The rates and the application time of nitrogen (N) may influence the agronomic characteristics of irrigated wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and, consequently, grain yield. Two experiments were conducted at the Experimental Station of the Universidade Federal de Viçosa, located in Coimbra-MG, Brazil, during the years 1995 and 1996. The treatments consisted of a combination of four rates of N (30, 60, 90 and 120 kg ha-1), four rates of parceling (total rate at 20 days after emergence (DAE); ½ at 20 + ½ at 40 DAE; 1/3 at 20 + 2/3 at 40 DAE and 2/3 at 20 + 1/3 at 40 DAE) and one control (without N post-planting) arranged in a 4 x 4 + 1 factorial scheme in a randomized block design with four replications. Plant height, plant lodging, dry biomass, harvesting index, thousand-grain mass, hectolitric weight and productivity were affected by rates of N applied after planting. In 1996, the number of ears per square meter and number of fertile tillers per plant decreased due to the early lodging of the plant, whereas the number of grains per ear and the number of grains per square meter increased with increasing rates of N. The different rates of parceling influenced only plant lodging.
Triticum aestivum L.; nitrogen fertilization; parceling