Yellow mustard (Sinapsis alba L.), brown mustard (Brassica juncea L.), and oriental mustard (B. juncea) have been grown in Alberta since the 1950s, but limited agronomic information specific for this crop is available. The objective of this study was to determine the response of mustard to fertilization, seeding date and seeding rate in southern Alberta. Field experiments were conducted at 20 field sites over a 4-yr period (1999–2002) under irrigated and dryland (fallow and stubble) conditions. Five experiments were conducted with the following treatments: (1) N fertilizer rate (0, 30, 60, 90 and 120 kg N ha-1), (2) urea placement (seed-placed and side-banded urea at rates of 0 to 120 kg N ha-1), (3) P fertilizer rate (0, 6.5, and 13.1 kg P ha-1), (4) S fertilizer rate (0, 10 and 20 kg S ha-1), and (5) seeding date (three dates at approximately 10-d intervals) and seeding rate (target plant densities of 75, 125, 175, 225, and 300 plants m-2). Experiment 1 was conducted with yellow mustard (AC Pennant), oriental mustard (Forge), brown mustard (Commercial Brown) and canola (Q2) (Brassica napus L.), while the remaining experiments were only conducted with yellow mustard. For maximum seed yield, mustard required 95 kg of available N Mg-1 of potential seed yield. Potential yields were closely related to available moisture, increasing 7 to 8 kg ha-1 for every mm increase in available moisture above a minimum moisture requirement of 90 mm. Seed-placed urea reduced plant stand at rates as low as 30 kg N ha-1 and reduced seed yield at rates of 60 to 120 kg N ha-1. Fourteen of 20 sites had a greater than 3% positive yield benefit due to P fertilizer. Mustard did not benefit from S fertilizer application. Delay in seeding by 3–4 wk, compared with seeding in late April to mid-May, reduced seed yield of yellow mustard by an average of 37%. Seed yield increased with seeding rate, but the maximum gain in seed yield due to high seeding rates was only 200 kg ha-1, with significant increases obtained only under very dry conditions. Early seeding and adequate N fertility were the most important agronomic practices for achieving high yields of mustard in southern Alberta. Key words: Sinapsis alba, Brassica juncea, yield, oil, nitrogen, phosphorus, sulfur, water-use efficiency
Breeding for Yellow Seeded Ethiopian Mustard (Brassica Carinata) With High Seed Yield and Oil Content at Holetta Agricultural Research Center, Ethiopia
