Nitrogen fertilization strategies for improved Mediterranean rainfed wheat and barley performance and water and nitrogen use efficiency

Abstract Adequate fertilization strategies are paramount to fulfill increasing demands for food, feed and fiber while reducing environmental impacts. However, their optimization under Mediterranean no-till systems has received little attention. The objective of this work was assess winter cereal yield water N use efficiencies in a rainfed semiarid climate (i) range pre-plant fertilizers [control without fertilizer (0?N), the following at 75?kg ha?1: mineral (MIN), swine slurry (SS), poultry manure (PM), compost (COM)], (ii) incorporation: no-tillage incorporating (NT) or incorporation with vibrocultivator (INC) (iii) application urea-ammonium nitrate solution (UAN) as top-dress control UAN (UAN-) 50?kg ha?1 (UAN+). experiment covered six cropping seasons (2012–2019). Pre-plant applications had similar responses crop yield, biomass, uptake, grain N, water-use efficiency biomass (WUEb), (WUEy) but were greater than 0?N. lack differences between would be explained by high amount residual mineralized during cycle. Top-dress increased WUEy all an average 587?kg ha?1, which represented 18 % total annual production. Averaged across variables growing seasons, INC reduced soil content WUEb 10 (from 24.3 21.8?kg ha?1?mm?1). Also, 9% 3799 3450?kg ha?1) number spikes m-2 produced, pointing out that resulted deficit early reproductive period crop. While is often consider best management practice reduce NH3 volatilization losses from broadcast applications, results demonstrate agroecosystems more limiting could potentially lost volatilization.