Triticale is a cereal which may compete with other species of crop plants in terms of the nutritional value. This grain crop enjoys an increasing popularity among farmers as well as food and animal feed manufacturers, hence there is a growing interest in foliar fertilisation with micronutrients in order to ensure fast and effective nutrition. This study discusses the effect of soil fertilisation or soil and foliar fertilisation with nitrogen (with or without multi-component fertilisers) on the content of macronutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium and calcium), total protein and protein fractions in the grain of spring triticale of the Andrus cultivar grown in north-eastern Poland. The fertilisation of cv. Andrus spring triticale involved a pre-sowing application of ammonium nitrate, an application of 46% urea in the period of tillering, (with and without the fertiliser Azofoska) and an application of ammonium nitrate as well as a soil and the foliar application of urea (10% solution, with and without an addition of Ekolist Z) in the period of stem shooting. Differentiation of the experimental results on the content of the analysed macronutrients as well as the protein composition was caused by differences of habitat conditions in the two experimental seasons. Higher nitrogen doses applied as a split urea dose resulted in a higher concentration of phosphorus, calcium and magnesium in grain from cv. Andrus spring triticale. The dose of 120 kg N ha-1 in ammonia nitrate and urea applied to soil or as foliar spray resulted in an increase of total protein. The accumulation of glutenins in triticale grain usually increased in response to the higher dose of nitrogen (120 kg∙ha-1) applied both with and without the multi-component fertilisers. The foliar supplementation with urea and micronutrients in multi-component fertilisers contributed to a reduced accumulation of alpha/beta-type gliadins, regardless of the nitrogen dose.

19.1.2014