Effect Of The Intensive Management Practices (FUNGICIDES, NITROGEN APPLICATION AND SEEDING RATE) On YIELD, Quality and LEAF Diseases In Winter Durum.

In Canada, production of spring durum occurs primarily in prairie provinces. ‘OAC Amber’ is only winter durum  registered in Canada and grown in province of Ontario. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of different management practices on agronomic characteristics of ‘OAC Amber’. The experiments were conducted in Ontario, Canada (Ridgetown, Inwood, Centralia and Palmerston)  in 2011 and arranged in a factorial randomized complete block design with four replications. Three factors included seeding rate (400 seeds/m², 440 seeds/m²  or  480 seeds/m²), nitrogen rate (75 kg/ha, 100 kg/ha, or 125 kg/ha of actual nitrogen) and fungicides: PROLINE (Prothiconazole), QUILT (Azoxystrobin, Propiconazole), PROSARO (Prothiconazole, Tebuconazole). ‘OAC Amber’ yield was significantly different across the treatments with fungicides application and control plots. Combination of QUILT and PROSARO resulted in a significantly higher yield than application of only PROLINE. In addition, test weight and  thousand kernel weight of ‘OAC Amber’ increased after fungicides application, while leaf diseases decreased  compared to control. Different seeding rates did not affect test weight, thousand kernel weight, protein content or yield. Trial location had a large effect on yield, ranging from a low of 3.33 t ha^-1 at Inwood to a high of 5.84 t ha^-1 at Palmerston. Yield increased with increased N application rate by 0.09 t ha^-1 as N increased from 75 kg ha^-1 to 100 kg ha^-1, with a non-significant increase as N increased to 125 kg ha^-1. 

Additional studies are needed, with greater range of nitrogen and more than one cultivar, to confirm the results from the present study.