The effects of soil and foliar applications of Fe and Zn on yield and seed microelement contents in lentil (Lens culinaris Medik.)

The objectives of this research were to investigate the effects of soil and foliar applications of iron and zinc sulfades on yield and seed microelement contents in lentils, and to determine an efficient evaluation technique for screening large number of lentil genotypes. The experiments were carried out in an experimental area in the Faculty of Agriculture at Dicle University, in Diyarbakır, Turkey, during the years of 2012-2013 and 2013-2014. The experimental designs were randomized complete block with split-plot organization and had three replications. The microelement doses were located in main plots and lentil varieties in sub plots within main plots. Iron and zinc analysis of the seed samples were conducted in the related laboratories of the Soil Science and Plant Nutrition Department in the Faculty of Agriculture at Agean University, in Izmir. In the first year, soil applications of iron sulphade ( FeSO47H2O) of 0,1,2,3,4,5 kg/da doses and zinc sulphade (ZnSO47H2O ) of 0,1,2,3,4 kg/da doses; foliar application of FeSO47H2O solution of 0.00 %, 0.37 %, 0.75%, 1.12% and 1.49% doses and ZnSO47H2O solutions of 0.00%, 0.33%, 0.66%, 0.99 % and 1.32% doses on three red lentil varieties (Şakar, Fırat 87 and Çağıl); in the second year, foliar application of FeSO47H2O and ZnSO47H2O solutions of 0.00% and 0.30% doses on six red lentil varieties (Yerli Kırmızı, Tigris, Kafkas, Seyran 96, Özbek ve Çiftçi ) were conducted to investigate the effects of Fe and Zn microelements on various plant characters (number of days to flowering, plant height, biological yield and seed yield) and iron and zinc content in the seeds. Based on the results of the first year experiments, there was no any positive effects of soil applications of iron and zinc sulphade on yield and seed microelement contents. Soil microelement applications significantly reduced these characters when compared to controls. However, in foliar applications, yield and seed microelement contents became significantly higher than the controls. Foliar application of 0.37 % iron sulphade resulted in significant increases in biological yield, seed yield and Fe content in the seeds. But, foliage application of zinc sulphade did not cause any significant effect on biological yield although seed yield was higher than control in 0.66 % dose level. Mean zinc contents of seeds did not differ much from each other although it was slightly higher in 0.66 % than the others doses. As a results of these findings, using foliar application of 0.30 % iron and zinc sulfade was selected as an efficient screening technique for various lentil genotypes. In 2013-2014, this technique was used to evaluate other six lentil varieties (Yerli Kırmızı, Tigris, Kafkas, Seyran-96, Özbek and Çiftçi). There was great variation among six lentil cultivars for yield and seed microelement content. Keywords:lentil (Lens culinaris Medik), Fe, Zn, Varieties, Dosses, Yield