Coordinating yield and quality formation of wheat through post-anthesis nitrogen spraying

Abstract

It is a challenge to maintain high yields while improving grain quality of wheat under limited water and nitrogen supply conditions. To achieve a simultaneous improvement of yield and quality, a field trial was conducted from 2021 to 2023. Treatments with different timings (5, 10, and 15 ​d after anthesis) and frequencies of spraying nitrogen (1, 2, and 3 times) were set up after anthesis under a water-saving cultivation system. Spraying nitrogen after anthesis significantly increased grain yield and protein content by 4.99% and 6.00%, respectively. The increase in grain yield was mainly due to the improvement in grain weight, which was attributed to increased grain filling and starch synthesis. Spraying nitrogen once at 15 ​d after anthesis (T_{15 D}) was optimal. T_{15 D} treatment increased the photosynthetic pigment content and the enzyme activities of carbon and nitrogen metabolism of the flag leaves. T_{15 D} increased the pre-anthesis nitrogen remobilization to grains by 4.71%-9.06% compared to the other spraying treatments, and promoted the accumulation of nitrogen in the grains. Moreover, T_{15 D} optimized the protein composition of the grains and improved processing quality at maturity. In conclusion, spraying nitrogen at 15 ​d after anthesis may be an effective measure to simultaneously improve the yield and quality of winter wheat under a water-saving cultivation system.

Keywords

Carbon and nitrogen metabolism / Grain yield / Processing quality / Spraying nitrogen / Water-saving cropping system / Wheat

Abbreviations

GDH glutamate dehydrogenase

GMP glutenin macropolymers content

GOGAT glutamate synthetase

GS glutamine synthetase

NHI N harvest index

NUtE N utilization efficiency

SDS-SV SDS-sedimentation value

SPS sucrose phosphate synthase

SS sucrose synthase

Availability of data and materials

Data will be made available upon request.

Authors' contributions

J.R. and H.L.: Investigation; J.R., H.L., C.Y., and Z.Z.: Data curation; X.Z. and Y.Z.: Methodology; C.Y., Z.Z., Z.G.Z., X.Z., and Y.Z.: Writing, reviewing, and editing; Z.W., Z.G.Z., Z.S., and Y.Z.: Supervision; and Z.W., Z.S., X.Z., and Y.Z.: Funding acquisition.

Declaration of competing interest

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Acknowledgments

This study was supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (2022YFD2300802) and the earmarked fund for China Agriculture Research System (CARS-3). Financial support from the above sources is gratefully acknowledged.