Nitrogen Management Strategies to Improve Yield and Dough Properties in Hard Red Spring Wheat

Nitrogen supply, environment, and cultivar determine yield and dough properties of hard red spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.); however, the effects of broadcasting N fertilizer at heading, a growing practice in regions such as southern Brazil, have not been explored. The objectives of this study were to: (i) compare the current producer practice vs. alternative fertilizer N management strategies and (ii) quantify their interaction with cultivar and their effects on yield and its components and relevant dough properties. Field experiments were conducted using a complete factorial arrangement in a split-plot design of three cultivars (main plots) and five N strategies (subplots) across three environments in southern Brazil. Overall, the current producer practice (all 70 kg N ha(-1) applied at tillering) was appropriate to the targeted yield (3.5 Mg ha(-1)); splitting this fertilizer N rate into tillering and heading applications (either 35 kg N ha(-1) on tillering + 35 kg N ha(-1) on heading or 45 kg N ha(-1) on tillering + 25 kg N ha(-1) on heading) benefited protein concentration but reduced yield. Best N management resulted in the addition of one late-season N application (70 kg N ha(-1) on tillering + 23 kg N ha(-1) on heading) positively impacting yield, protein concentration, dough extensibility, and alveogram index. In-season N management is more relevant for grain quality than yield, more importantly if deductions from low protein are projected, or if premiums from increasing protein concentration exist, justifying a late-season fertilizer N application.