A study on the effect of different zinc fertilizer levels on rice grain quality traits

Abstract

A field experiment was carried out to study the effect of different zinc fertilizer levels on rice grain quality traits at the Experimental Farm of Rice Research and Training Center (RRTC), Sakha, Kafr El-Sheikh, Egypt during the two growing seasons of 2011 and 2012. Seven rice cultivars (Sakha 102, Sakha 105, Sakha 106, Giza 177, Giza 178, Giza 179, Giza 182 besides Hybrid 1) were used and evaluated under four Zinc fertilization rates, (0, 50, 100 and 150%) of the recommended rate (10 kg Zn So4/fed). The results revealed that there were significant differences among tested cultivars in respect to all studied characters. This was expected due to their completely different in genetic background. Increasing zinc level up to 150% of the recommended rate mostly affects all rice grain quality (dimention, milling recovery, cooking and eating quality characters) in the two seasons of study. Meanwhile, the results indicated that the interaction between rice cultivars and zinc levels was significant in most cases, except grain shape, hulling (%), and gelatinization temperature in the two seasons of study. From another point of view, the results revealed that decreasing zinc level fertilizer dose to 50% of the recommended did not affect the mean values of most of studied characters in case of Giza 178 followed by Sakha 105 and Sakha 106 in the two seasons. This result indicated that these three cultivars could be recommended as low input cultivars