| dc.description.abstract | Nitrogen (N) plays a critical role in agricultural production, particularly in cereal crops such as winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), where it influences both yield and grain quality. However, managing nitrogen efficiently remains a challenge in many regions, including Northwestern Ontario, where suboptimal nitrogen use often results in reduced yields and lower plant protein content. This study evaluated the effectiveness of enhanced efficiency nitrogen fertilizers (EEFs), such as Environmentally Smart Nitrogen (ESN), SUPERUTM, and urea treated with ANVOLTM, in improving winter wheat production under the agroclimatic conditions of Thunder Bay, Ontario. The overarching goal was to determine whether these advanced fertilizers could enhance N use efficiency and address the issue of low plant protein content. The experiment was conducted at the Lakehead University Agricultural Research Station (LUARS; https://www.lakeheadu.ca/centre/luars) using N application rate of 120 kg N/ha either from individual N fertilizers or their blends with additional treatments of SUPERUTM at 100 kg ha-1, urea at 160 kg N ha, and a no-N reference treatment. Key parameters such as plant and stem counts, plant heights through critical stages, chlorophyll content, grain yield, and plant protein content were assessed to evaluate treatment performance. Nitrogen source had minor effects on chlorophyll content, with marginal differences in leaf pigmentation among treatments. Similarly, phenotypic traits and grain characteristics showed no substantial variation across N sources or application rates. Grain yields were, however, significantly higher in treated plots compared to reference plots without N. This suggests that EEFs, while aimed at improving N use efficiency, did not translate into higher yields than urea alone under Thunder Bay's specific environmental and soil conditions (pre-seeding nitrate N: 14 ppm and ammoniacal N: 5 ppm). These results underscore the complexity of N management in winter wheat and suggest that factors beyond N application may have a more pronounced impact on yield in this region, in this case a dry summer. Despite the lack of yield improvement, the central question remains whether EEFs can enhance plant protein content—a critical quality determinant for wheat.
Keywords: Nitrogen management, enhanced efficiency fertilizers (EEFs), Environmentally Smart Nitrogen (ESN), SUPERUTM, ANVOL, winter wheat, plant protein content, yield, nitrogen use efficiency, chlorophyll content, Thunder Bay, Northwestern Ontario. | en_US |
