Vegetative nitrogen stress decreases lodging risk and increases yield of irrigated spring wheat in the subtropics
A. S. Peake A E F , K. L. Bell B , P. S. Carberry C , N. Poole D and S. R. Raine E
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations
A CSIRO Agriculture, PO Box 102, Toowoomba, Qld 4350, Australia.
B Queensland Department of Agriculture and Forestry, PO Box 102, Toowoomba, Qld 4350, Australia.
C ICRISAT, Patancheru, Hyderabad, Telangana 502324, India.
D Foundation for Arable Research, 23 High Street, Inverleigh, Vic. 3321, Australia.
E University of Southern Queensland, Faculty of Engineering and Surveying, West Street, Toowoomba, Qld 4350, Australia.
F Corresponding author. Email: allan.peake@csiro.au
Crop and Pasture Science 67(9) 907-920 https://doi.org/10.1071/CP16052
Submitted: 12 February 2016 Accepted: 30 May 2016 Published: 9 September 2016
Abstract
In-crop nitrogen (N) application is used widely in rainfed winter wheat production to reduce lodging risk; however, uncertainty exists as to its ability to reduce lodging risk in subtropical irrigated wheat production without simultaneously reducing yield potential. The objective of this study was therefore to determine whether in-crop N application reduces lodging risk without reducing yield of irrigated spring wheat in a subtropical environment. Irrigated small-plot experiments were conducted to compare the effect of alternative N timing on lodging and yield in two cultivars. Variable N regimes were imposed during the vegetative growth phase, after which additional N was applied to ensure that total season N application was uniform across N-timing treatments. Treatments with low N at sowing had significantly less lodging and were the highest yielding, exhibiting yield increases of up to 0.8 t ha–1 compared to treatments with high N at sowing. Increased leaf area index, biomass and tiller count at the end of the vegetative growth phase were correlated with increased lodging in both cultivars, although the strength of the correlation varied with cultivar and season. We conclude that canopy-management techniques can be used to simultaneously increase yield and decrease lodging in irrigated spring wheat in the subtropics, but require different implementation from techniques used in temperate regions of Australia.
Additional keywords: G×E×M, in-season nitrogen, irrigation, plant population, split nitrogen, yield potential.
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