Asian Journal of Crop Science

Year: 2011 | Volume: 3 | Issue: 4 | Page No.: 188-196
DOI: 10.3923/ajcs.2011.188.196

Bread Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) Productivity and Profitability as Affected by Method of Sowing and Seeding Rate Under Qena Environment

E. A. Abd-El-Lattief

Abstract: Sowing methods and seeding rate play an important role in the placement of seed at proper depth and stand establishment of the growing crop which ultimately affects crop growth and productivity. This study was conducted for 2 seasons to establish optimal sowing method and seeding rate for bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) in sandy-loam soil. The study aimed at achieving high yield and profit. A field experiment was conducted using a randomized complete block in split plot design with three planting techniques (hilling in ridges, drilling in rows and broadcasting) and four seeding rates (100, 125, 150 and 175 kg ha^-1) as the main plot and split plot, respectively. Results revealed that all yield and yield parameters were significantly affected by the sowing method and seed rate, while grain protein content was non-significant by these factors. The interaction of sowing method and seed rate significantly affected the number of effective tillers m^-2, weight of grains spike^-1, grain and straw yields ha^-1 and harvest index. Wheat sown by drilling method at the seed rate 150 kg ha^-1 gave the highest values of grain and straw yields ha^-1 and harvest index and this treatment was found to be most economical. Based on these results, it is recommended to sow 150 kg ha^-1 seeds by using drill method for planting bread wheat Giza 168 cv under similar soil and climatic conditions. Correlation coefficients analyses revealed positive significant relationships between grain yield and plant height, effective tillers m^-2, grain number spike^-1, straw yield and harvest index.

Keywords: profit, protein, grain yield, Bread wheat and correlation

INTRODUCTION

Wheat is the world's most important and most widely grown cereal crop. Its importance is derived from many properties and uses of its grains which makes it a staple food for more than one third of world's population (Poehlman, 1987). Moreover, its straw is used as animal feed and also in manufacturing paper. The selection of suitable sowing method plays an important role in the placement of seed at proper depth which ensures better emergence and good subsequent crop growth. Wheat is planted with different sowing methods depending upon the available soil water, time of planting, amount of preceding crop residues in the field and availability of planting machinery (Sikander et al., 2003). In Egypt, wheat is planted through broadcasting in a large area after rice, maize and cotton. Broadcasting not only requires higher seed rate but also results in lower plant population, whereas drill sowing method is recommended because of uniform seed distribution and sowing at desired depth which results in higher germination and uniform stand. Due to differences in crop stand establishment, wheat grain yield was significantly affected by different sowing methods including broadcast and line sowing (Singh and Singh, 1992; Galichenko, 1994; Singh et al., 1994; Jan et al., 2001).

Seeding rate is one of the important production factors. Higher wheat grain yield with better quality requires appropriate seeding rate for various varieties. Therefore, the response of wheat yield to seeding rates were discussed by several workers (Radwan, 1997; Geleta et al., 2002; ,Tomar 2004; Mennan and Zandstra, 2005; Soomro et al., 2009; Ali et al., 2010). Increase in seed rate above optimum level may only enhance production cost without any increase in grain yield (Sajjad et al., 2010). Some researchers reported that wheat grain yield positively associated with plant height, productive tillers, spike length, grains spike^-1, seed index and harvest index (Hamed, 1998; Burio et al., 2004; Kotal et al., 2010).

In view the importance of sowing method and seed rate, the present study was designed to determine the best sowing method and seed rate for bread wheat productivity and profitability under the conditions of this study.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A field experiment was conducted during the winter season of 2009-2010 and 2010-2011 at the Experimental Farm of the Faculty of Agriculture, South Valley University (latitude 26°10' N, longitude 32°43' E, Altitude 79 m above sea level) at Qena Governorate, Upper Egypt. The soil of the experimental area was sandy loam having pH 7.9, organic matter content 0.11%; total N 0.54%; available P and K (ppm) were 8.20 and 152%, respectively.

The treatments comprised three sowing methods i.e., hilling in ridges (50 cm apart of ridges, on the two sides with 10 cm between hills), drilling in rows (15 cm apart of rows) and broadcasting designed as M₁, M₂ and M₃, respectively and four seed rates i.e., 100 (S₁), 125 (S₂), 150 (S₃) and 175 (S₄) kg seeds ha^-1. A randomized complete block split plot design with four replicates was used in each season. Sowing methods were randomly assigned to the main plots and seed rates were assigned to the split plots. Individual sub plots measured 3.0 m in width and 5 m in length.

Grains of bread wheat cv. Giza 168 were sown on mid November in both seasons. NPK fertilizer at the rate of 230:55:60 kg ha^-1 was applied at the time of sowing for PK and four equal doses of N; during soil preparation 21, 42 and 63 days from sowing. The preceding summer crop was sunflower in both seasons. All other agronomic practices were kept uniform for both experiments.

At harvest time, ten fertile stems were taken at random from each sub-plot for measuring plant height, number and weight of grains spike^-1_. Number of effective tillers, was recorded on one square meter plot^-1. Also, 1000-grain weight was estimated for each sub-plot. Meanwhile, grain and straw yields were estimated at sub-plot basis. Grain protein content on dry matter basis was determined, according to AOAC (1975).

Data of each season were subjected to variance analysis (ANOVA) using statistical analysis system followed by Least Significant Difference (LSD) test. The results were considered significant at p≤0.05 by MSTAT-C software.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Yield components: The yield components; plant height, number of effective tillers m^-2, number of grains spike^-1, weight of grains spike^-1, 1000-grain weight are presented in Table 1. Both the sowing method and seeding rate significantly affected all yield components. In both seasons, drill method (M₂) demonstrated highest values for all yield components and the lowest by broadcasting (M₃).

These findings are in close conformity with Tomar (2004), who found that lowest number of effective shoots m^-2, grain spike^-1 and test weight were recorded with broadcasting method. Increasing the seed rate up to 175 kg ha^-1 produced the highest values for all yield components and lower 1000-grain weight (Table 1). The lowest values of grains weights spike^-1 were obtained from seed rate of 150 and 175 kg ha^-1 in the first and second seasons, respectively (Table 1). Seeding wheat at 100 kg ha^-1 resulted in lower values for yield components, while highest values for weights of grains spike^-1 (2.688 and 3.027 g) and 1000-grain weight (43.01 and 43.68 g, in the first and second seasons, respectively) were recorded (Table 1). These findings are in agreement with Arif et al. (2001), who showed that increasing seed rate from 100 to 175 kg ha^-1 significantly decreased 1000-grain weight. Meanwhile, Hameed et al. (2003) found that higher seed rate (100 or 125 kg ha^-1) had more tillers m^-2.

The combined effect of sowing methods and seeding rate had a significant effect on number of effective tillers m^-2 and weight of grains spike^-1 (Table 1). The highest values for effective tillers m^-2 (348.7 and 339.7 in the first and second seasons, respectively) and weight of grains spike^-1 (3.030 and 3.425 g) were obtained form M₂S₄ and M₂S₁, respectively. The lowest values for above mentioned traits were obtained form M₃S₁ (213.3 and 202.3) and M₃S₄ (2.236 and 2.024 g), respectively (Table 1).

Wheat productivity and harvest index: Grain and straw yields and harvest index were significantly affected by sowing method (Table 2). In both seasons, seed broadcasting consistently resulted in lower grain and straw yields and harvest index compared to other treatments (hilling in ridges and drill). The highest values of grain (4152 and 4044 kg ha^-1) and straw (7048 and 6847 kg ha^-1) yields and harvest index (0.371 and 0.371) were obtained from drilling planting method in the first and second seasons, respectively (Table 2). These findings are in conformity with Soomro et al. (2009), who reported that wheat sown by drilling significantly increased the plant vigor and yield. Broadcast sowing was also considered inferior than other methods (Collins and Fowler, 1992; Tanveer et al., 2003). Sikander et al. (2003) also found that broadcasting method of sowing decreased harvest index compared with drill sowing. El-Kholy and Gaballah (2005) found that drilling cultivation method surpassed ridges and hills. Higher yield in drill sowing was ascribed to more effective tillers m^-2, more grains per spike, heaviest grains and 1000-grain weight and better harvest index.

Grain and straw yields and harvest index were also significantly influenced by seeding rates. Seed rates of 175 or 150 kg ha^-1 were optimum under the conditions of this study (Table 2). Seed rate of 100 kg ha^-1 showed significant decreases of grain (3086 and 2941 kg ha^-1) and straw (5609 and 5591 kg ha^-1) yields and harvest index (0.353 and 0.345) in the first and second seasons, respectively (Table 2). These results are in harmony with Mennan and Zandstra (2005), Soomro et al. (2009) and Ali et al. (2010).

The interaction between sowing method and seeding rate had a significant effect on grain and straw yields and harvest index in both 2009-2010 and 2010-2011 seasons (Table 2). The highest values of grain (4830 and 4840 kg ha^-1 in the first and second seasons, respectively) and straw (8483 and 8377 kg ha^-1) yields were obtained for M₂S₃ (drill method at seed rate of 150 kg ha^-1). The lowest values of grain (2547 and 2523 kg ha^-1 in the first and second seasons, respectively) and straw (5000 and 5240 kg ha^-1) yields were obtained from M₃S₁ (broadcasting method at seed rate of 100 kg ha^-1). For harvest index, the highest values were obtained for M₁S₃ (0.383) and M₂S₄ (0.393), in the first and second seasons, respectively) and the lowest for M₃S₂ (0.334) and M₃S₁ (0.325) for 2009-10 and 2010-11, respectively (Table 2). Therefore, the combination of a drill method with a seed rate of 150 kg ha^-1 is recommended as the treatment that maximizes grain and straw yields of wheat under this study. These findings are in conformity with Soomro et al. (2009), who found that wheat sown by drilling method at the seed rate of 150 kg ha^-1 significantly increased the plant vigor and yield.

The results indicate that applying the proper seed rate and sowing method increased plant vitality and yield. It encourages nutrient availability, proper light penetration for photosynthesis (Chang et al., 1991), good soil environment for soil nutrients uptake and water use efficiency (Hossain and Maniruzzaman, 1992), which enhances crop vigor and yield.

Grain protein content: Table 2 indicates that protein content of grains was non-significantly affected by both the sowing methods and the seeding rates. Similarly, the interaction between the two factors was also non-significant. These results are supported by the findings of Khaliq et al. (1999), Hussain et al. (2001), Patrick et al. (2003) and Nakano and Morita (2009).

Economic evaluation: A simple economic analysis such as total cost, total income, net profit and income-cost ratio for wheat for different methods of planting and seeding rate are shown in Table 3. Average results of both study seasons shows that drill sowing method with seed rate of 150 kg ha^-1 gave the highest income (15039 L.E ha^-1), net profit (9289 L.E ha^-1) and income-cost ratio (2.62), followed by hilling in ridges sowing method with seed rate of 175 kg ha^-1 of 14414, 8604 L.E ha^-1 and 2.48, respectively. The minimum returns of above measures (8130, 2680 L.E ha^-1 and 1.49, respectively), were obtained from broadcast sowing and seed rate of 100 kg ha^-1. The lower return in broadcast sowing and 100 kg ha^-1 seed rate was ascribed to lowest grain and straw yield ha^-1 in this treatment (M₃S₁) (Table 3). These results are in agreement with those reported by Tomar (2004), who compared four sowing methods (broadcasting, line sowing (20 cm), narrow sowing (15 cm) and cross sowing (20x20 cm) and three seed rates (100, 125 and 150 kg ha^-1) and found that broadcast sowing and seed rate of 100 kg ha^-1 recorded the lowest value of net return compared with other treatments. Meanwhile, Mehrvar and Asadi (2006) found that rolling method and seeding rate of 110 kg ha^-1 had the highest net income and lowest cost comparing other treatments.

Correlation coefficients: Simple correlation coefficients calculated over seasons and treatments are given in Table 4. Grain yield was positively and significantly correlated with plant height (r = 0.617). Khan and Shaik (1997) also reported positive and significant correlations between grain yield and plant height. Simple coefficient showed that there was positive correlation (r = 0.513) between number of effective tillers m^-2 and grain yield. Previous authors had reported similar results between grain yield and spike number (Dokuyucu and Akkaya, 1999; Mondal and Khajuria, 2001). Simple correlation coefficient was a strong positive and significant between grain yield and grain number spike^-1 (r = 0.726). In most of the previous studies, similar results have been reported between grain yield and grain number spike^-1 (Khan and Shaik, 1997; Mondal and Khajuria, 2001; Shahid et al., 2002; Burio et al., 2004). In the study highly positive correlation of straw yield and grain yield was observed (r = 0.877, Table 4). Harvest index showed significant positive association with grain yield (r = 0.312, Table 4). This result is agreement with those of Burio et al. (2004) and Kotal et al. (2010). This indicated that by increasing these attributes, could invariably increase grain yield.

Meanwhile, grain yield was positively and non-significantly correlated with weight of grains spike^-1 (r = 0.190) and 1000-grain weight (r = 0.067). This result is in conformity with those of Akram et al. (2008), who found that 1000-grain weight was positively and non-significantly correlated with grain yield. Protein content was not significantly correlated with plant height (r = 0.182), effective tillers m^-2 (r = 0.012), grains spike^-1 (r = -0.038), weight of grains spike^-1 (r = -0.059), 1000-grain weight (r = -0.032), straw yield (r = 0.008), grain yield (r =-0.079) and harvest index (r = -0.161). These results are in harmony with Tayyar (2010), who showed that wheat grain yield was no correlation with grain protein content.

CONCLUSIONS

All studied traits in both seasons except grain protein concentration were significantly affected by sowing method and seeding rate. The interaction between sowing method and seeding rate was significant for all studied traits except plant height, number of grains per spike, 1000-grain weight and grains protein concentration. Wheat sown by drilling method at the seed rate 150 kg ha^-1 gave the highest values of grain and straw yields ha^-1 and this treatment was found to be most economical. Based on these results, it is recommended to sow 150 kg ha^-1 seeds by using drill method for planting bread wheat Giza 168 cv under similar soil and climatic conditions.

REFERENCES