Wheat Grain Nitrogen Uptake, as Affected by Soil Total and Mineral Nitrogen, for the Determination of Optimum Nitrogen Fertilizer Rates for Wheat Production

Determination of appropriate nitrogen (N) fertilization for wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) production with respect to the available resources can result in the enhanced efficiency of agricultural systems and ecosystem health. Hence, a 3-year field experiment was conducted to determine (1) the effects of soil total N and soil mineral N (including nitrate, NO3-N, and ammonium, NH4-N) measured at seeding and postseeding for wet and dry soil samples at 0- to-30 cm and 0- to 60-cm depths on wheat grain N uptake and (2) the regression equations that can best explain the variation in wheat grain N uptake by N fertilizer and soil total and mineral N. Determination of wheat grain N uptake as affected by soil NO3-N in areas with reasonable amounts of organic matter can also be used as a very useful tool for determination of appropriate N fertilization, which is of great agricultural and environmental implications.