WHEAT RESPONSE TO POPULATION DENSITY AND BED SPACING IN NORTHWEST MEXICO

• Published in: Cereal research communications 2004-01, Vol.32 (2), p.273-279
• Main Authors: Moreno-Ramos, Oscar H., Rodríguez-Casas, Julio, Johnson, Donald, Thompson, Thomas L.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Aboveground biomass; Grains; Plants; Population density; Production; Raised beds; Row spacing; Seeding; Sowing; Tillers; Wheat
• ISSN: 0133-3720; 1788-9170
• DOI: 10.1007/bf03543310

The adoption of the wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) production on raised beds in NW Mexico has created a need to re-examine the traditional production technology, especially the population density (PD) and the distance between beds (DBB). The objective of this study was to determine the effect of these factors and their interaction on grain yield and other yield components of wheat in northwestern Mexico. An experiment was carried out during fall winter 1991-1992 at the Yaqui Valley Agricultural Experiment Station, which consisted of a complete factorial of three DBB; 0.80, 0.90, and 1.00 m, by 6 PD; 50, 100, 150, 200, 250, and 800 thousand plants per hectare (TPPH), in a randomized complete block design with four replications. Results indicated that yields were not modified when the DBB was changed. The response to PD was significant at the studied levels. The most important yield compensating factor for different PD was the number of tillers per plant (TPP), while the variations upon changing the DBB were explained apparently by increased number of spikes per square meter (SPSM). The optimum PD was around 150 TPPH, which is equivalent to the sowing of 6-8 kg of seed per hectare.