Influence of different levels of zinc, iron and vermicompost on profitability of hybrid maize (Zea mays L.)

A field experiment was conducted on student instructional farm (SIF) at Chandra Shekhar Azad University of Agriculture and Technology, Kanpur during the Kharif season 2019 and 2020, In the present experiment 32 treatments, were laid out in factorial randomized block design (FRBD) with three replications. Maize variety Pioneer 3377 was taken for study. The results revealed that the profitability of hybrid maize respond significantly with the different treatment combination. The highest cost of cultivation (52700 & 52700 rupees) was obtained with the application of 2.5 tonne vermicompost + 7.5 kg Zinc + 15 kg iron ha-1, gross return (87794.5 & 92072.7 rupees) was obtained with 2.5 tonne vermicompost + 5.0 kg Zinc + 10 kg iron ha-1, net return (39553.5 & 41238.5 rupees) and benefit cost ratio (2.08 & 2.13) was obtained with the application of 5.0 kg zinc + 10 kg iron ha-1 during both the years. The treatment combination M0Zn2Fe2 was gave superior result in terms of net return and B:C ratio, while maximum gross return was found in treatment M1Zn2Fe2 during 2019 and 2020.