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Everything you need to know about wheat fertilisation, best practice, suitable products, field trials and more
Advice for growing Wheat
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Optimal pH for winter wheat is 6.5.
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Yields of most cultivars can be markedly reduced where pH is below 5.5, mainly due to susceptibility to P, Mo and Ca deficiencies.
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In pH >7.5 deficiencies of B, Cu, Fe, Mn, P and Zn are likely to appear. Wheat can be grown on practically all soil types, except on very light sandy soils, or on peaty ones.
Healty winter wheat at growing stage
Wheat field close-up
Nutrient requirements
Estimated nutrient uptake (kg/ha):
| Variety | N kg/ha | P kg/ha | K kg/ha |
|---|---|---|---|
| General Recommendation - wheat (milling) (Reference section 4 of RB209) | 200 | 50 | 100 |
*Whole above-ground part of plant
Source: Adapted from Aigner et al., 1988
Dynamic of nutrient uptake over a crop season in wheat
Reference: Hirzel and Undurraga, 2013
Role of nutrients
| Key parameter | N | P2O5 | K2O | MgO | CaO | SO3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yield | +++ | + | ++ | + | + | + |
| Protein content | +++ | + | ++ | + | +++ | |
| Vegetative growth | +++ | + | + | ++ | + | + |
| Root system | + | +++ | + | ++ |
+ = improving
– = decreasing
+/- = different results, depending on the rate of nutrient applied
Source: IPI bulletin – Cereals
Source: Whinter wheat – Crop advice sheet (Agronomy Campus)
Nutrient deficiencies
| Nutrient | Description | |
|---|---|---|
| Nitrogen | Plants are pale green to yellow with chlorosis beginning on lower leaves and progressing upwards as the deficiency intensifies; plants have spindly stems and growth is slow. | |
| Phosphorous | P deficient plants may remain darker green than normal plants and develop purple discoloration first on the underside and later throughout. Leaf tips may die back when P deficiency is severe. Plants grow slowly, stems are thin and shortened and maturity is delayed. P deficient plants also exhibit poor tillering. | |
| Potassium | K deficiency is initially manifested as chlorosis on the older leaves and progresses upwards as the deficiency intensifies. .The leaves eventually become streaked and take on a scorched appearance along the leaf margins. Chlorotic areas may develop throughout the leaf. Deficiency symptoms can occur in young leaves of some fast-maturing high-yielding varieties. Stems of deficient plants are weak and tend to lodge. | |
| Sulphur | Symptoms are similar to nitrogen deficiency, but the chlorosis is uniform and general, throughout the entire plant, including younger leaves. Sulphur deficiency is most likely on sandy, free draining and soils low in organic matter. | |
| Calcium | Ca deficiency is very rare on small grains. Plants are severely stunted, and new leaves exude a gelatinous-like material, causing new leaves to stick together. Because Ca deficiency is favored by low pH (<5.2) and low soil Ca, aluminum-, and manganese- toxicity symptoms will usually be exhibited before Ca deficiency symptoms. | |
| Magnesium | Typically, Mg deficiency is found on soils with a pH of less than about 5.2. Also, wheat is unable to absorb adequate Mg in cool, wet springs. |
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| Zinc | Cereals Zn deficiency generally shows up in early growth stages, when plant is only ~10 cm high, appearing first as yellow streaks in the young leaves, with a white to yellowish tip. White spots often appear on the leaves, or along their edges, and a portion of the marginal area may die. The entire plant is frequently stunted. | |
| Boron | Terminal shoots die. Leaves die back from tips, and young leaves remain rolled. (Similar to calcium deficiency) B- deficient plants produce very thin ears with much reduced grain yield. | |
| Copper | Cu deficiency tends to appear in the youngest leaves. Leaf twisting and white leaf tipping. Severe yield reduction. Copper deficiency may be due to low soil availability, or low total soil copper, and is problematic on light, acidic soils, low soil organic matter, granite parent materials, and dry soil. | |
| Iron | Iron deficiency starts out as an interveinal chlorosis of the youngest leaves, evolves into an overall chlorosis, and ends as a die-back of the chlorotic leaves. | |
| Manganese | At early stages, light chlorosis appears on the young leaves. At more severe cases, mature leaves show netted veins. Then leaves develop brown-grey necrosis along the veins. Chlorotic flecks pattern, concentrated mainly at the leaf base. |
Source: https://vikaspedia.in
The influence of nutrient for wheat resistance
| Disease | Pathogen | Increase resistant | Decrease resistant |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roots: | |||
| Take-all disease | Gaeumannomyces graminis var. tritici | N-NH4, Mn, Cu, Cl | N-NO3 |
| Fusariosis | Fusarium ssp. | Zn, Cl | K |
| Leaves: | |||
| Powdery mildew of cereales | Erysiphe graminis | K, S, Mn | N, Zn |
| Black stem rust | Puccinia graminis | K, S | |
| Brown rust | Puccinia recondite f. sp. Tritici | K, Mn, Cl | Cu |
| Septoria tritici | K, Cl | P | |
Source: Datnoff L., Elmer W., Huber D., 2007: Mineral nutrition and plant disease, ASP Press, St. Paul, USA, 278 s.
Wheat Trials
Q&A
Here are some frequently asked questions we received from farmers regarding wheat.
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In order to achieve the best yield we must supply the elements in the proper quantity and timing. A soil analysis can help in order to prevent any deficiencies.
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The protein content is linked to Nitrogen. So it is important the plant has nitrogen available at stem elongation stage.
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To improve profitability of crop it is important to use an efficient nutrition, avoiding to supply element in excess (a soil analysis can help) and elements available in right stages. For this purpose the use of CRF it is the main solution.
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Yes, it could be useful in particular in low OM soil but you must include the elements in the fertilisation program calculation in order not to have excess of elements (in particular nitrogen).
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In some areas with high content of potassium in the soil it is possible to achieve high yield even without potassium fertilisation, considering also that wheat in in rotation and K is applied to other crops.
