Effect of integrated plant nutrient management on indicators related to yield and productivity of spring barley (Hordéum vulgáre) under drought conditions in the growing season

Abstract

The agricultural production of the world is becoming increasingly vulnerable to extreme weather conditions, but adaptation to such conditions still suffers from a lack of integrated solutions and approaches that should cover relevant plant nutrition management issues, as well as technological mechanisms and tools. This study aimed to investigate the impact of fertilizer systems on yield indicators and the productivity of spring barley under arid growing conditions and determine the correlation between yield indicators and barley productivity to form a fertilization strategy for this crop under drought conditions. Two separate field experiments were conducted in 2018 in a small plot in six replications based on a long-term research field experiment on chernozem-type soil (black soil). As components of an integrated plant nutrient management system, the combined application of mineral fertilizers and stress protectors was used (for seed inoculation and foliar treatment), as well as the local application of mineral fertilizers at different depths (10-12 cm, 20-22 cm and at two depths simultaneously). The application of components of an integrated plant nutrient management system increased the chlorophyll content, leaf water content, and grain yield. These benefits of integrated fertilizer management led to significant improvement in grain yield. The maximum values of this indicator were noted for foliar treatment of plants by a stress protector at a rate of 1.0 L ha-1 (once per growing season) or 0.5 L ha-1 (twice per growing season) and for deep localization of mineral fertilizers (to a depth of 20-22 cm). The content of chlorophyll and bound water in the tissues of barley plants can be used as an indicator to determine the resistance of plants to arid growing conditions since these physiological characteristics are closely correlated with the yield of barley.