ChileanJAR

The use of high N doses to enhance the expression of the yield potential in currently marketed wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cultivars requires a careful and efficient fractionating of the total amount in order to minimize nutrient losses and improve nitrogen use efficiency (EUN). The effect of a range of annual N doses on the performance of high-yielding cv. Dollinco-INIA was studied in a Vilcún series soil of the Pachic Melanudans (Andisol) in the Araucanía Region, Chile. The objective was to determine doses that optimize productivity and grain quality. Five annual N doses (0, 150, 200, 250 and 300 kg ha^-1) as Nitromag (CAN 27), were evaluated in a randomized complete block design with three replicates, during two successive winter wheat cropping seasons, on a soil subjected to intensive rotation with annuals crops. A significant effect (P ≤ 0.01) of the N doses on grain production and quality was found. The optimal economic annual N dose (DOE) ranged between 239 and 253 kg ha^-1. The estimates of EUN (kg of grain produced kg^-1 N) were high (38.4 and 40.3). The results confirm that high N requirements need to be met for the new high-yielding wheat cultivar Dollinco-INA, in order to achieve its full yield potential.