EFFECT OF DIFFERENT NITROGEN LEVELS ON FORAGE YIELD, QUALITY AND ECONOMICS OF OAT (AVENA SATIVA L.) GENOTYPES

Abstract

A field experiment was conducted at CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar (Haryana) during winter season (rabi) of 2014-15 to study the response of different nitrogen levels on the yield and quality of oat (Avena sativa L.) genotypes. Twelve oat genotypes viz., RSO 60, RSO 59, SKO 190, UPO 12-1, OS 405, JHO 2012-1, OL 1760, JO 04-14, JHO 2012-2, OL 125, OS 6 and Kent were sown with 40, 80 and 120 kg nitrogen per hectare. Among genotypes, OS 405 produced the maximum plant height, green fodder, dry matter followed by SKO 190. Both these two genotypes of oat remained on a par with each other with respect to green fodder and dry matter production. Genotype SKO 190 produced maximum number of tillers/metre row length which was significantly higher over rest of the genotypes. Kent was found superior in terms of crude protein content (11.36%), while SKO 190 yielded the highest crude protein yield. Growth parameters, green fodder and dry matter were influenced significantly by increasing levels of nitrogen from 40 to 120 kg/ ha. Whereas leaf : stem ratio and tillers/metre row length were increased up to 80 kg N/ ha. Crude protein content and its yield revealed increased trend with increasing levels of nitrogen, maximum with 120 kg N/ha. Among genotypes, the maximum gross returns (Rs. 69645/ha), net returns (Rs. 41955/ha) and B : C ratio (1.52) were recorded with OS 405 and among different nitrogen levels, the maximum gross returns (Rs. 69945/ha), net returns (Rs. 41785/ha) and B : C ratio (1.48) were noticed with application of 120 kg N/ha.

Full text

http://forageresearch.inForage Res., 41 (4) : pp. 233-236 (2016)
EFFECT OF DIFFERENT NITROGEN LEVELS ON FORAGE YIELD,
QUALITY AND ECONOMICS OF OAT (AVENA SATIVA L.)
GENOTYPES
A. S. GODARA1, SATPAL*, B. S. DUHAN2 AND S. K. PAHUJA
Department of Genetics & Plant Breeding
CCS Haryana Agricultural University,
Hisar-125 004 (Haryana), India
*(e-mail : satpal.fpj@gmail.com)
(Received : 24 February 2016; Accepted : 26 March 2016)
SUMMARY
A field experiment was conducted at CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar (Haryana) during
winter season (rabi) of 2014-15 to study the response of different nitrogen levels on the yield and quality of
oat (Avena sativa L.) genotypes. Twelve oat genotypes viz., RSO 60, RSO 59, SKO 190, UPO 12-1, OS 405,
JHO 2012-1, OL 1760, JO 04-14, JHO 2012-2, OL 125, OS 6 and Kent were sown with 40, 80 and 120 kg
nitrogen per hectare. Among genotypes, OS 405 produced the maximum plant height, green fodder, dry
matter followed by SKO 190. Both these two genotypes of oat remained on a par with each other with respect
to green fodder and dry matter production. Genotype SKO 190 produced maximum number of tillers/metre
row length which was significantly higher over rest of the genotypes. Kent was found superior in terms of
crude protein content (11.36%), while SKO 190 yielded the highest crude protein yield. Growth parameters,
green fodder and dry matter were influenced significantly by increasing levels of nitrogen from 40 to 120 kg/
ha. Whereas leaf : stem ratio and tillers/metre row length were increased up to 80 kg N/ ha. Crude protein
content and its yield revealed increased trend with increasing levels of nitrogen, maximum with 120 kg N/ha.
Among genotypes, the maximum gross returns (Rs. 69645/ha), net returns (Rs. 41955/ha) and B : C ratio
(1.52) were recorded with OS 405 and among different nitrogen levels, the maximum gross returns (Rs.
69945/ha), net returns (Rs. 41785/ha) and B : C ratio (1.48) were noticed with application of 120 kg N/ha.
Key words : Dry matter, forage yield, nitrogen, oats
1Department of Agroforestry.
2Department of Soil Science.
According to 19th livestock census conducted
in 2012, India supports 512.05 million of livestock,
which includes 37.28 per cent cattle, 21.23 per cent
buffaloes, 12.71 per cent sheep and 26.40 per cent goats
(DAHD & F, 2012). India inhabits 15 per cent of world’s
livestock population on 2 per cent geographical area,
which itself is an indicative of the extent of livestock
pressure on our resources in comparison to other
countries. The low productivity and poor performance
of the livestock are mainly due to unavailability of
nutritious fodder in sufficient quantity. The availability
of nutritious fodder is inadequate in the country. India
faces a net deficit of 61.1 per cent green fodder, 21.9
per cent dry crop residues and 64 per cent feeds (Sunil
Kumar et al., 2012). The most important constraint in
the fodder production and productivity is the non-
availability of improved variety seed of forage crops to
the farmers. The supply of nutritious fodder is pre-
requisite for the success of dairy sector (Kumar et al.,
2010). Oat is the most important nutritious and palatable
cereal fodder crop grown in the winter season in the
North-Western and Central India and now extending to
the Eastern regions. In India, it is mainly grown in
Haryana, Punjab, Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh,
Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra,
West Bengal and Gujarat where irrigation facilities are
available (Joshi et al., 2015). For higher green fodder
yield, vegetative growth of this crop is very important.
Although the vegetative growth of any crop is largely
dependent upon the potential of the genotype, nutrient
supply system, capacity of the soil to supply the nutrients
to the crop and capacity of the plants to take and use the

nutrients in unit time. Among all the primary nutrients,
nitrogen plays a pivotal role in quantitative as well as
qualitative improvement in the productivity of the crop.
Nitrogen is an important constituent of protein and
chlorophyll. It imparts dark green colour to the plants,
promotes vegetative growth and rapid early growth. It
improves the quality by increasing the protein content
of fodder crops and governs to a considerable degree,
the utilization of potassium, phosphorus and other
essential nutrient elements (Patel et al., 2007). Almost
all the soils of Haryana are deficient in nitrogen and if
the required amount of nitrogen of any crop is not
supplied in sufficient amount then the deficiency of
nitrogen is reflected in the straw and grain. Since nitrogen
is a constituent of amino acid and deficiency of nitrogen
in grain and straw of the cereals as well in the fodder
crops may cause severe disorders in animals and human
beings (Midha et al., 2015). Therefore, it is essential to
find out the optimum dose of nitrogen for fetching good
yield of oat. Hence, the present investigation was
undertaken to study the performance of different
promising genotypes of oat with different nitrogen levels.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
A field experiment was conducted during rabi
season of 2014-15 at Forage Section Research Farm of
CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar (Haryana),
India (29°10' N of 75°46' E, at an average elevation of
215.2 m above mean sea level). The site has semi-arid
and sub-tropical climate with hot dry summers and severe
cold winters. Average annual rainfall is about 450 mm,
75 per cent of which is received in three months, from
July to September during south-west monsoon. July and
August are the wettest months. The crop received 143.5
mm rainfall during crop season. The soil of the
experimental field was sandy loam in texture, slightly
alkaline in reaction (pH 7.9), low in available nitrogen
(178.4 kg/ha), medium in available phosphorus (15.0 kg/
ha) and potassium (243.7 kg/ha). The experiment was laid
out in split plot design with three replications. The main
plot consisted of 12 different oat genotypes (RSO 60, RSO
59, SKO 190, UPO 12-1, OS 405, JHO 2012-1, OL 1760,
JO 04-14, JHO 2012-2, OL 125, OS 6 and Kent), whereas
sub-plot had three nitrogen levels (40, 80 and 120 kg N/
ha). The oat genotypes as per treatment were sown
manually on 30 November 2014 in opened furrows at 25
cm apart using the seed rate of 100 kg/ha. All the other
standard agronomic practices for the cultivation of oat
were followed uniformly in all the treatments. All the
genotypes were harvested just after 50 per cent flowering.
The harvested green fodder from each plot was weighed
in situ in kg/plot and then converted into q/ha. A random
sample of 500 g was taken from each plot at the time of
green fodder at harvest, chopped well and put into paper
bag. These bags were aerated by making small holes all
over. The samples were first dried in the sun for 15 days
and then transferred in an electric hot air oven for drying
at a temperature of 60±5°C till constant weight was
achieved. On the basis of these samples, the green fodder
yield was converted into dry matter yield (q/ha). Crude
protein content (%) was estimated in dried and grinded
samples (2 mm sieve size), collected at 50 per cent
flowering stage. The crude protein content was calculated
by multiplying the nitrogen percentage with 5.83 by
conventional micro-kjeldal method (AOAC, 1995). Crude
protein yield was calculated by the multiplication of crude
protein content with dry matter yield (q/ha). Economics
was worked out on the basis of prevailing market prices
of inputs and outputs in the local market. The experimental
data were analyzed by using OPSTAT software available
on CCS Haryana Agricultural University home page
(Sheoran, 2016). The results were presented at 5 per cent
level of significance (P=0.05) for making comparison
between treatments.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Effect of Genotypes
Data presented in Table 1 reveal that maximum
plant height (130.40 cm) was recorded with OS 405
genotype which was at par with JO 04-14, JHO 2012-2
and OS 6 genotypes. However, lowest plant height (98.78
cm) was recorded with the genotype SKO 190. The
maximum number of tillers/m row length (110.67) was
recorded with SKO 190 which was significantly superior
over rest of the genotypes. However, the lowest number
of tillers/m row length (86.22) was recorded with the
genotype UPO 12-1. The highest leaf : stem (L : S) ratio
was measured with UPO 12-1 and OL 1760 which was at
par with OS 405, SKO 190 and JO 04-14 and was seen
superior over rest of the genotypes. The green fodder yield
was highest with the genotype OS 405 (696.45 q/ha),
which was at par with other genotypes like SKO 190, OL
1760 and JO 04-14 and superior over rest of the genotypes.
234 GODARA, SATPAL, DUHAN AND PAHUJA

The maximum dry matter yield was recorded with OS
405, which was at par with SKO 190, OL 1760, JO 04-14
and RSO 60 except rest of the genotypes. The maximum
crude protein (11.36%) was observed with genotype Kent
followed by SKO 190, JHO 2012-1 and OL-125,
respectively. The maximum crude protein yield (11.11 q/
ha) was observed with SKO 190 followed by Kent, RSO
60 and OS 405. Amongst genotypes, the maximum gross
returns (Rs. 69645/ha), net returns (Rs. 41955/ha) and B
: C ratio (1.52) were fetched with OS 405 closely followed
with SKO 190. The minimum gross returns (Rs. 54200/
ha), net returns (Rs. 26510/ha) and B : C ratio (0.96) were
observed with OS 6.
Effect of Nitrogen Levels
Data presented in Table 1 reveal that green fodder
yield (699.45 q/ha) and dry matter yield (101.33 q/ha)
was highest with the application of 120 kg N/ha which
was significantly superior over rest of the treatments. The
application of 80 kg N/ha significantly increased the green
fodder and dry matter yield from 552.17 to 646.08 q/ha
and 83.19 to 94.28 q/ha, respectively, over 40 kg N/ha.
Singh and Dubey (2008) also revealed that application of
nitrogen up to 80 kg/ha significantly increased the growth
and produced 493 and 98.75 q/ha green and dry matter
yield, respectively. Similarly, Midha et al. (2015) reported
that the application of 80 kg N/ha significantly increased
the green fodder and dry matter yield from 253.4 to 360.5
q/ha and 52.8 to 73.5 q/ha over the treatment 40 kg N/ha.
The maximum plant height (125.81 cm) was recorded with
the application of 120 kg N/ha which was significantly
superior over rest of the treatments. The results are in
conformity with the findings of Banjara and Banjara
(2014). The L : S ratio with the application of 120 kg N/
ha was statistically at par with 80 kg N/ha and both these
treatments were found significantly superior over L : S
ratio obtained with the application of 40 kg N/ha.
Maximum number of tillers (97.83/m row length) was
recorded with the application of 120 kg N/ha which was
at par with the application of 80 kg N/ha but significantly
superior over the application of 40 kg N/ha. Highest crude
protein content (11.42%) was estimated with the
application of 120 kg N/ha followed by the application of
80 and 40 kg N/ha. The increase in crude protein content
was 9.71 to 11.05 per cent with the application of 80 kg
N/ha over 40 kg N/ha and it further improved to 11.42
per cent with the application of nitrogen at the rate of 120
kg/ha. Application of nitrogen increased the protein
content in oat and this may be due to nitrogen helped in
the synthesis of amino acid and protein in plant. Higher
crude protein at 120 kg N/ha was attributed to more uptake
of nitrogen which is constituent of amino acids and protein.
Rana et al. (2009), Devi et al. (2010) and Midha et al.
(2015) also reported similar results. The maximum crude
protein yield (11.57 q/ha) was exhibited with the
TABLE 1
Performance of different oat genotypes under different nitrogen levels during rabi season of 2014-15
Treatment Green Dry Plant Leaf : Tillers/m Crude Crude
fodder matter height stem row length protein protein
yield yield (cm) ratio (%) yield
(q/ha) (q/h) (q/ha)
A. Genotypes
RSO 60 639.78 95.68 106.40 0.42 96.22 10.95 10.48
RSO 59 582.56 87.32 116.56 0.40 96.70 10.68 9.33
SKO 190 690.89 99.03 98.78 0.43 110.67 11.22 11.11
UPO 12-1 622.56 92.28 124.22 0.45 86.22 10.64 9.82
OS 405 696.45 102.97 130.40 0.44 97.90 10.14 10.44
JHO 2012-1 624.90 91.51 118.11 0.41 88.70 11.22 10.27
OL 1760 662.80 98.07 123.20 0.45 90.00 10.41 10.21
JO 04-14 660.80 96.00 129.90 0.43 98.80 9.73 9.34
JHO 2012-2 601.10 85.34 128.40 0.41 92.90 10.48 8.94
OL 125 633.11 92.87 121.89 0.44 90.89 11.22 10.43
OS 6 542.00 79.94 124.78 0.39 92.20 10.68 8.54
Kent 633.89 94.21 120.20 0.40 95.11 11.36 10.70
C. D. (P=0.05) 53.88 7.49 5.86 0.03 7.32 - -
B. Nitrogen levels (kg/ha)
40 552.17 83.19 113.30 0.41 90.20 9.71 8.07
80 646.08 94.28 121.61 0.43 96.03 11.05 10.42
120 699.45 101.33 125.81 0.43 97.83 11.42 11.57
C. D. (P=0.05) 26.94 3.75 2.93 0.01 3.66 - -
RESPONSE OF OAT UNDER DIFFERENT N LEVELS 235

TABLE 2
Economic returns of different genotypes of oat as influenced by different nitrogen levels during rabi season of 2014-15
Treatment Gross Cost of Net returns B : C
returns cultivation (Rs./ha) ratio
(Rs./ha) (Rs./ha)
A. Genotypes
RSO 60 63978 27690 36288 1.31
RSO 59 58256 27690 30566 1.10
SKO 190 69089 27690 41399 1.50
UPO 12-1 62256 27690 34566 1.25
OS 405 69645 27690 41955 1.52
JHO 2012-1 62490 27690 34800 1.26
OL 1760 66280 27690 38590 1.39
JO 04-14 66080 27690 38390 1.39
JHO 2012-2 60110 27690 32420 1.17
OL 125 63311 27690 35621 1.29
OS 6 54200 27690 26510 0.96
Kent 63389 27690 35699 1.29
B. Nitrogen levels (kg/ha)
40 55217 27220 27997 1.03
80 64608 27690 36918 1.33
120 69945 28160 41785 1.48
application of 120 kg N/ha. The increase in crude protein
yield was 8.07 to 10.42 q/ha with the application of 80 kg
N/ha over 40 kg N/ha and it further improved to 11.57 q/
ha with the application of nitrogen at the rate of 120 kg/
ha. The increase in crude protein yield was due to increase
in protein content and dry matter yield of oat crop because
the protein yield proportionally increased with the increase
in dry matter yield of oat. Amongst the different nitrogen
levels, the maximum gross returns (Rs. 69945/ha), net
returns (Rs. 41785/ha) and B : C ratio (1.48) were obtained
with the application of 120 kg N/ha followed by 80 kg/ha
(gross returns Rs. 64608/ha, net returns Rs. 36918/ha and
B : C ratio 1.33). The minimum gross returns (Rs. 55217/
ha), net returns (Rs. 27997/ha) and B : C ratio (1.03) were
observed with the application of 40 kg N/ha (Table 2).
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