Enhancing Growth, Yield, and Nutrient Quality of Fodder Maize Through Foliar Application of Ortho Silicic Acid

Purpose The significance of silicon (Si) in plant nutrition has been debated for many years. Agriculture has overlooked silicon fertilization because of the common belief that soil contains sufficient Si. This has led to neglect of its potential advantages in optimal, stress-free conditions. A field experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of foliar spray of orthosilicic acid (OSA) on the growth, yield, nutrient content, and quality of fodder maize. Methods The experiment consisted seven treatments with different concentrations of OSA (0.05%, 0.10%, 0.15%, 0.20%, 0.25%, and 0.30%) were applied at 30 DAS stage along with the recommended dose of fertilizer (RDF 120–26-33 kg N-P - K/ha). RDF without OSA application was used as control. Results The results showed that OSA application significantly improved green fodder yield (GFY) and dry fodder yield (DFY). 0.25% OSA concentration resulted in the highest GFY (53.63 t ha −1 ) and DFY (13.35 t ha −1 ), which were 10.6% and 45.3% higher over control, respectively. The application of OSA also positively influenced growth parameters such as crop growth rate (CGR), relative growth rate (RGR), dry matter accumulation (DMA), leaf:stem ratio, and physiological parameters including SPAD (chlorophyll content), relative water content (RWC%), and leaf area index (LAI). OSA foliar spray improved the nutrient content and uptake in fodder maize. Nitrogen (N%), potassium (K%), and calcium (Ca%) concentrations were significantly increased with OSA application, while phosphorus (P%) concentration remained unaffected. The uptake of N, P, K, and Ca was significantly higher in the OSA-treated plots, with 0.25% OSA treatment showing the highest nutrient uptake. OSA application improved dry matter (DM%) by 11.3%, crude protein (CP%) 1.3%, total ash (TA%) 3.3%, and lowered neutral detergent fiber (NDF%) 2.0%, and acid detergent fiber (ADF%) 2.7%. Economic analysis revealed that OSA at 0.25% concentration resulted in the highest gross return, net return, and benefit–cost ratio (B:C), indicating its economic viability. Conclusion Therefore, foliar spray of OSA, at 0.25% concentration, at 30 DAS improved the growth, yield, nutrient content, and quality of fodder maize. This study highlights the potential of OSA as a beneficial foliar spray for enhancing production and quality of fodder maize.