EFFECTS OF ANNUAL DRESSINGS OF NITROGEN FERTILIZER ON WILD OAT INFESTATIONS

Nitrogen fertilizer in three forms, urea, sulphate of ammonia and calcium ammonium nitrate, was applied at three rates, 26, 52 and 104 kg N/ha, early (January) and late (May) during land preparation for three consecutive barley crops, to determine the effect of fertilization on wild oat populations. On the fertilized areas there was significantly greater germination of wild oats prior to sowing than on the unfertilized areas, with calcium ammonium nitrate and sulphate of ammonia tending to be more effective in stimulating germination than urea. Despite the destruction of these heavy populations of wild oat seedlings by cultivation prior to sowing, in-crop infestations of the weed were still heavy. Late-applied nitrogen by comparison with the early application tended to produce greater numbers of wild oat panicles in the crop, particularly at the lower fertilizer rates. The overall effect after three annual dressings of nitrogen was one of greatly increased wild oat seed reserves in the soil. These had increased five-fold in no-nitrogen plots, six-fold in early-fertilized plots and eight-fold in late-fertilized plots. It was concluded that annual dressings of nitrogen fertilizer on winter cereals in wild-oat-infested areas led to an increase in the population of the weed. Some suggestions are made as to why nitrogen fertilizer stimulated wild oats to germinate, and the overall results are discussed in the light of the agricultural situation of the Darling Downs.