Quality Response of Facultative Wheat to Winter Sowing, Freezing Sowing and Spring Sowing at Different Seeding Rates

Researches on wheat mostly focus on growth and yield rather than quality characteristics. Beside the yield, quality parameters are also affected by genotypes, climate conditions, fertilizer applications, rowing times and sowing rates. This study was performed by using facultative Kirik wheat variety under the dryland conditions of Erzurum (Turkey) during the 2002-03 and 2003-04 seasons. Quality parameters were investigated with regard to three different sowing times [winter sowing (first week of September), freezing sowing (last week of October) and spring sowing (last week of April)] and seven different sowing rates (325, 375, 425, 475, 525, 575 and 625 seeds m(-2)). Effects of sowing times on flour ash content were found to be significant. Although, early sowing times (winter sowing and freezing sowing) increased flour yield, the latest sowing time (spring sowing) had the highest values for the other parameters (sedimentation volume, wet gluten content and thy gluten content). Seeding rates had significant impacts on entire parameters. However, effect of sowing times and seeding rates over investigated parameters were not stable with regard to years and exhibited variations with years. While the seeding rate of 325 seeds m(-2) was found to be suitable for flour yield, 525-625 seeds m(-2) like dense seeding rates had better values with regard to other parameters (sedimentation volume, wet gluten content, dry gluten content and flour ash content). Grain moisture contents of different sowing times and rates observed in both years of the experiments were within. the acceptable limits for storage. Falling numbers were found to be higher than desired values but almost optimum value was observed at spring sowing treatment of 2002-03. Results of this study revealed that the sowing time of spring sowing with seeding rates of 525 seeds m(-2) or over was better than the other rowing periods and rates with regard to quality parameters.