Effect of Zinc Application on Zinc Transformation Use Efficiency and Productivity of Wheat Triticum aestivum L

Abstract

newline A field experiment was conducted during Rabi 2022-23 and 2023-24 at Instructional Farm (Agronomy), Rajasthan College of Agriculture, Udaipur (Rajasthan) to study the Effect of Zinc Application on Zinc Transformation, Use Efficiency and Productivity of Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) . The experiment was laid out according to Randomized Block Design with three replications. There were 9 treatments having combination of two different zinc sources (ZnSO4.7H2O and Zn-EDTA) and methods of application (soil and foliar) viz. Control (T1), ZnSO4.7H2Oat5 kg Zn ha-1 as SA (T2), ZnSO4.7H2Oat2.5 kg Zn ha-1 as SA + ZnSO4.7H2Oat0.5% FS at 45 DAS (T3), ZnSO4.7H2Oat1.25 kg Zn ha-1 as SA + ZnSO4.7H2Oat0.5% FS at 45 and 75 DAS + ZSB (T4), Zn-EDTAat5 kg Zn ha-1 as SA (T5), Zn-EDTAat2.5 kg Zn ha-1 as SA + Zn-EDTAat0.5% FS at 45 DAS (T6), Zn-EDTAat1.25 kg Zn ha-1 as SA + Zn-EDTAat0.5% FS at 45 and 75 DAS + ZSB (T7), ZnSO4.7H2Oat 1.25 kg Zn ha-1 as SA + Zn-EDTAat1.25 kg Zn ha-1 as SA (T8) newlineand ZnSO4.7H2Oat 1.25 kg Zn ha-1 as SA + Zn-EDTAat1.25 kg Zn ha-1 as SA + ZnSO4.7H2Oat0.5% FS at 45 DAS + Zn-EDTAat0.5% FS at 75 DAS + ZSB (T9). newlineResults showed that the application of ZnSO4.7H2Oat1.25 kg Zn ha-1 as SA + Zn- EDTAat1.25 kg Zn ha-1 as SA + ZnSO4.7H2Oat0.5% FS at 45 DAS + Zn- newlineEDTAat0.5% FS at 75 DAS + ZSB (T9) significantly increased the number of effective tillers per meter row length, test weight, grain, straw and biological yield, nutrient content and uptake by N, K and Zn in grain and straw, protein content, well as the net return from wheat crop. The zinc application significantly influenced the various efficiencies of applied zinc (agronomic efficiency, physiological efficiency, apparent recovery efficiency, utilization efficiency, partial factor productivity, zinc induced nitrogen recovery efficiency and zinc mobilization efficiency index) in wheat, electrical conductivity, available nutrients (N, K and Zn), microbial population (bacteria, actinomycetes and fungi), enzyme activity (dehydrogenase, alkaline phosphatase and acid phosphatase