Published online by Cambridge University Press: 27 March 2009
1. ‘Wet’ soil plants had greater tiller and leaf number, and were also taller than ‘dry’ soil plants.
2. The straw and grain dry weight, and grain weight as percentage of straw weight, were greater in ‘wet’ soil plants than in ‘dry’ soil ones.
3. Wet soil hastened the time of ear emergence.
4. Increasing the phosphate supply, on the whole, tended to increase the tiller and leaf number, weight of straw and grain and also hastened time of ear emergence.
5. Under ‘wet’ soil conditions high phosphate application is not necessary.
6. The yield of grain at high phosphate level of plants grown on ‘dry’ soil is significantly lower than the yield from those grown on ‘wet’ soil with low phosphate application. This suggested that under ‘dry’ soil conditions availability of nitrogen, as well as of phosphorus, is a limiting factor.