In Orkney, Bere (a landrace of barley) is traditionally cultivated in marginal areas with very low inputs. There was little information on the effects of different agricultural inputs on Bere. Therefore this research investigated the effects of nitrogen, fungicide and plant growth regulator on grain yield, quality and economic returns of Bere which were compared with Optic (a modern malting barley variety) during 2008 and 2009. The present study found that ears m-2 and 1000-grain weight were two important components responsible for yield variations between Bere and Optic and were consistently lower in the former than the latter. The results indicated that disease score, lodging index and grain nitrogen content were higher in Bere than Optic, and the former had more stable yield than the latter during the study period. Increasing nitrogen fertilizer rate enhanced ears m-2 and grain yield of both varieties. However, the highest N rate (90 kg ha-1) resulted in the highest disease score and lodging index which consequently reduced grain quality of Bere. Fungicide application at Zadoks growth stage 37 reduced disease score and enhanced grain yield of both varieties compared with control plots and this was attributed to higher ears m-2 and 1000-grain weight. The plant growth regulator Upgrade (mixture of ethephon and chlormequat chloride) applied at the recommended rate at Zadoks growth stage 31 resulted in the lowest lodging index in Bere. However, it had no significant effect on grain yield and grain nitrogen content of both varieties. Gross margin analysis indicated that Bere compared favourably with Optic due to its higher grain price. Although, plant growth regulator did not justify its expenditure for controlling lodging, its application is recommended to ease harvesting and to avoid pre-harvest yield and quality losses in Bere.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2000. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 203-206). Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2000. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 203-206). Also available on the Internet.