EFFECTS OF NITROGEN ON YIELD AND PROTEIN CONTENT OF MANITOU AND PITIC WHEATS GROWN UNDER IRRIGATION

Abstract

In experiments with two cultivars of spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) conducted under irrigation at two locations for 2 years, average grain yields of Pitic 62 were 30% higher than those of Manitou but protein content was 20% lower. Pitic produced 3% more total protein than Manitou. Yield responses to N fertilizer ranged from nil to 2139 kg/ha for Manitou and from 941 to 2778 kg/ha for Pitic. The maximum rate of application of N from which a yield response was obtained by Manitou was 110 kg/ha and by Pitic was 165 kg/ha. In 1 year at one location the protein content of Pitic was lower from the first N increment and that of Manitou from the first two increments than those of wheats from plots that received no N. The maximum rate of N from which protein increases were obtained was 220 kg/ha for both cultivars. It is possible to grow wheat with high protein content on irrigated land.