NITROGEN HARVEST INDEX AND ITS ASSOCIATION WITH CROP YIELDS

Nitrogen (N) is one of the most yield-limiting nutrients in crop production around the world. The main reasons of N deficiency are low recovery efficiency (RE) of applied N fertilizers. The RE efficiency of N by most crop plants is lower than 50%. The lower RE of this element is associated with losses by volatilization, leaching, denitrification, and soil erosion. Some part of N is also immobilized in undecomposed organic materials and by soil microbial population. Nitrogen harvest index (NHI) is a ratio between N accumulated in grain to N accumulated in grain plus straw. The NHI is an important index in determining crop yields because it is positively associated with grain yield. Relationship between GHI and crop grain yield may be positive linear or quadratic depending on crop genotypes and soil and crop management practices adopted. In cereals retranslocation of previously assimilated N in the vegetative parts is the predominant source of N for the grain. The most important practices that can improve NHI are liming acid soils, use of adequate N rates, source and timing, planting N efficient crop species or genotypes within species, and use of appropriate crop rotation.