ROLE OF PROLINE ACID IN IMPROVING SUNFLOWER YIELD AND YIELD COMPONENTS UNDER DEFICIT CONDITIONS WATER

A field study was conducted during the spring and autumn seasons of 2014 at the experimental farm of Field Crop Department, College of Agriculture (Abo-Ghraib) - University of Baghdad, to study the effect of Irrigation deficiency quantities and concentrations of Proline acid on yield, its components, water consumptive and water use efficiency of sunflower (Helianthus annus L.) for Luleo hybrid. Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) in arrangement of a split-plot with three replications were used. Irrigation treatments, control (depletion 50% of available water) and 60%, 50% 40% of control treatment, were assigned as a main plots. while proline acid concentrations of 0, 30, 60 and 90 mg.L-1 were assigned as a subplots. The results showed that there is no significant differences between the control treatment and 60% of the control for the period from planting to 50% flowering, number of leaves, relative water content, nitrogen concentration in leaves, fertilization percentage, number of seeds in the head, 100 seed weight and seeds yield reaching 3.90, 2.46 t.ha(-1) and 3.78, 2.41 t.ha(-1) for spring and autumn seasons respectively. which indicates the possibility of saving 40% of the water consumption which is estimated 1920.00, 2960.00 m(3).ha(-1). Season(-1) for two seasons respectively without any yield reduction. While the percentage of decline in seeds yield for treatments 50% and 40% from the control treatment for spring season were 14.61%, 19.74% respectively and 21.95 %, 33.33% for autumn season comparing with control. Irrigation treatment 40%, 60% of the control treatments gave the best water use efficiency for both seasons respectively. a concentrations of Proline acid affect significantly most of studied traits. Increasing of Proline to 60mg.L-1 gave the to increase in fertilization percentage was 70.20. 81%. 100 seed weight 7.52, 7.12 gm, seed yield 3.75, 2.21 t.ha(-1) and water use efficiency 0.29. 0.84 kg seed.m(-3) water comparing with control for two seasons respectively. The interaction between irrigation and Proline acid showed a significantly effect on all characteristics seeds yield components traits in both seasons. We therefore recommend that in case of limited irrigation water by % 60 by the need of the full irrigation (50 % depletion of available water) without a significant decrease in product seed yield, in addition to possibility treatment of sunflower plants with Proline acid with 60 mg.L-1 to improvement capacity of water stress.