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Harnessing Organic Amendments to Improve Heat Stress Resilience and Yield Performance in Maize Hybrids
Abstract
Maize is a vital cereal crop that is highly vulnerable to heat stress, particularly during reproductive stages. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of various organic amendments in enhancing heat stress tolerance and improving the growth, physiology, biochemistry, nutrition and yield performance of maize hybrids. Two field experiments were conducted during 2023-24 at the Student Research Farm, Department of Agronomy, University of Agriculture Faisalabad, Pakistan. The experiments followed a factorial design with two heat levels (heat stress and no heat stress), two maize hybrids (DK-6724: heat-sensitive; YH-5507: heat-tolerant) and five organic amendment treatments: C0 (control), VC (5 t ha-1 vermicompost), CT (9 t ha-1 compost), VW (6% vermiwash), and CE (10% compost extract). Heat stress was imposed using a polythene sheet for two weeks, increasing temperature by 5-7 °C above ambient levels. Organic amendments significantly improved all measured traits under both control and heat stress conditions. Vermicompost (VC) produced the highest grain and biological yields, increasing grain yield by up to 62.13% in DK-6724 and 65.75% in YH-5507. The heat-tolerant hybrid YH-5507 consistently outperformed DK-6724 under stress. Organic amendments, particularly vermicompost, effectively mitigated the adverse effects of heat stress in maize by enhancing physiological and biochemical performance, thereby improving overall yield and heat resilience. Key words: Maize, Heat stress, Organic amendments, Vermicompost, Compost extract, Thermotolerance, Sustainable agriculture.
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This manuscript investigates the effect of organic amendments (vermicompost, compost, vermiwash, and compost extract) on heat stress tolerance in maize hybrids under field conditions. The topic is relevant and aligns with sustainable agriculture and climate resilience research. However, despite the relevance of the subject, the manuscript suffers from serious conceptual, methodological, statistical and presentation flaws that compromise the scientific validity of the study. The manuscript reads more like a student thesis chapter than a publishable scientific article. The experimental design, description of heat stress imposition, biochemical measurements, statistical treatment and interpretation of results all contain major deficiencies. The manuscript also contains numerous grammatical errors, inconsistencies and methodological ambiguities that prevent reproducibility. Most importantly, the study does not demonstrate novelty or mechanistic insight and the conclusions are overstated relative to the data presented. Due to these substantial issues, the manuscript is not suitable for publication in its current form.
