Research Article

Evaluation of Temporal and Differential Fertilizer Application on Growth, Yield and Quality of Wheat

Raheela Naz1*, Muhammad Aftab1, Ghulam Sarwar2, Ana Aslam1, Qudsia Nazir1, Asifa Naz3, Abid Niaz4, Farah Rasheed1, Amina Kalsom1, Nisa Mukhtar1, Sadia Sultana1, Ifra Saleem1, Arfan ul Haq1, Muhammad Arif1, Aamer Sattar1, Sarfraz Hussain5 and Muhammad Adnan Rafique6

1Soil Chemistry Section, AARI, Faisalabad, Punjab, Pakistan; 2College of Agriculture, University of Sargodha, Punjab, Pakistan; 3Soil and Water Testing Laboratory, Khushab, Punjab, Pakistan; 4Provincial pesticide Reference laboratory, Raiywind, Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan; 5Institute of Soil Chemistry and Environmental Sciences, Kala Shah Kaku, Punjab, Pakistan; 6Pesticide Quality Control Laboratory, Kala Shah Kaku, Punjab, Pakistan.

Received | September 09, 2021; Accepted | January 14, 2022; Published | February 16, 2022

*Correspondence | Raheela Naz, Soil Chemistry Section, AARI, Faisalabad, Punjab, Pakistan; Email: [email protected]

Citation | Naz, R., M. Aftab, G. Sarwar, A. Aslam, Q. Nazir, A. Naz, A. Niaz, F. Rasheed, A. Kalsom, N. Mukhtar, S. Sultana, I. Saleem, A.U. Haq, M. Arif, A. Sattar, S. Hussain and M.A. Rafique. 2022. Evaluation of temporal and differential fertilizer application on growth, yield and quality of wheat . Pakistan Journal of Agricultural Research, 35(1): 78-84.

DOI | https://dx.doi.org/10.17582/journal.pjar/2022/35.1.78.84

Keywords | Biomass, Fiber, Grain yield, Nutrients, Protein, Wheat

Introduction

Food security is a global issue of developing world for the ever-increasing population, while the natural resources are the same. Healthy and nutrient enriched food through proper management practices of nutrients are necessary for a healthy generation and maintenance of successful life and social growth (Nazir et al., 2016). For healthy crops, different fertilizer application strategies are being used such as seed coating, soil application etc., while, foliar fertilization is considered better for the maximizing quality and yield of crops. The nutrients through this method are readily available to plant because it is independent of soil-water availability and root activity factors. In areas where saline and drought conditions prevail, the foliar application showed the best results as compared to soil application. In such situations, the required nutrients are rapidly absorbed because they are supplied to the leaves and absorbed directly. It has shown to be a good method for increasing N, P, K requirements for critical growth periods of a crop (Amanullah et al., 2013). A sufficient supply of nutrients is essential to obtain the maximum yield potential of crops.

Among all nutrients, nitrogen has prime importance to achieved successful plant growth of any crop because nitrogen is required for protein manufacturing that is an integral component of chloroplast and protoplast (Alam et al., 2010). In the soil, nitrogen is lost by many mechanisms including: denitrification, leaching, volatilization and runoff hence, nitrogen use efficiency reduces in the rhizosphere (Qadri et al., 2015).

The importance of potassium (K) in plants is well documented, it is involved in enzyme activation (Abid et al., 2016), various metabolic activities in plants such as cation-anion balance, stomatal conductance, photosynthesis, energy transfer, osmoregulation, phloem transport, protein synthesis, carbohydrate translocation in plants and meristematic growth etc. It is well known fact that potassium is famous for its impacts on metabolism of vitamins, formation of nucleic acids, generation of many substances essential for plant development as well as synthesis of proteins. It is known as a key active cation of the plant cell. It also enables the plant to resist against pests and diseases, and also improves the synthesis of fats and carbohydrates. In the growth and development of plants as well as many growth regulating mechanisms within the plant, role of potassium is self-explanatory (Bukhsh et al., 2012). Potassium has major part in refining plant acceptance under anxiety circumstances (Khan et al., 2014). K is tangled in meristematic tissue’s development, cell turgor pressure, quality determination and crop productivity (Gul et al., 2011; Dewdar and Rady, 2013).

Foliar applied fertilizers, alone or in combination with pesticides reduced the environmental threat of pollution by decreasing the amount of nutrients and increasing the economic effects of nutrients (Kalinova et al., 2014). When soil moisture is limited then foliar application of N is useful for improving grains protein and plant productivity. Plant’s lodging risk can also be reduced by the late addition of N in foliar mode. However, weight per grain was increased by its application during and after the anthesis stage (Woolfolk et al., 2002). In some cases, foliar applied nitrogen showed a better response than granular applied nitrogen. In wheat crop, foliar N application during anthesis and milking stage increased grain protein. After the late milky-ripe stage, foliar applied N is not taken up by plant. At these timings, carbohydrate accumulation is reduced and ultimately plants show no response in terms of yield (Baloch et al., 2019).

Combine usage of fertilizers in foliar and soil mode has been evaluated better to enhance growth components and maize grain yield (Asumadu et al., 2012). Foliar usage of nutrients surges vegetative as well as crop attributes of wheat in comparison to soil addition. Because of interfering of many edaphic factors like loss of nutrients due to leaching, deficiency of soil water and less temperature in the soil, roots are incapable of nutrient absorption. In such situations, foliar application is very useful (Rahman et al., 2014). In most cases, foliar feeding is less costly and more effective, and gives better response than soil application (Jamal et al., 2006). Keeping in view the low fertility status of Pakistani soils and low fertilizer use efficiency, current trial was performed to evaluate the impacts of temporal and fertilizer usage on various wheat parameters like crop quality and development.

Materials and Methods

This research experiment was done at AARI, Faisalabad, Punjab, Pakistan during 2017-2019. Wheat seeds were sown in the soil on November 20, 2017 and crop after maturity was harvested in April 24, 2018 for the first time and this same practice was followed for 2nd year of experimentation.

Experiment Setup, Treatments and Measurements

Soil samples were collected for determination of different characteristics (physical and chemical) before starting this trial.

Six treatments with three replications were tested by using RCBD design of statistics. Experiment comprised of the following treatments:

T1 = N, P AND K as recommended dose (RD).

T2 = K as RD + half N at sowing time + spray of 2% N after 30 & 45 DAS.

T3 = N as RD + half K at sowing time + half K after 30 DAS.

T4 = N as RD + half K at sowing time + spray of 2% N after 30 & 45 DAS.

T5 = Half N at sowing time + spray of 2% N after 30 & 45 DAS + half K at sowing time + half K after 30 DAS.

T6 = Half N at sowing time + spray of 2% N after 30 & 45 DAS + half K at sowing time + spray of 2% K after 30 & 45 DAS.

Urea, SSP and K2SO4 remained respective sources for N, P and K and were applied to all pots as per treatment plant. These fertilizers were added at the rate of 120 N-90 P-60 K for kg/ha. These fertilizers were applied to all plots as per action proposal. Wheat variety Faisalabad-2008 was sown. All agronomic practices were carried out for optimum growth and yield of wheat. Soil samples were examined for different properties i.e., EC and pH (Richards, 1954), and organic matter (Walkley, 1947). Fertility status of soil was determined by measuring extractable K (Richards, 1954) and Olsen P (Olsen, 1954). Hydrometer method was used for textural class determination (Bouyoucos, 1962). Wheat grain and straw yield were measured along with other growth parameters.

Chemical analysis of grains

Grain samples were taken at harvesting and oven dried at 70oC, ground, digested and analyzed for concentration of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. Digestion of these samples was done in tri-acid mixture of H2SO4-HClO4-HNO3 (George et al., 2013). Metavanadate colour method was applied for P-estimation (Jackson, 1979) with Spectrophotometer IRMECO model U-2020, whereas flame spectrophotometry method was used for potassium determination in plant samples (Chapman and Pratt, 1961). N was analyzed by applying protocols of Bremner (1996). The quality parameter i.e., crude protein remained estimated by multiplying N concentration by 6.25 (Fujihara et al., 2008).

Statistical analysis

Entirely composed data were exposed to analysis of statistics using RCBD. Mean comparison was carried out according to the LSD test, at p ≤ 0.05 probability level (Steel et al., 1997).

Results and Discussion

Basic soil analysis indicated that the experimental site had sandy clay loam texture and free from salinity and sodicity, low in organic matter and available phosphorus while sufficient in available potassium. The chemical analysis of the experimental soil is mentioned in Table 1.

 

Table 1: Soil physico-chemical properties before experimentation.

Parameters	Units	Depth (cm)
		0-15	15-30	0-15	15-30
		2018		2019
EC	dS m-1	1.11	1.00	1.31	1.11
pH	-	7.62	6.65	7.53	7.66
Organic Matter (OM)	%	0.99	0.68	0.75	0.43
Available P	ppm	7.6	5.4	6.9	4.3
Available K	ppm	188	149	116	68
Texture		Sandy clay loam

 

Table 2: Various yield parameters as affected by N and K application through different modes.

Treatments	Plant height (cm)	Number of tillers/ plant	Number of spikes/ plant	Number of spikelet/ spike	Grain/ spike	1000- grain weight (g)
T1	98 b	11 a	10 a	19 a	57 ab	41.00 ab
T2	103 ab	9 bc	9 a	20 a	57 ab	44.33 a
T3	104 ab	9 bc	9 a	19 a	53 ab	39.33 b
T4	105 a	10 b	9 a	20 a	54 ab	40.33 b
T5	104 ab	7 d	7 b	19 a	65 a	42.67 ab
T6	100 ab	9 c	9 a	19 a	48 b	42.67 ab
LSD	5.83	1.00	1.96	1.45	14.09	3.78

All the values are means of triplicates ± SD. Letters in a column are not significantly (p ≤ 0.05) dissimilar rendering to Fishers least significant difference (LSD).

 

Wheat growth attributes

The results showed that split application of fertilizer, significantly increased the plant height and maximum plant height (105 cm) was recorded in treatment where RD of N + ½ K at sowing + 2% spray of K at 30 and 45 DAS were applied, while, minimum plant height (98 cm) was observed in T1 where RD of N, P and K was applied while other treatments were statistically remained at par (Table 2). Maximum number of tillers (11 tillers/plant) was obtained in T1 where RD of N, P and K was applied followed by T4 (10 tiller/plant) where RD of N + ½ K at sowing + 2% spray of K at 30 and 45 DAS was applied. Minimum number of spikes/plant (7) was found in T5 treatment while all other treatments were statistically at par with each other. Non-significant effect of all treatments was observed in the case of number of spikelets /spike. The number of grains/spike is also significant parameter to predict the yield of wheat grain. The highest number of grains/spike (65) was found in treatment T5 where ½ N at sowing + 2% spray of N at 30 and 45 DAS + ½ K at sowing + ½ K at 30 DAS were applied. On the other hand, maximum 1000 grain weight (44.33 g) was found in T2 treatment followed by T5 and T6 treatment (42.67 g).

Wheat yield attributes

Two years data (Figure 1) showed that soil and foliar applied N and K (urea and K2SO4) significantly affect grain yield of wheat. The maximum grain yield was recorded from T4 (4.11 tons ha-1) and T6 (3.88 tons ha-1) treatments respectively. However, both treatments showed statistically non-significant results. Higher straw yield 7.08 tons ha-1 and 7.09 tons ha-1 was recorded in T1 and T3 (Figure 2).

 

 

Quality parameters

Data related to quality parameters were given in Figure 3 and 4. During year 2018-2019 maximum crude protein (10.45%) was found in treatment T6 and minimum was found in treatment T5. Maximum crude fiber was found in treatment T1 where recommended NPK was applied, while all other treatments were at par with each other.

 

 

Nutrient concentration in wheat grains

The N, P and K concentration were evaluated and results presented in Table 3. The nitrogen contents in grain showed that all treatments were statistically similar. On the other hand, maximum phosphorus content was observed in T4, while the maximum K was observed in T6, which were 92 and 74% increase respectively as compared to their respective controls.

Kenbaev and Sade (2002) reported that foliar spray of nutrients in combination or alone enhance the plant height. Previous studies also indicated that foliar application of potassium improves plant height in wheat when sprayed under drought conditions at vegetative stage than at flowering or at grain filling stages (Aown et al., 2012). Arif et al. (2010) reported that increased number of tillers was observed due to foliar application of K. The number of grains/spikes is also significant parameter to predict the yield of wheat grain. Parvez et al. (2009) described that number of grains/spike was significantly increased with foliar spray of urea. Guenis et al. (2003) and Soylu et al. (2005) reported that 1000 grain weight was significantly improved with nutrient foliar application. Foliar and soil applied N and P also improved the grain yield of wheat. Arif et al. (2009) described that foliar applied N ensures the sufficient availability of nutrients to crops for obtaining higher yield. Another study indicated that potato yield was also improved by K sprays on weekly basis (Fageria et al., 2009). Foliar spray 1.5% K2SO4 improved straw and paddy yield as compared to KCl and KNO3 (Ali et al., 2005). This might be due to suitable concentration of K2SO4 for foliar application which produced high yield. Maize grain yield was much improved by urea spray of 7 kg N ha-1. Plants cannot consume urea N when its foliar application was done after anthesis stage because it prolongs the dry matter accumulation in plants (Singh, 2003). John and Lester (2011) described that foliar applied potassium increased crude protein in grains due to the better accessibility of nutrients to cereals. Dekov (2004) described that nitrogen spray after flowering stage increased the seed protein.

 

Table 3: Nutrient contents of wheat grains as affected by N and K application through different modes.

Treatments	N (%)	P (%)	K (%)
T1	1.62 a	0.38 ab	0.46 c
T2	1.69 a	0.40 ab	0.54 abc
T3	1.66 a	0.40 ab	0.49 bc
T4	1.61 a	0.42 a	0.48 bc
T5	1.54 a	0.38 ab	0.57 ab
T6	1.68 a	0.38 b	0.62 a
LSD	0.15	0.04	0.10

All the values are means of triplicates ± SD. Letters in a column are not significantly (p ≤ 0.05) dissimilar rendering to Fishers least significant difference (LSD).

 

Conclusions and Recommendations

This study concluded that split and foliar application of N and K improved the plant height, grain yield and straw yield. The N, P and K contents of wheat grain also increased by split and foliar application while quality parameters (protein and crude fiber) remained unaffected.

Acknowledgements

I acknowledge Institute of Soil Chemistry and Environmental Sciences, AARI, Faisalabad-Pakistan to provide facilities to do this research.

Novelty Statement

Wheat growth and yield was improved by N and K application through split and foliar mode.

Author’s Contribution

Raheela Naz: Basic Researcher.

Ana Aslam, Qudsia Nazir and Asifa Naz: Preparation of graphs on excel.

Abid Niaz: Complete direction, supervision of paper preparation.

Sarfraz Hussain and Ghulam Sarwar: Proof read and edited for English language.

Farah Rasheed, Amina Kalsom and Nisa Mukhtar: Contributed in laboratory analysis.

Sadia Sultana and Ifra Saleem: Elaborated results and discussion.

Muhammad Aftab and Arfan ul Haq: Participated in materials and methodology portion.

Muhammad Arif and Muhammad Adnan Rafique: Contributed to introduction section.

Aamer Sattar: Analysis of research data for statistics.

Conflict of interest

Authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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