Effect of Nitrogen Fertilizer Levels on Malt Quality Parameters of Malt Barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) Varieties at Kulumsa, Central Ethiopia

Abstract

Abstract

A field experiment was conducted at Kulumsa agricultural research center during 2011 main season with the objectives of determining the effect of different nitrogen fertilizer levels on malt quality of common malt barley varieties. Factorial combinations of four released malt barley varieties namely, ‘Beka’, ‘Holker’, ‘Miscal-21’ and ‘EH1293’ and five levels of nitrogen fertilizer (0, 20, 30, 40 and 50 kg N/ha) in the form of urea (46% N) were used. The experiment was arranged in RCBD with three replications. The result showed that the main effect of variety had highly significant (P<0.01) effect on kernel size and hectoliter weight. Kernel size increased significantly with increased levels of nitrogen fertilizer but the kernel size declined at maximum nitrogen level. The interaction effect of varieties and nitrogen rates were highly significant (P<0.01) on thousand kernel weight, moisture content, malt-loss, germination energy, germination capacity, malt extract and protein content. The highest thousand kernel weight (43.25 g) and protein content (11.86%) were obtained from variety ‘Miscal-21’ on application of 30 kg N/h. In this experiment, all varieties at all nitrogen fertilizer levels gave the optimum acceptable grain protein content for malting. Varieties ‘Miscal-21’ at 30 kg N/h and ‘Beka’ at 50 kg/h were within the standard of malt factories in terms of grain protein content and other quality parameters tested in this study.

Keywords: Malt barley varieties, nitrogen fertilizer rates, malt quality

Cite this Article

Demisie Ejigu. Effect of nitrogen fertilizer levels on malt quality parameters of malt barley (Hordeum vulgare l.) varieties at Kulumsa, Central Ethiopia. Journal of Crop Science and Technology. 2015; 4(3): 34–46p.