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PHOSPHORUS FERTIGATION AT FIRST IRRIGATION DUE TO ITS UNAVAILABILITY AT SOWING TIME PREVENTS YIELD LOSSES IN TRITICUM AESTIVUM L.

VISHANDAS¹, ZIA-UL-HASSAN², MUHAMMAD ARSHAD² AND AHMAD NAQI SHAH³ 

Abstract: Phosphorus (P) deficiency is a widespread problem in modern agriculture that is playing havoc with the crop yields. The shortage and black-marketing of P fertilizers at sowing time is a burning issue. P fertigation offers a practical solution of this problem. We conducted this field experiment to compare the efficacy of P fertigation at first irrigation to P broadcasting at sowing time (farmers’ conventional practice). P fertigation at first irrigation proved superior to P broadcast at sowing time, even at 2/3^rd recommended rate. Fertigation increased plant height (7.7%), tillers plant^-1 (27.7%), spike length (4.6%), grains spike^-1 (3.2), grains plant^-1 (30.2%), seed index (4.9%), straw yield (5.4%), grain yield (9.3%), P uptake in straw (14.6%), grain (22.8%) and their total (19.8%), P fertilizer efficiency (68.1%), grain:nutrient ratio (54.3) and value:cost ratio (42.4). Wheat grain yield was significantly correlated with all the parameters in order of plant height (0.83*), seed index (0.84*), number of grains plant^-1 (0.87*), P uptake in straw (0.87*), P fertilizer efficiency (0.89*) > spike length (0.89**), total P uptake (0.91**), grain P uptake (0.92**) > number of grains spike^-1 (0.95***), VCR (0.97***)  and GNR (0.98***). Our results conclude that P fertigation at first irrigation is equally significant even at lower P rates and is more advantageous at equal P rates to farmers’ conventional practice of P broadcasting at sowing time.  

¹Department of Soil Science, Sindh Agriculture University, Tandojam, Sindh, Pakistan

²Institute of Soil and Environmental Sciences, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad-38040, Punjab, Pakistan

³Department of Agronomy, Sindh Agriculture University, Tandojam, Sindh, Pakistan Corresponding Author: Zia-ul-Hassan; zhnshah@yahoo.com