MOISTURE AND NITROGEN CONTENTS OF STEM TISSUES FROM SOLID- AND HOLLOW-STEMMED VARIETIES OF SPRING WHEAT AND THEIR RELATION TO SAWFLY RESISTANCE

Abstract

Except in the top internode, the moisture and nitrogen contents of the piths of two solid-stemmed, sawfly-resistant varieties of spring wheat, Rescue and Golden Ball, were not greatly different from those of the wall of the hollow-stemmed susceptible variety, Thatcher, at 80 and 98 days after seeding. The moisture and nitrogen contents of the walls varied, depending upon variety, internode, and date of harvest. The nodes of Golden Ball contained significantly greater quantities of moisture and nitrogen than did those of Rescue and Thatcher. The results indicate that, for the stages investigated, quantitative deficiencies in moisture and nitrogen contents of resistant varieties are not responsible for poor larval development.