INTERACTION OF NITROGEN AND SULFUR IN WHEAT CROPS CULTIVATED IN THE CERRADO

Abstract

Wheat productivity and quality can be influenced by plant nutrition, and the interaction between nutrients can be synergistic or antagonistic, especially in the interaction between nitrogen and sulfur. The objective of this study was to verify the effect of the interaction between nitrogen and sulfur on the agronomic performance and technological quality of irrigated wheat in Cerrado conditions. The experiment was installed in an experimental area at the Federal University of Rondonópolis. The experimental design was in randomized blocks, with four replications. four repetitions. The nitrogen (N) doses tested were 0, 70, 140, 210 and 280 kg ha^-1, and the sulfur (S) doses were 0, 25, 50, 75 and 100 kg ha^-1, totaling 13 treatments across the combinations between the 2 nutrients. The variables analyzed referred to the agronomic performance and technological quality of the grains. The response surface model and terms (linear, quadratic and interaction) were evaluated using analysis of variance (ANOVA) and checking for lack of fit (Lack of fit), using the F test (p<0.05). In cases where the response surface model selection criteria were not met, the isolated effects and interaction of factors were analyzed using polynomial regression analysis. For the significance of the effects, the ANOVA F test (p<0.05) and the Student's t test (p<0.05) were considered. The agronomic performance and technological quality of irrigated wheat grown under Cerrado conditions are influenced by nitrogen doses between 176 and 280 kg ha^-1 and sulfur between 38 and 100 kg ha^-1.