Effect of N:S ratio on the breadmaking quality of wheat: preliminary findings from 1999

Non-Peer ReviewedSulphur (S) is an important component of wheat proteins and, therefore, influences the quality of bread wheat. However, information regarding the role of S nutrition in Canadian Western Red Spring (CWRS) wheat cultivars under Western Canadian growing conditions is limited. Field experiments were conducted in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta in 1999 and 2000 to examine the effect of S fertilizer application on grain yield, plant nutrient status, and bread-making quality of AC Barrie wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). Plant tissue and soil tests were also evaluated for their suitability in predicting grain yield and grain N:S ratio. Analyses of the 1999 grain samples indicated ranges of 25.3 to 38.7 mg g-1 in grain N content (14 to 22% in grain protein content), 1.3 to 2.2 mg g-1 in grain S content, and 14:1 to 23:1 in N:S ratio. Preliminary breadmaking quality analyses indicated that high ratios of N to S in grain were associated with lower loaf height, smaller loaf volume, greater dough resistance, and lower dough extensibility. Sulphur fertilization reduced grain N:S ratios at four of five sites. Of the three sites used to examine breadmaking quality, two sites showed significant improvements in loaf height and loaf volume where S fertilizer was applied. Sulphur fertilization also consistently reduced dough resistance and increased dough extensibility. The N:S ratio in grain was strongly correlated with N:S ratio in midseason tissue samples and N:S ratio in soil, calculated with water extractable NO3-S and SO4-S plus phosphate-borate extractable N and S. However, grain yield response to S was not well predicted by grain N:S ratio or spring soil test concentrations of sulphate-S

Nitrogen management for enhanced protein content in wheat in the Black Soil Zone

Non-Peer Reviewe

Efficiency of fall-banded nitrogen fertilizer in Manitoba: influence of application date, landscape position and fertilizer additives

Non-Peer ReviewedA two-year study was conducted to investigate the effects of application date, landscape position and a double inhibitor (urease and nitrification) on the efficiency of fall-banded nitrogen (N) fertilizer under Manitoba conditions. At harvest, the effects of landscape position were apparent at three of the four intensive sites, with significantly greater grain yields and total recovery of N in the high landscape positions than in the low landscape positions. Among fertilization treatments, there were no significant differences in crop response within the high landscape positions. In the low landscape positions, grain yields, total N uptake, grain yield increases and fertilizer N use efficiency were highest for the spring and late fall applications, when compared to early fall, mid fall and early fall with inhibitors. Preliminary soil analyses indicate that percent recovery of total inorganic N in the fall and spring was greater for late fall applications than for early fall, and for high as opposed to low landscape positions. However, there was little evidence of substantial disappearance of mineral N over the winter for all application dates, landscape positions, and with or without inhibitors