it suitable for use as a rice substitute.

Maize, in addition to having a high carbohydrate content, may also be consumed as a vegetable
due to its high vitamin content. Furthermore, maize trees are extremely sensitive plants in terms
of soil, weather, fertiliser, pest, and disease management. Corn, like plants with vertical stems,
has segments and can grow to be 1-3 metres tall. Corn has male and female flowers on a
monoecious tree, with male blooms on top and female flowers on bottom.

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1.1 TAXONOMY

Kingdom : Plantae (plants)

Subkingdom : Tracheobionta (vascular plants)
Superdivision : Spermatophyta (seed plants)
Division : Magnoliophyta (flowering plants)
Class : Lilipsida (monocotyledons)
Subclass : Commelinidae
Order : Cyperales
Family : Poaceae/Gramineae (grass family)
Tribe : Andropogoneae
Genus : Zea L.
Species : Zea Mays L.

Table 1 Physical classification of corn

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1.2 MORPHOLOGY AND BOTANY OF MAIZE

ROOT OF MAIZE
Maize roots are fibrous and can reach depths of up
to 8 metres, however most are only 2 metres deep.
In plants that are grown enough to emerge from the
root of the adventure from the bottom of the stem,
which aids in the plant's absorption.

LEAF OF MAIZE
Maize leaves are perfect leaves. Its form expands. Ligula
grows among the leaves and leaves. The spine mother is
parallel to the lean bones. The leaves are hairy and slick.
Stoma on halter-shaped maize, which is distinctive of the
Poaceae family. A fan-shaped epidermal cell surrounds
each stoma. This structure is critical in plant responses
to water shortages in leaf cells. Green corn with parallel
veins, smooth surfaces, and fibres grows from a long
stem.

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FLOWER OF MAIZE
Maize has male and female flowers on a monoecious tree, with
the male petals on top and the female flowers at the bottom.
The wind and a few insects do the majority of the pollination.
If complete pollination occurs, the female flowers will be dry.

SEED OF MAIZE

The kernel of seed corn is made up of three major components: the cell wall, the endosperm,
and the embryo. Seed corn is also high in vitamins A and E. At the same time, a portion of seed
contains 10% protein, 70% carbohydrate, and 2.3% fibre. In addition, particular corn plants are
reserved to yield seed.

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2.0 CULTURAL PRACTICES

2.1 SEED PREPARATION

To achieve a high percentage of germination, high-quality seeds are
required throughout the planting procedure. Generally, the optimum
grade corn seed should surpass 70%. Fungicides should be applied to
the seed for 1 hour before planting. This is due to the fact that it has a
high rate of growth and is disease-free. Depending on the length of the
land, around 10 kg of corn seeds are required for planting per hectare.

2.2 LAND PREPARATION

Figure 2.1: Corn planting area at Bukit Kor

Land clearance, ploughing, and border construction are all part of the preparatory process. We
clean the land for our land area during the first week. The aim of land clearing for maize quality,
weed and insect eradication, and ploughing is to split the large soil into small pieces. It can
generate 40000 corn per hectare of land. Corn may also be cultivated in a variety of soil types.
The region must get sunshine in order for corn plants to develop properly. Following that, we
line each plot to provide a regular space for planting. As a result, the crop will develop
consistently, and the plant will be easier to examine.

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Lining serves the objective of providing ample space for planting. It can also serve as a source
of competition for other plants. The measuring tape and rope are the tools and equipment that
we use to accomplish the lining. Following the line, we must create a plot for our plant. To do
this task, we were separated into groups. Each plot has a 2-metre width and a 10 metre length.
This is the appropriate size for our plot because it is determined by the size of the field. We
build the drainage system after we finish lining and ploughing our plot. We performed the
drainage to eliminate excessive water and to ensuring optimum water flow.

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3.0 PLANTATION MANAGEMENT

3.1 WATER MANAGEMENT

During the dry season, irrigation is carried out naturally once every 2-3 days until the humidity
level field capacity is reached. The leaves of vegetable corn look curled even in the early hours
of the morning, indicating a shortage of water throughout the growing stage. If there is a
shortage of water after the blooming corn stage, the leaves will seem withered. Irrigated water
can yield a large number of maize husks without seeds. Watering from the top of the plant
should be avoided since it has the potential to tear pollen. Irrigation is used to keep plants wet.
Morning and evening are ideal times to water plants. Keep the corn crop from becoming wilted
due to a lack of water. If maize plants have been inflating, the supply of water to the plants
must be increased. Finally, provide enough maize plants that are adequate for their age.

3.2 FERTILIZATION MANAGEMENT

Fertilizing the plant is one of the required processes since iron is used to assist the plants in
obtaining nutrients that are contained in large quantities of fertiliser to produce crops and
enhance fruit production. Fertilization is done every two weeks, and it can be done in the
morning or evening. NPK fertiliser is applied to the green within two weeks after transplanting.
Green NPK also delivers nutrients to increase crop yield. While NPK blue will be applied after
two weeks, NPK green will be applied after two weeks. NPK Green also provides nutrients to
the tree, allowing it to produce fresh and delicious fruit while also increasing yield.

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3.3 WEED MANAGEMENT

Figure 3.1 : Weed Killer that has been used

Malaysian maize crops are susceptible to a variety of diseases, however no significant assaults
have been reported. The occurrence of these diseases is sporadic and infrequent, necessitating
treatment at the stage level if cultural practises, particularly seed treatment, are done correctly.

Weed management must begin early in the planting process and is critical to ensuring optimum
quality and productivity. Clear the weed infestation area by hand or with a hoe. To avoid
hazardous creatures such as snakes, a lawn mower can be used to tidy the crop area. Weeds
grown in polybags can then be manually regulated, such as uprooting.

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3.4 PEST MANAGEMENT

Using organic insecticides is beneficial to both the environment and the plants. When using
organic pesticides, you must wear PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) to avoid pesticide
ingestion and inhalation. This technique is used to keep pests from eating or poisoning the
plant. Make careful to poison in the morning since it hastens the killing of any bugs that may
be on the plant.

4.0 HARVESTING ACTIVITIES

YIELD MATURITY

Corn cobs begin to be harvested 60 to 70 days after sowing. When the kernels have achieved
their maximum size but have not shrivelled, corn cobs are acceptable for harvesting as fresh
corn. Corn cobs contain brown hairs at this stage. However, hair colour is also impacted by the
tree's reproductive status. The cob hairs of trees that are productive and receive a lot of nitrogen
take a long time to turn brown. Corn cobs from more healthy trees often grow earlier than corn
cobs from other trees.

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CORN MATURITY INDICATOR METHODS

1) THROUGH FUR

● If the fur is whitish it means the corn fruit is stil

● If the fur is yellowish it means the corn fruit is ripe.

2) THROUGH TEARING

● Tear off a small part of the corn fruit and see the white filling, it means it is not yet
ripe.

● Tear a little off the top of the corn fruit and look at the yellow filling, it means it is
ripe.

HARVESTING

Mature corn harvesting should be practiced every two days. It can last for two weeks. Only
cobs that have been certified can be sold. This may be determined by holding it in your palm.
To assist the next cycle of harvesting, the harvested tree trunks are destroyed. When planted at
a density of 40,000 - 50,000 trees/ha, each tree yields just one cob for the selected varieties. If
the percentage of trees generating two cobs per tree is determined to be high, this suggests that
the tree density is too low. When two cobs are produced by a tree, the second cob, which is the
cob below, is generally of poor quality. A significant cob output (above 30 g/cob) and good
quality can approach 25,000 cobs per hectare with proper management. When blended with
medium-sized cobs, the quantity of marketable cobs per hectare is expected to be 30,000 cobs.

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4.1 POST-HARVEST HANDLING

YIELD STORAGE AND PACKAGING

When sweet corn is plucked, the cob is still alive and engaged in all biological functions such
as respiration, heat release, and sweating. For uncollected cobs, the tree will restore the
metabolic substrate and water lost during metabolic activity through photosynthesis and
absorption through its roots.

When the corn is plucked, the metabolic substrate is no longer replaced, and the corn cob is
fully reliant on the food and moisture stores it has to sustain the following metabolic activities.
As a result, the quality of the harvested cobs would decline with time. Perfect post-harvest care
is required to slow down metabolic activity and retain corn quality for a longer length of time.

Cobs can be kept under normal conditions for 24 – 36 hours without severely impacting quality.
Corn harvesting for the local market might begin after four o’clock in the afternoon. Cobs are
loaded into sacks or plastic bags and delivered to the market location in the evening so that
retail sales can take place the following morning.

If the maize crop is to be preserved for an extended length of time, perfect post-harvest
treatment is required. Corn cobs can be kept at 3 - 5 °C for up to three weeks without losing
quality. To that end, the gathered fruit is washed, immediately graded, and chilled by
immersing the cobs in water at 1 - 3 °C. The temperature of the corn cob may be reduced to 10
°C using this method. Cooled cobs are wrapped in polyethylene film or placed in perforated
polyethylene bags and kept in a cold chamber between 0 and 15 degrees Celsius.

GRADING AND MARKETING

Fruit from the crop is often sold to purchasers by the quantity of cobs or bags. There is no
precise criteria for grading corn cobs, thus the price provided is based on the current grade and
price. However, for composite corn, a cob weight including cob skin that surpasses 300
grammes, is full of content, is free of disease and insect damage, and has suitable cob maturity
can be classified as high grade. Although more consistent, the size of the cob is less in hybrid
corn farmed by farmers.

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A cob of high-quality hybrid corn typically weighs between 250 and 325 grammes. Sweet corn
is sold to consumers in two forms: fresh cobs and cooked cobs. Fresh corn is sold in local
markets, including supermarkets. Corn sold in supermarkets is normally cleaned and packed,
therefore it is more expensive. Corn is also available in prepared forms such as boiling corn or
baked corn. It is sold at food booths as well as by hawkers in public areas.

5.0 CONCLUSION

Therefore, we can examine how to select seed that is of high quality and suited for sowing. It
is possible to watch how to correctly manage the nursery in the nursery, such as seed
preparation, pest control, and corn crop harvesting.

In addition, we can show how to care for seedlings in the nursery. Furthermore, via this project,
we gain new knowledge in how to prepare the planting crop and learn how to manage our own
plant. Planting cultivated corn offers several advantages. It can not only produce high-quality
corn but also sell the fruit.

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6.0 REFERENCE

Barrett, M. (1995). Metabolism of herbicides by cytochrome P450 in corn. Drug metabolism

and drug interactions, 12(3-4), 299-316.

Hongbo Shao. (2014). Responses of Seed Germination, Seedling Growth, and Seed Yield
Traits to Seed Pretreatment in Maize (Zea mays L.). The Scientific World Of Journal.
https://doi.org/10.1155/2014/834630.

Karlen, D. L., & Camp, C. R. (1985). Row spacing, plant population, and water management
effects on corn in the Atlantic Coastal Plain 1. Agronomy Journal, 77(3), 393-398.

Partridge, M. S., Coffman, C., Smith, W. G., & Rutz, D. A. (1994). Pest and pesticide use
assessment and personal protective equipment use for field corn production systems in New
York state for 1994. Pesticide Management and Education Program, Cornell University.

Warman, A. (2003). Corn and capitalism: How a botanical bastard grew to global dominance.
Univ of North Carolina Press.

Wells, M. S., Reberg‐Horton, S. C., & Mirsky, S. B. (2016). Planting date impacts on soil water
management, plant growth, and weeds in cover‐crop‐based no‐till corn production. Agronomy
Journal, 108(1), 162-170.

Zakeyeldinn Eltayeb. (2018). Germination of Corn (Zea Mays L.) Cultivars Seed and Its
Relationship to Field Performance under Semi-Arid Conditions.
http://dx.doi.org/10.9790/2380-110623240

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