The Influence of Polymer‐Coated Urea and Urea Fertilizer Mixtures on Spring Wheat Protein Concentrations and Economic Returns

Abstract

The economic benefit of using controlled-release N fertilizers on hard red spring wheat (HRSW, Triticum aestivum L.) depends on its cost/price ratio, grain yield, and availability of discount and/or premium prices for protein concentration. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of five different proportions (0, 25, 50, 75, and 100%) of polymer-coated urea (PCU) in the N fertilizer mixture applied at three different N rates on (i) HRSW grain yield and protein concentration and (ii) whole-plant dry matter and total N accumulation, and (iii) also to perform an economic analysis. As the proportion of PCU in the fertilizer mixture increased, the grain yield decreased in Environment 1 and remained the same in Environment 2. Cool dry conditions in Environment 1 delayed N release from PCU causing N deficiencies during the critical yield-development phase and resulting in lower grain yield as the PCU proportion increased. In contrast, this was not the case in Environment 2. As the proportion of PCU in the fertilizer mixture increased, protein concentrations increased in both environments indicating that PCU increases soil-N availability later in the growing season, regardless of the early season weather conditions. The proportion of PCU in the fertilizer mixture did not affect total N accumulation and post-harvest soil NO 3 -N concentrations. The results of this study suggest that adding a portion of PCU in the fertilizer mixture can increase HRSW grain protein concentration and provide economic benefits to producers if discount prices are around $20 per Mg or greater.

Comparing soluble to controlled-release nitrogen fertilizers: storage cabbage yield, profit margins, and N use efficiency

“…Likewise, at the tested 225 kg N ha −1 rate, cabbage marketable yield was not affected by N source (soluble N vs. various CRF) and timing (preplant vs. split-applied) in seven out of nine environments. When N treatment was significant (p < 0.05), marketable cabbage yield was lower with CRF than ANs, as was observed by others (Grant et al 2012;Farmaha and Sims 2013). Overall, we observed that the quantity of fertilizer N to maximize Note: Within a column and site, values with different lowercase letters represent statistical differences based on protected leas significant means separation.…”

Impact of Nitrogen Fertility on the Production Performance of Four Hard Red Spring Wheat Cultivars

“…It suggests that the chosen cultivars were more efficient in low yielding years at partitioning a greater proportion of total dry matter and total N to the grain. In 2011 and 2012, ANUE was found very low for each N rate treatment (∼ 18, 10, and 9 kg grain kg −1 N fertilizer for low, medium, and high N fertility treatments, respectively) than ANUE for similar N rates found in the region (∼ 30, 22, and 14 kg grain kg −1 N fertilizer for low, medium, and high N fertility treatment, respectively, Farmaha and Sims, 2013b). The values of NUPE and NUTE found in this study were close to the published values (Muurinen et al, 2007) for spring wheat.…”

“…Greater than typical grain yields (∼ 4 Mg ha −1 ) in 2010 were observed in this experiment as well as throughout most of Northwest Minnesota (Table 3). Earlier research in Northwest Minnesota (Farmaha and Sims, 2013a, 2013b) showed that years having adequate precipitation, uniform precipitation distribution (Fig. 1), and favorable temperatures throughout the growing season (Fig.…”

“…However, the relationship between grain yield and grain N concentration is more complex, since it can be strongly dependent on growing conditions. Adequate precipitation and favorable conditions throughout the growing season are important to maximize grain yield potential (Chen et al, 2011; Farmaha and Sims, 2013b; Guttieri et al, 2001). Insufficient precipitation early in the season (from seeding to anthesis) can reduce the number of kernels per spike (He et al, 2013), while insufficient precipitation later in the season (grain‐fill period) can decrease the weight of kernels (Bindraban et al, 1998).…”

Response of Maize Productivity and Resource Use Efficiency to Combined Application of Controlled‐Release Urea and Normal Urea under Plastic Film Mulching in Semiarid Farmland

“…The promotion effect was significant when drought was severe in the early growth stages in 2017; thus, a higher GY for CRU was observed than for U. Nevertheless, controlled release urea can be more expensive than conventional urea, hindering its widespread use (Farmaha and Sims, 2013), although one application of controlled release urea is the better choice to ensure that the crop is not short of N at the late stage of growth, with reduced fertilization damage to maize and increased time and labor savings. Maximizing agronomic and economic benefits should be constantly considered in agricultural production.…”