Assessing the Influence of Nano Urea on the Growth and Yield of Irrigated Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) Crop

Abstract

Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is one of the world's most essential cereal crops, serving as a staple food for a significant portion of the global population. In the pursuit of achieving higher yields in contemporary agriculture, the use of chemical fertilizers poses an increased environmental risk. However, the application of Nano urea offers a potential solution to mitigate this risk to a certain extent. To address this objective, a field experiment was conducted during the Rabi seasons of 2022-2023 at the A trial was executed in the rural area of Kanpur district of Mandhana, located 10 km from Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh, during the Rabi season of 2022-23. The experimental design involved two main factors: Factor-1 Nitrogen (at 50%, 75%, and 100% levels) and Factor-2 Foliar Spray (at one time Nano urea and two time Nano urea, with 4 ml/l). A control group was included, and the experiment was laid out in a Randomized Block Design (RBD) with 13 treatments in three replications. The results indicated that the combination of 100% nitrogen along with a foliar spray of 4 ml/L Nano urea had a significant positive impact on growth, yield, and various yield parameters. Treatment 6 demonstrated the highest values for plant height (95.66 cm), Dry matter accumulation (1014.09 g m-2), number of tillers m-2 (417.44), Leaf area index at 90 DAS (4.85), effective ear head per (m-2) (282.66), grains per ear head (65.75), test weight (48.52 g), grain yield (46.15 quintals/ha), and straw yield (57.92 quintals/ha). The study's results demonstrated a generally positive effect of combined Nano urea with traditional NPK nutrient supply on the growth and yield parameters of wheat in irrigated conditions.