Effect of weeds and nitrogen fertiliser on yield and grain protein concentration of wheat

1996 ◽  
Vol 36 (4) ◽  
pp. 443 ◽  
Author(s):  
MG Mason ◽  
RW Madin

Field trials at Beverley (19911, Salmon Gums (1991; 2 sites) and Merredin (1992; 2 sites), each with 5 rates of nitrogen (N) and 3 levels of weed control, were used to investigate the effect of weeds and N on wheat grain yield and protein concentration during 1991 and 1992. Weeds in the study were grasses (G) and broadleaf (BL). Weeds reduced both vegetative dry matter yield and grain yield of wheat at all sites except for dry matter at Merredin (BL). Nitrogen fertiliser increased wheat dry matter yield at all sites. Nitrogen increased wheat grain yield at Beverley and Merredin (BL), but decreased yield at both Salmon Gums sites in 1991. Nitrogen fertiliser increased grain protein concentration at all 5 sites-at all rates for 3 sites [Salmon Gums (G) and (BL) and Merredin (G)] and at rates of 69 kg N/ha or more at the other 2 sites [Beverley and Merredin (BL)]. However, the effect of weeds on grain protein varied across sites. At Merredin (G) protein concentration was higher where there was no weed control, possibly due to competition for soil moisture by the greater weed burden. At Salmon Gums (G), grain protein concentration was greater when weeds were controlled than in the presence of weeds, probably due to competition for N between crop and weeds. In the other 3 trials, there was no effect of weeds on grain protein. The effect of weeds on grain protein appears complex and depends on competition between crop and weeds for N and for water at the end of the season, and the interaction between the two.

2003 ◽  
Vol 140 (4) ◽  
pp. 395-407 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. E. RUSKE ◽  
M. J. GOODING ◽  
S. A. JONES

Field experiments were conducted over 3 years to assess the effect of a triazole fungicide programme, and additions of strobilurin fungicides to it, on nitrogen uptake, accumulation and partitioning in a range of winter wheat cultivars. Commensurate with delayed senescence, fungicide programmes, particularly when including strobilurins, improved grain yield through improvements in both crop biomass and harvest index, although the relationship with green area duration of the flag leaf (GFLAD) depended on year and in some cases, cultivar. In all years fungicide treatments significantly increased the amount of nitrogen in the above-ground biomass, the amount of nitrogen in the grain and the nitrogen harvest index. All these effects could be linearly related to the fungicide effect on GFLAD. These relationships occasionally interacted with cultivar but there was no evidence that fungicide mode of action affected the relationship between GFLAD and yield of nitrogen in the grain. Fungicide treatments significantly reduced the amount of soil mineral N at harvest and when severe disease had been controlled, the net remobilization of N from the vegetation to the grain after anthesis. Fungicide maintained the filling of grain with both dry matter and nitrogen. The proportionate accumulation of nitrogen in the grain was later than that of dry matter and this difference was greater when fungicide had been applied. Effects of fungicide on grain protein concentration and its relationship with GFLAD were inconsistent over year and cultivar. There were several instances where grain protein concentration was unaffected despite large (1·5 t/ha) increases in grain yield following fungicide use. Dilution of grain protein concentration following fungicide use, when it did occur, was small compared with what would be predicted by adoption of other yield increasing techniques such as the selection of high yielding cultivars (based on currently available cultivars) or by growing wheat in favourable climates.


1997 ◽  
Vol 48 (1) ◽  
pp. 67 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Fathi ◽  
G. K. McDonald ◽  
R. C. M. Lance

The interaction between nitrogen (N) rate and post-anthesis moisture stress in 6 cultivars of barley (Clipper, Stirling, Weeah, Schooner, Chebec, and Skiff) was examined. Plants were grown in a glasshouse at 2 rates of N under well-watered conditions until 3 days after ear emergence, when the stress treatment was started. Yield and grain protein concentration (GPC) responses and changes in the dry matter and N content of the straw and grain in the main stem and tillers were examined separately. Nitrogen increased grain yield in all cultivars except Weeah, with Skiff and Stirling being the most responsive. Post-anthesis stress did not reduce yields at the low N rate but large reductions occurred at the high N rate in all cultivars; the yields of Stirling, Chebec, and Skiff were most affected. At the low N rate, stress did not significantly affect kernel weight and GPC, but kernel weight declined and GPC increased at the high N rate. Compared with the main stem, tillers produced smaller grain with a lower GPC. The responses to N and water stress, and the different sensitivities of cultivars to stress, were largely due to the effects of the treatments on the growth of the tillers. In Stirling, Chebec, and Skiff, grain yield and kernel weight from the tillers were greatly reduced by stress, whereas Clipper showed relatively little effect of N and stress on yield and kernel weight. Net remobilisation of dry matter was increased by stress but not by N treatment, and the amount remobilised varied between genotypes. At the high N rate, post-anthesis stress increased the N content per kernel and net remobilisation of N. Although genotypes differed in the net amount of N remobilised and in the N harvest index, there was little variation in GPC between cultivars. The work demonstrated that reductions in yield and kernel weight and increases in GPC from post-anthesis stress can be greater when plants are grown at a high rate of N than when the supply of N is limited. The different responses to stress and N among the 6 cultivars were associated, in part, with the pattern of tiller development. However, there appeared to be differences in the sensitivity of grain filling to stress independent of the responses in tillering. While the net remobilisation of dry matter and N differed between cultivars, the amounts did not appear to be related to differences in kernel weight or GPC.


1992 ◽  
Vol 43 (5) ◽  
pp. 949 ◽  
Author(s):  
GK McDonald

The responses of wheat to applications of nitrogenous fertilizer were examined between 1988 and 1990 at 10 sites in South Australia which were considered to be marginally deficient in N. Nitrogen rates ranged from 0 kg N/ha to 150 kg N/ha and the experiments were sown after a range of crops and pastures. Nitrogen often increased early crop vigour and subsequent vegetative growth but significant increases in grain yield occurred at three of the 10 sites only; at the remaining sites there was no significant response or there was a reduction in yield at the highest rates of N. Kernel weights fell and grain protein concentration increased at most sites as the rate of N increased. The total amount of N per kernel was relatively constant across the N treatments at each site and across the 10 sites it varied less than the starch content per kernel. Grain protein concentration therefore was affected more by the amount of starch deposited in the grain than by the total amount of nitrogen. The amount of dry matter remobilized post-anthesis, calculated from changes in dry weight, was high and at the majority of sites was increased with applications of nitrogenous fertilizer. Despite the generally large amount of dry matter remobilized, this appeared to be used inefficiently during grain filling and there was little evidence that it greatly contributed to grain growth and grain protein concentration. The relationship between starch content per kernel and N content per kernel varied between sites: in some cases starch and N were negatively correlated, while in other instances there was a positive correlation or no correlation. The data suggest that high grain protein concentration at high levels of N are not a direct consequence of increased mobilization of dry matter and greater translocation of N to the grain. Dry matter production at anthesis was correlated with the amount of growth after 10 weeks but generally this increased dry matter production was of no benefit to yield. It is concluded that in the medium rainfall areas of the state, there is no advantage to be gained from improved early vigour, except perhaps where poor early growth is due to inadequate management.


2009 ◽  
Vol 60 (9) ◽  
pp. 808 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brett M. Whelan ◽  
James A. Taylor ◽  
James A. Hassall

Accurately measuring and understanding the fine-scale relationship between wheat grain yield (GY) and the concomitant grain protein concentration (GPC) should provide valuable information to improve the management of nitrogen inputs. Here, GPC and GY were monitored on-harvester for three seasons across 27 paddocks on an Australian farming enterprise using two independent, on-the-go sensing systems. A Zeltex Accuharvest measured GPC (%) and a John Deere GreenStar system measured GY (t/ha). Local calibration in each season for Australian spring wheat significantly improved the prediction accuracy, precision, and bias of the Zeltex Accuharvest when compared with the initial factory calibration. Substantial variation in GPC and GY was recorded at the field scale, with the least variation recorded in both parameters in the wetter season. GY (CV = 38%) was twice as variable on average as GPC (CV = 19%) across the enterprise. At this enterprise scale, a negative correlation between GPC and GY was observed for a composite of the field data from all seasons (r = –0.48); however, at the within-field scale the relationship was shown to vary from positive (max. = +0.41) to negative (min. = –0.65). Spatial variation in GPC and GY at the within-field scale was described best in the majority of cases by an exponential semivariogram model. Within-field spatial variability in GPC is more strongly autocorrelated than GY but on average they share a similar autocorrelated range (a′ = ~190 m). This spatial variability in GPC and GY gave rise to local spatial variation in the correlation between GPC and GY, with 85% of the fields registering regions of significant negative correlations (P < 0.01) and significant positive correlations observed in 70% of fields. The spatial pattern in these regions of significantly different correlations is shown to display spatial coherence from which inferences regarding the relative availability of soil nitrogen and moisture are suggested. The results point to the suitability of these on-the-go sensors for use in more sophisticated agronomic and environmentally targeted nitrogen-use analysis.


1989 ◽  
Vol 69 (4) ◽  
pp. 1135-1147 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. H. ENTZ ◽  
D. B. FOWLER

Nitrogen and water are important variables that influence both grain yield and quality of wheat. The present study was conducted to investigate the combined effects of N and water on the growth, water use, yield and grain protein concentration of stubbled-in winter wheat produced in Saskatchewan. Seven field experiments were conducted between 1984 and 1986 on a range of soil types. Irrigation to approximately 150% of normal growing season precipitation significantly increased grain yield in five of the seven trials. A significant water × N interaction was recorded for grain yield in the remaining two trials. Grain yield response to irrigation averaged 10.9 kg ha−1 mm−1 at total available N levels above 140 kg ha−1. In trials where residual soil NO3–N to 61 cm averaged 40 kg ha−1, 62% of the grain yield increase was due to fertilizer N while 38% of the grain yield increase was due to the interaction between water and fertilizer N. Increases in grain yields due to N and water were attributed to increased levels of pre-anthesis dry matter, a higher number of kernels per square meter and an improved water use efficiency (kg ha−1 grain mm−1 total crop water use). The semidwarf cultivar Norwin and the tall cultivar Norstar responded similarly to N fertilization. In one trial, where moisture conditions were very favorable, a water × cultivar interaction indicated a greater response of Norwin to irrigation. The Gompertz equation was used to describe grain protein concentration-N response. The coefficient that describes the initial lag phase of this function was correlated with dry matter at anthesis (r = 0.97**) and root zone extractable water at stem elongation (r = 0.85**). These observations demonstrate that as pre-anthesis growing conditions improve more N is required to produce an increase in grain protein concentration above a minimum 8.2%.Key words: Wheat (winter), water use, nitrogen


2002 ◽  
Vol 82 (4) ◽  
pp. 489-498 ◽  
Author(s):  
B G McConkey ◽  
D. Curtin ◽  
C A Campbell ◽  
S A Brandt ◽  
F. Selles

We examined 1990-1996 crop and soil N data for no-tillage (NT), minimum tillage (MT) and conventional tillage (CT) systems from four long-term tillage studies in semiarid regions of Saskatchewan for evidence that the N status was affected by tillage system. On a silt loam and clay soil in the Brown soil zone, spring what (Triticum aestivum L.) grain yield and protein concentration were lower for NT compared with tilled (CT or MT) systems for a fallow-wheat (F-WM) rotation. Grain protein concentration for continuous wheat (Cont W) was also lower for NT than for MT. For a sandy loam soil in the Brown soil zone, durum (Triticum durum L.) grain protein concentration was similar for MT and NT for both Cont W and F-W, but NT had higher grain yield than MT (P < 0.05 for F-W only). For a loam soil in the Dark Brown soil zone, wheat grain yield for NT was increased by about 7% for fallow-oilseed-wheat (F-O-W) and wheat-oilseed-wheat (W-O-W) rotations. The higher grain yields for NT reduced grain protein concentration by dilution effect as indicated by similar grain N yield. However, at this site, about 23 kg ha-1 more fertilizer N was required for NT than for CT. Elimination of tillage increased total organic N in the upper 7.5 cm of soil and N in surface residues. Our results suggest that a contributing factor to decreased availability of soil N in medium- and fine-textured soils under NT was a slower rate of net N mineralization from organic matter. Soil nitrates to 2.4 m depth did not indicate that nitrate leaching was affected by tillage system. Current fertilizer N recommendations developed for tilled systems may be inadequate for optimum production of wheat with acceptable grain protein under NT is semiarid regions of Saskatchewan. Key words: Tillage intensity, N availability, soil N fractions, N mineralization, crop residue decomposition, grain protein


2002 ◽  
Vol 82 (3) ◽  
pp. 507-512 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. Wang ◽  
M. R. Fernandez ◽  
F. R. Clarke ◽  
R. M. DePauw ◽  
J. M. Clarke

Although leaf spotting diseases have been reported to have a negative effect on grain yield and seed characteristics of wheat (Triticum spp.), the magnitude of such effects on wheat grown on dryland in southern Saskatchewan is not known. A fungicide experiment was conducted at Swift Current (Brown soil) and Indian Head (Black soil) from 1997 to 1999 to determine the effect of leaf spotting diseases on yield and seed traits of wheat. Two fungicides, Folicur 3.6F and Bravo 500, were applied at different growth stages on three common wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and three durum wheat (T. turgidum L. var durum) genotypes. Fungicide treatments generally did not affect yield, kernel weight, test weight or grain protein concentration, and these effects were relatively consistent among genotypes. Folicur applied at head emergence in 1997 and at flag leaf emergence and/or head emergence in 1998 increased yield at Indian Head (P < 0.05). Fungicides applied at and before flag leaf emergence tended to increase kernel weight. Grain protein concentration increased only in treatments of Bravo applications at Indian Head in 1998. These results suggested that under the dryland environment and management in southern Saskatchewan leaf spotting diseases generally have a small effect on yield, kernel weight, test weight and protein concentration. Key words: Wheat, leaf spotting diseases, fungicide, yield


2012 ◽  
Vol 4 (11) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ali Hafeez Malik ◽  
Allan Andersson ◽  
Ramune Kuktaite ◽  
Muhammad Yaqub Mujahid ◽  
Bismillah Khan ◽  
...  

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