Formation of yield and quality of winter durum wheat grain depending on long-term fertilization

Abstract

Durum wheat (Triticum durum Desf.) grain is the main raw material for the production of high-quality pasta and cereal products. The research was conducted at Uman National University of Horticulture (Ukraine) in a long-term stationary experiment, founded in 2011. The aim of the work was to study the impact of long-term use of various fertilization systems (with incomplete return of nitrogen, phosphorus and potash fertilizers) on the yield and quality of durum winter wheat grain. The long-term application of nitrogen, nitrogen-potassium, nitrogen-phosphorus and nitrogen-phosphorus-potassium systems in the field crop rotation has a strong impact on the formation of durum winter wheat yield. Long-term use of N150P60K80 increases it from 3.6 t ha-1 up to 4.9 t ha-1 (p≤0.05). The use of half a dose of complete mineral fertilizer provides 4.5 t ha-1 (p≤0.05). Variants with incomplete return of phosphoruspotassium fertilizers, as well as paired combinations with a nitrogen component, provide the formation of 4.6–4.8 t ha-1 grains. Nitrogen fertilization systems increase grain yield to 4.2–4.5 t ha-1 depending on the fertilizer dose. It should be noted that durum winter wheat responds well to the use of nitrogen fertilizers, as the protein content increases from 13.3 to 14.8–15.9 % (p≤0.05), and the gluten content from 28.0 to 31.1–33.4% (p≤0.05) depending on the fertilization system. The protein content was most affected by the application of nitrogen component from complete mineral fertilizer.