Nitrogen Fertilizer Reduces the Impact of Sodium Chloride on Wheat Yield

Core Ideas We examined the yield component response to N fertilization under saline conditions. Nitrogen fertilization at moderate salinity exerts a positive and effective influence. Using urea fertilizer at high salt concentration was negative or ineffective. Salinity is a growing problem worldwide, and techniques are needed to mitigate this problem. This experiment was conducted to determine if nitrogen (N) fertilizer could mitigate the adverse effects of salinity on wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) production and yield. Two wheat varieties (Elnilein and Xumai 30) were seed into soil treated with NaCl at rates of 1.4, 2.5, 4.2, and 7.6 dS m−1. The NaCl‐treated soils were fertilized with three urea‐N rates (0, 86, and 210 kg N ha−1). Spike length, number of spikelets, number of kernels per spike, kernel weight per spike, and 1000 kernel weight were affected by interactions between variety and N and by interactions between salinity and N. At the 7.6 dS m−1 salinity level, 210 kg N ha−1 increased yield by 54.7%. This study showed that N alleviated the adverse effects of NaCl. Moreover, among all N levels used in this study, 86 and 210 kg N ha−1 had similar impacts on wheat production. Across the N and salinity treatments, Xumai 30 generally had higher yields than Elnilein under different salinity and N levels. These findings suggest that cultural practices can reduce the impact of increasing salinity problems worldwide.