Investigation of the effects of fertilization with nitrogen and phosphorous on the yield and composition of the corn plant.

Investigation in 1953 (M.Sc. thesis) showed that fertilization with 76 pounds of nitrogen and 72 pounds of phosphate per acre, in addition to a maintenance application of 600 pounds of a 4-12-6 fertilizer, increased the nitrogen and phosphorus percentages in the corn leaf at the flowering stage. The levels of these leaf constituents and the yields at harvest were closely correlated, confirming the idea that chemical analysis of the plant at this stage of growth was a useful diagnostic tool. It was also shown that nitrogen, rather than phosphorus, was a major factor in modifying these plant characteristics