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Received for publication: April 10, 2024. Accepte d for publication: April 30, 2024. Doi: 10.15 44 6/ag ron.colomb.v42n1.1134 30
1 Departamento de Fitotecnia, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria, Sa nta Maria, RS (Brazil).
* Corresponding author: fernanda.mieth@acad.ufsm.br
Agronomía Colombiana 42(1), 1-8, 2024
ABSTRACT RESUMEN
The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of different
management of nitrogen fertilization in top dressing on the
morphophysiology of spring wheat cultivars in a low-altitude
subtropical env ironment of Brazil. The experiment was c arried
out in 2022 in a greenhouse. The experiment had a random-
ized block design. We evaluated 10 wheat cultivars with two
different applications of nitrogen with three replicates. The
variables evaluated included the number of fertile tillers, plant
height, length of the main spike and tiller, number of spikelets
in the main spike and tiller, number of grains in the main spike
and tiller, number of grains per plant and mass of grains in the
main spike and tiller. For wheat cultivated in a low-altitude
subtropical environment, nitrogen installments have no influ-
ence on the number of fertile tillers, plant height, or crop yield
components. It was possible to in fer that the difference obtained
in the tillering pattern of the cultivars tested was due to their
genetic potential.
El objetivo de este estudio fue evalua r la influencia de d iferentes
manejos de fertilizantes nitrogenados de superficie sobre la
morfofisiología de cultivos de trigo de primavera en un am-
biente subtropical de baja altitud de Brasil. El experimento se
llevó a cabo en 2022 en un invernadero. El diseño experimen-
tal utilizado fue de bloques al azar, 10 cultivos de trigo y dos
momentos de aplicación de nitrógeno fueron evaluados, con
tres repeticiones. Las variables evaluadas incluyeron número
de macollos fértiles, altura de la planta, longitud de la espiga
principal y del macollo, número de espig uillas en la espiga pri n-
cipal y del macollo, número de granos en la espiga principal y
en el macollo, número de granos por planta y peso de granos en
la espiga principal y el macollo. Cuando se cultiva trigo en un
ambiente subtropical de baja a ltitud, los aportes de nit rógeno no
inf luyen en el número de macollos fértiles, la altura de la planta
o los componentes del rendimiento del cultivo. Se pudo inferir
que la diferencia obtenida en el patrón de macollamiento de los
cultivos ensayados se debió a su potencial genético.
Key words: Triticum aestivum L., plant physiology, tillering,
plant height.
Palabras clave: Triticum aestivum L., fisiología de plantas,
macollamiento, altura de planta.
Evaluation of top-dressing fertilization with nitrogen
for the morphophysiology of wheat crops
Evaluación de la fertilización de cobertura con nitrogeno
sobre la morfofisiología de cultivos de trigo
Fernanda Maria Mieth1*, Emilso Damm dos Santos1, Diego Nicolau Follmann1,
Anderson Crestani Pereira1, and Ricardo Ismael Raddatz1
Introduction
Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is an annual grass grown in
southern Brazil mainly during the winter period during
the months of June, July, August, and September. It is an
important crop of sustainable agricultural production sys-
tems as an alternative to winter crop rotation in production
systems (Barro et al., 2017).
The use of management practices that optimize resources
contributes to increasing wheat yields in Brazil. Among
the determining factors in establishing t he crop productive
potential are genetics and fertilization; these boost grain
yields, since wheat is one of the main cereal crops that
provides protein, carbohydrates, minerals, and vitamins
for most of the world population (Conab, 2017). Wheat
grain is used to make f lour and is used in different ways
depending on the quality of the grain, grain yield, endo-
sperm content, the proportion of protein in the flour and
the quality of the protein; all of these determine the quality
of the wheat cultivar (Ahmed & Fayyaz-ul-Hassan, 2015).
The genetic improvement of any crop is a fundamental
tool, as it provides the launch of cultivars with different
characteristics such as high production potential, wide
adaptation to contrasting soils and environments, and
tolerance to disease.
2Agron. Colomb. 42(1) 2024
To increase productivity in wheat, it is necessary to in-
crease the yield potential in tillage conditions, where
cultivars need to interact with different environmental
and management situations; it is necessary to identify
cultivars that respond to specific environmental stimuli
(Benin et al., 2012; Scheeren, 1999). In order to obtain high
yields, the following aspects are important: management
adjustments and rational use of available resources among
which nitrogen fertilization and the choice of cultivars best
adapted to the growth environment stand out as impor-
tant aspects (Ecco et al., 2020; Silva et al., 2024). From a
nutritional point of view, nitrogen (N) is one of the most
important elements, fu ndamental for plant metabolism and
development, acting in the expansion and cell division of
the photosynthetic area, in addition to being an essential
component of proteins, nucleic acids, and chlorophyll (Silva
et al., 2024; Taiz et al., 2017).
One way in which various nitrogen management strategies
can help to achieve high grain yields is by increasing the
number of tillers per plant (Ecco et al., 2020). This means
that the final number of fertile tillers is related to the
number of ears and an increase in grains per area, leading
to higher yields from wheat in a subtropical environment.
The emergence and survival of tillers is associated with
factors such as plant population density, N availability,
temperature, salinity, and other factors (Shang et al., 2 021).
In order to obtain high productive potential of wheat
crops, monitoring soil fertility and plant nutrition are also
essential issues, considering that N is the nutrient that
has greater requirement and uptake by wheat plants. This
element also has a strong inf luence on the productivity of
wheat (Prando et al., 2013). Deficiencies in N can cause a
reduction in evapotranspiration and water use efficiency
and a decrease in leaf size related to solar radiation use
efficiency that causes a drop in the photosynthetic rate,
as well as a limitation in the number of tillers that also
reduce the number of stalks and ears per area and, conse-
quently, wheat yield (Ferreti & Fernandes, 2011). The use
of N fertilization contributes to an increase in tillering,
as well as an increase in the growth of the wheat canopy
(Pietro-Souza et al., 2013). Therefore, mineral N fertiliza-
tion represents a significant cost in wheat yield (Cui et al.,
2014). Moreover, good N agronomic practices that help
farmers increase productivity, reduce production costs, and
diversify wheat production should be studied to guarantee
the sustainability and viability of wheat crops, as well as
lowering Brazilian independence from the import of this
cereal (Kaneko et al., 2010; Pires et al., 2 019).
Studies evaluating the morphophysiology of wheat cultivars
associated with N management are limited to cultivars that
have only been launched in the Brazilian market for a short
time. It is necessary to verify whether and which of the
moments of N fertilization in top dressing provide better
tillering conditions and, consequently, greater grain yields.
The objective of this study was to evaluate the inf luence of
N fertilizer management strategies on the morphophysiol-
ogy of spring wheat cultivars in a low-altitude subtropical
environment.
Materials and methods
The experiment was carried out in the 2022 crop season
in a greenhouse at the Phytotechnics Department of the
Universidade Federal de Santa Maria - RS. The climate,
according to Köppen classification system, is Cfa, humid
subtropical, with warm summers during the months of
December, January, February, and March, and no defined
dry season. The crop was sown on June 22, 2022, within the
recommended sowing period according to the Agricu ltural
Risk Zoning (Zoneamento Agrícola de Risco Climático -
ZARC) (Ministério da Agricultura e Pecuária, 2021). We
planted the crop in 20 L pots with 16 plants per pot, filled
with a soil classified as Arenic Profondic Rhodic Acrisol
(ISSSWG RB, 1998). The pots were placed on benches under
a Van der Hoeven greenhouse made with a galvanized iron
and polycarbonate structure with temperatures ranging
from 10ºC to 32ºC and irrigation according to the crop’s
demand.
The experiment used a randomized block design, in a bifac-
torial arrangement 10x2, consisting of ten wheat cultivars
and two periods of N application with three replicates. The
following cultivars were used: TBIO Audaz, TBIO Aton,
TBIO Toruk, TBIO Ello, TBIO Calibre, TBIO Fusão, TBIO
Ponteiro, TBIO Duque, TBIO Astro and TBIO Trunfo (Tab.
1). The trial consisted of 60 experimental units made up of
20 L white pots distributed on 3 benches, each with 20 pots,
representing each block. The population used in the trial
was 16 plants per pot, and the adjustment was made based
on the cultural value of the seeds, so that the recommended
population for wheat was 300 plants m-2 .
To fertilize the soil in pots, we sampled and analyzed the
soil and corrected the pH before the pots were filled us-
ing limestone in coverage and applied two months before
sowing, based on the recommendations of the fertilization
and liming manual for the states of Rio Grande do Sul and
Santa Catarina (Comissão de Química e Ferti lidade do Solo
3Mieth, Santos, Follmann, Pereira, and Raddatz: Evaluation of top-dressing fertilization with nitrogen for the morphophysiology of wheat crops
– RS/SC, 2016). Base fertilizer was applied on the surface at
a dose of 200 kg ha-1 of 5 -20-20 (N-P 2O5-K2O) formulat ion,
equivalent to 1.2 g of fertilizer per pot.
When N top dressing fertilizer was applied to meet the N
crop requirement during its production cycle, N was spread
with two different methods. The first was to apply 50% of
the recommended dose in install ments, when the wheat was
at the beginning of tillering (V3/V4 vegetative stage) and
the remaining 50% was spread at the beginning of elon-
gation (V7/V8 vegetative stage) according to the Zadoks
Decimal Scale by Zadoks (1974). The second strategy for
applying N was to apply 100% of the recommended dose at
the beginning of tillering (vegetative stage V3/V4). For crop
management, physical weed control was carried out; and,
for pests and diseases affecting the crop, we followed the
technical recommendations for wheat (Comissão Brasileira
de Pesquisa de Trigo e Triticale, 2022).
On June 28, 2022 the seedling emergence rate was assessed
in each pot and thinning was performed where necessary.
Four plants in the useful area of the experimental unit
were marked with colored wire. Beginning from July 15,
2022 some of the cultivars began to be tillered and weekly
evaluations began: we counted the number of tillers and
checking the plant height of the four plants previously
marked in each pot.
Before the plants were harvested, we collected the four
marked plants to assess the number of fertile shoots and
other crop yield components. We harvested t he crop manu-
ally on October 26, 2022, when the plants were mature,
taking into account the difference in cycle between the
cultivars. Later, in the laboratory of the Research Group on
Ecophysiology and Management of Annual Crops (Grupo
de Pesquisa em Ecofisiologia e Manejo de Culturas Anuais
- GEMCA), we evaluated the yield components and char-
acters related to grain yield using a measuring tape and
precision scale as follow: number of fertile tillers = tillers
that had spikelets with grain formation (NFT), plant height
(PH), main spike length (SL_main), tiller spike length (SL_
til.), number of spikelets on the main spike (NSS_main),
number of spikelets on the tiller spike (NSS_til.), number
of grains in the main spike (NGS_main), number of grains
in the tiller spike (NGS_til.), number of grains per plant
(NG), main spike grain mass fresh (MGS_main) and tiller
spike grain mass fresh (MGS_til.).
Statistical analysis
We subjected the characters evaluated to a two-way analysis
of variance; and for the crop yield components we grouped
the means of the treatments using the Scott-Knott test with
a significance level of 5% probability of error. For these
analyses, we used the Sisvar statistical software and the
Microsoft Office Excel® software to insert the data and
draw up the tables.
Results and discussion
The different moments of N application did not differ statis-
tically (P>0.05) for the factor number of fertile tillers (Tab.
2). Similar results were also identified for plant height and
some yield components, such as SL, NSS, NGS, and MGS.
For the environmental conditions of the experiment, the N
installment did not inf luence the number of fertile tillers,
plant height, and crop yield components. Due to adequate
irrigation and temperature control in the greenhouse, the
difference in the tillering pattern of the evaluated cultivars
could be due to their genetic potential, which corroborates
the data obtained by Orso et al. (2014). The wide variety
of cultivars currently available on the market allows the
producer to choose the genetic material most adapted to
TABLE 1. Description of cultivars tested for cycle and industrial quality.
Cultivars Cycle Classification
TBIO Audaz Precocious Improver
TBIO Aton Medium Bread/improver
TBIO Toruk Medium Bread/improver
TBIO Ello Medium Bread
TBIO Calibre Super precocious Bread/improver
TBIO Fusão Precocious Improver
TBIO Ponteiro Mid-late Bread
TBIO Duque Precocious Bread/whitener
TBIO Astro Super precocious Improver
TBIO Trunfo Precocious Bread
Commercial cultivars were obtained fro m the holder BIOTRIGO Genética (Br azil).
TABLE 2. Average number of fertile tillers per plant produced by diffe-
rent nitrogen managements applied to the wheat crop, Santa Maria/RS,
Brazil.
Nitrogen management Number of
fertile tillers
50% of the recommended N dose applied at vegetative stage
V3/V4 (beginning of tillering) and the remaining 50% applied
at vegetative stage V7/V8 (full tillering)
2.28 ns*
100% of the recommended N dose applied at vegetative stage
V3/V4 (beginning of tillering) 2.40
Overall average 2.34
CV (%) 29.93
CV – coef ficient of va riation. * ns – n ot significa nt using the Sc ott-Kno tt test at 5% sig nificance
level.
4Agron. Colomb. 42(1) 2024
the production system, level of technology, and investment
capacity (Pires et al., 2005).
In relation to the analysis of variance of the characters
evaluated (Tab. 3), we found a low coefficient of variation
(CV %) for PH, SL_main, and NSS_main indicating good
experimental precision (CV less than 10%), demonstrat-
ing the reliability of the tests (Pimentel-Gomes, 1990).
The other characters, NFT, SL_til., NSS_til., NGS_main,
NGS_til., MGS_main, and MGS_til., had a high coeff icient
of variation, which may indicate difficulties in measuring
these characters. This indicates a lower reliability of results,
therefore, in future experiments, a greater number of plants
per experimental unit or a greater number of replicates
should be used.
The average MGS_til. of each cultivar were presented sepa-
rately for each type of N fertilizer management (Tab. 4).
Only for the cultivar TBIO Audaz did we observe a sig-
nificant difference between management A in relation to
nitrogen management B. For this cultivar, the application
of 50% of the N dose recommended at the beginning of
tillering and 50% of the recommended dose applied at the
beginning of elongation provided higher MGS_til. values
compared to management B, where 100% recommended
dose of N was applied at the beginning of tillering of the
crop. Similar results are reported by Costa et al. (2013) and
by Mattuela et al. (2018).
TABLE 3. Mean squares of the analysis of variance (ANOVA) for productive and morphological characters evaluated in ten wheat cultivars, Santa
Maria/RS, Brazil.
SV DF NFT PH SL_main SL_til. NSS_main NSS_til.
Cultivar 90.73 81.75 2.89 1.5 9 3.28 1.5 0
Nitrogen 10.23 1.5 8 1.70 0.33 0.65 4 .11
Cult X Nitrog 9 0.22 8.60 0.73 0.52 3.37 2.97
Error 40 0.49 22 .13 0.87 0.99 2.53 2.99
Mean -2.34 62.80 8.71 7.40 15.4 3 11.15
CV (%) -29.93 7. 49 10.6 9 13.45 10.31 15 .51
SV NGS_main NGS_til MGS_main MGS_til.
Cultivar 41. 59 41.57 0.13 0.03
Nitrogen 4.00 0.02 0.12 0.00
Cult X Nitrog 51.25 34.48 0.04 0.10
Error 35.95 28.79 0.05 0.04
Mean 36.98 16.66 1.53 0.58
CV (%) 16.2 2 32.20 15.23 36.17
CV – coef ficient of var iation. NFT - number of fertile tillers, PH -plant height, S L _ main - main spike length, SL _ til. -tiller spike length, NSS _ main - number of spikelets on the main spike,
NSS _ til. - num ber of spikelet s on the tiller spik e, NGS _ m ain - number of gr ains in the main s pike, NGS _ til. - numbe r of grains in the t iller spike, NG - num ber of grains p er plant, MGS _ main
- main spike grain mass, and MGS _ til. - tiller spike grain m ass.
TABLE 4. Fresh grain weight of tiller spike (MGS_til.) averages for each
cultivar presented separately for the two types of nitrogen fertilizer ma-
nagement, Santa Maria/RS, Brazil.
Cultivar N fertilizer management MGS_til.
TBIO Audaz A0.87 a
B0.26 b
TBIO Aton A0.41 a
B0.47 a
TBIO Toruk A0.43 a
B0.64 a
TBIO Ello A0.53 a
B0.81 a
TBIO Calibre A0.57 a
B0.62 a
TBIO Fusão A0.6 a
B0.83 a
TBIO Ponteiro A0.55 a
B0.54 a
TBIO Duque A0.65 a
B0.51 a
TBIO Astro A0.55 a
B0.61 a
TBIO Trunfo A0.65 a
B0.55 a
CV – coef ficient of ex perimenta l variation in % . N fertilizer m anagement A - 5 0% of the recom -
mende d N dose applie d at vegeta tive stag e V3/V4 (b eginning of t illering) and t he remaini ng 50%
applie d at vegetati ve stage V7/ V8 (full tillerin g), B - 100% of th e recommend ed N dose applied
at vege tative sta ge V3/V4 (b eginning of tille ring). * Average s followed by the s ame letter in t he
column do not dif fer by th e Scott-Knott test at a 5% significa nce level.
5Mieth, Santos, Follmann, Pereira, and Raddatz: Evaluation of top-dressing fertilization with nitrogen for the morphophysiology of wheat crops
The results of the averages of the plant traits (Tab. 5) show
that a balance is needed between NGS and MGS, both in
the main ear and in the tillers. Despite having a consider-
able number of grains per ear, they may not have a high
mass. The quantity of grains produced per area verified in
the NGS_main does not directly express high MGS_main;
productivity will end up being inf luenced by other factors.
The MGS_main was segregated into two groups according
to the average grain weight. In the group with the highest
MGS_main averages made up of TBIO Toruk, TBIO Cali-
bre, TBIO Fusão, TBIO Duque and TBIO Trunfo there was
no interaction with NGS _main where cultivars that showed
the highest value for this variable did not necessarily show
the highest MGS_main values.
The TBIO Duque cultivar had the highest NGS_main,
and MGS_main also fell into the group with the highest
MGS_main averages. Meanwhile, TBIO Audaz and TBIO
Astro have the lowest NGS and MG values for the main
ear. For NGS_til., TBIO Toruk has the lowest averages and
TBIO Ello has the highest averages, but they do not make
up the highest MGS_til. Direct selection using the number
of grains per ear, considering the thousand-grain mass, is
the best strategy for obtaining superior genotypes in terms
of grain yield (Vesohoski et al., 2011). Indirect selection for
grain yield, when it comes to ear weight, considering the
number of grains per ear and/or grain mass, is the best
indirect selection strategy for choosing superior genoty pes
(Ca ier ão et al., 2001).
For the SL, NSS and NGS characters, despite there being
no statistical difference for the cultivar factor, the greater
length of ears does not imply a greater number of spikelets
per ear or number of grains per ear (Tab. 5) in absolute
values. An example of this is the performance of the TBIO
Ponteiro cultivar that, despite having the highest SL_main
and the highest NSS_main, has the lowest NGS_main.
Meanwhile, although TBIO Calibre has one of the lowest
SL_main and NSS_main values, it had one of the highest
NGS_main values. This differs from Silva et al. (2005),
who observe that the higher the number of grains per spike
(NGS), the greater spike length (SL) and the greater the
number of spikelets per spike (NSS).
One of the reasons for the low average yield of spring wheat
crops is attributed to the small share of fertile tillers in the
final yield (Mundstock, 1999). This can be seen by observ-
ing the lower contribution of the tillers to the yield compo-
nents when compared to the main ear (Tab. 5). There was
no statistical difference for the cultivar factor in NFT, but
TBIO Ello was superior in the final number of fertile tillers,
and TBIO Duque was inferior for the same variable (Tab.
6). However, TBIO Duque stands out in terms of NGS and
MGS when compared to TBIO Ello and the other cultivars
analyzed. In this case we can infer that the greater number
of fertile tillers did not interfere with higher grain yields,
but we can consider it a safety mechanism; in years with
lower than ideal production, the compensation of fertile
tillers can help maintain grain yields.
TABLE 5. Plant characters, SL_main, SL_til., NSS_main, NSS_til., NGS_main, NGS_til., MGS_main and MGS_til., associated with grain yield in ten
wheat cultivars, Santa Maria/RS, Brazil.
Cultivar SL_main (cm) SL_til. (cm) NSS_main NSS_til. NGS_main NGS_til. MGS_main (g) MGS_til. (g)
TBIO Audaz 8.76 b* 7.0 9 n s 15.79 ns 10.98 ns 32.29 ns 14.42 n s 1.51 b 0.56 ns
TBIO Aton 7.9 7 b6.93 14.8 8 10.63 38.38 14.64 1.3 8 b0.44
TBIO Toruk 9.47 a7.6 8 15.92 11. 58 37.7 9 13.69 1.73 a0.53
TBIO Ello 8.10 b7.0 3 14.75 10.61 36.13 21.58 1.33 b0.67
TBIO Calibre 8.25 b7.15 14.79 11. 00 38.33 15.23 1.66 a0.59
TBIO Fusão 8.94 a7. 7 8 16.25 11. 39 37.6 7 17. 2 0 1.65 a0.71
TBIO Ponteiro 9.12 a7. 9 8 15 .6 3 12. 03 36.25 17. 2 0 1.41 b0.55
TBIO Duque 8.44 b6.80 15 .13 10.72 4 0.17 16.06 1.65 a0.58
TBIO Astro 7. 9 8 b7.18 14.46 10.83 32.96 20.73 1.3 6 b0.58
TBIO Trunfo 10.05 a8.35 16.70 11.73 39.79 15. 86 1.60 a0.60
Mean 8.71 7.4 0 15.43 11.15 36.98 16.66 1.5 3 0.58
CV (%) 10.69 13.45 10.31 15.51 16.22 32.20 15 .23 3 6.17
CV - coef ficient of ex perimenta l variation in % . * Averages follo wed by the sam e letter in the c olumn do not dif fer by the Scot t-Knott te st at a 5% signific ance level. ns – not s ignificant a ccording
to the Scott- Knott test at 5% signif icance level. SL _ main - main s pike length, SL _ til. - t iller spike lengt h, NSS _ m ain - number of spi kelets on the ma in spike, NSS _ til. - numb er of spikelets
on the till er spike, NGS _ main - nu mber of grain s in the main spike , NGS _ t il. - number of gra ins in the tiller sp ike, MGS _ main - main s pike grain mas s, and MGS _ til. - tille r spike grain ma ss.
6Agron. Colomb. 42(1) 2024
These contrasts with Camponogara et al. (2016). They show
that treatments with greater tillering also have greater sig-
nificance for yield. This leads to an indirect relationship
between these characters, possibly meaning t hat the greater
magnitude of yield in these treatments can be explained
by greater tillering. However, when NFT is compared with
the variables MGS_main and MGS_til., there is no asso-
ciation between these variables in relation to the weight
of grains produced in the main ear of the plant. However,
in relation to MGS_til., there is a greater weight of grains
produced by the cultivars TBIO Ello, TBIO Calibre and
TBIO Fusão, which have higher absolute values of NFT,
despite the absence of a statistical difference for NFT and
MGS_til. Factors such as the incidence of solar radiation
and competition for nutrients result in a higher population
of fertile tillers per unit area (Ozturk et al., 2006).
The application of N in top dressing is not capable of in-
creasing the number of ti llers (Ecco et al., 2020; Penckowski
et al., 2009). So, this is probably a genetic characteristic
of the cultivar linked to population management and the
thermal conditions arising during its development. In pro-
duction terms, genotypes with lower tillering potential are
subject to greater dependence on sowing density and this
characteristic is also related to tiller senescence (Valério et
al., 2008). Plants should ideally have two or three tillers in
addition to the main stem, to minimize possible environ-
mental damage (Common & Klinck, 1981). The number of
tillers is determined based on the population of plants in
the crop, where the number of tillers changes to compensate
for the lack or excess of plants (Orso et al., 2014).
Despite the fact that there was statistical differentiation for
the cultivar factor, according to the PH character (Tab. 6),
the averages were segregated into two groups. The group
with the highest average PH is made up of the cultivars
TBIO Audaz, TBIO Ello, TBIO Calibre and TBIO Duque,
while the others had lower values. We can infer that the
higher the PH, the lower the NFT, except for the TBIO
Astro cultivar that, despite having a lower NFT, also has a
low PH average. However, the higher the PH, the greater
the possibility of the crop lodging in the face of more in-
tense winds; lodging is one of the factors that most limits
the maximization of wheat grain production (Costa et al.,
2013).
When growing wheat in a low-altitude subtropical envi-
ronment, N installments have no inf luence on the number
of fertile tillers, plant height, or crop yield components.
If environmental conditions are favorable, nitrogen can
be applied in a single application. For the experimental
condition, the higher number of fertile tillers is not re-
lated to an increase in grain yield. However, this can be
considered an important agronomic trait for regulating
the number of spikes per area when there is a lower crop
density after the crop is established.
In addition to the data generated in a controlled environ-
ment (greenhouse), it is important to carry out studies in
field conditions in order to have a greater number of po-
tentially troubling environmental characteristics such as
temperature fluctuations and stress due to excess or deficit
water. In this context, we suggest a more in-depth study
on the interference of N fertilization management on the
tillering and height of wheat plants. The study should also
be further developed in a greenhouse that includes more
genotypes and nitrogen top dressing, including dif ferent N
sources, doses, and times of application in order to obtain
a significant interaction between N fertilization and the
analyzed characters of the number of fertile tillers, plant
height, and yield components.
Conclusions
The nitrogen installments had no influence on the number
of fertile tillers, plant height or crop yield components.
The difference obtained in the tillering pattern of the cul-
tivars tested could be a function of their genetic potential.
For the experimental condition, an elevated number of
fertile tillers was not related to an increase in grain yield.
TABLE 6. Plant height (PH) and number of fertile tillers (NFT) per plant of
ten wheat cultivars, Santa Maria/RS, Brazil.
Cultivar PH (cm) NFT
TBIO Audaz 65 .13 A* 2.08 ns
TBIO Aton 57. 0 8 B2.38
TBIO Toruk 59.00 B2.58
TBIO Ello 64.25 A3.04
TBIO Calibre 68.25 A2.50
TBIO Fusão 62.08 B2.50
TBIO Ponteiro 60.46 B2.38
TBIO Duque 63.46 A1. 88
TBIO Astro 60.42 B2.00
TBIO Trunfo 67. 9 2 A2.04
Mean 62.80 2.33
CV (%) 7.4 9 29.93
CV – coef ficient of exp erime ntal v ariation in %. * Averag es followed by the same letter in the
column do not dif fer by th e Scott-Kn ott te st at a 5% significance level; ns – not signific ant
according to the Scott-Knott test at 5% significance level.
7Mieth, Santos, Follmann, Pereira, and Raddatz: Evaluation of top-dressing fertilization with nitrogen for the morphophysiology of wheat crops
Conflict of interest statement
The authors declare that there is no conflict of interests
regarding the publication of this article.
Author’s contributions
FMM, EDS, and DNF designed the experiments, DNF ob-
tained financia l support for the project that gave rise to this
publication. FMM and RIR carried out the experiments in
a greenhouse; FMM, RIR, EDS, and ACP assisted in data
collection and processing. EDS contributed to the data
analysis and FMM and EDS wrote the article. All authors
reviewed the final version of the manuscript.
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