Genotypic variability for physiological efficiency index of nitrogen in oats

One of the methods for measuring the efficiency of N utilization by plants is the index of physiological efficiency of absorbed N (PEN) which for cereals is defined as the ratio of grain produced to the total N absorbed by the above-ground plant parts (grain and straw) at maturity. This index indicates how this absorbed N is used by the plant to produce grain. The objective of this work was to study the genotypic variability of PEN in oats (Avena sativa L.) and to what extent grain yield is related to PEN. Seven selected oat genotypes were studied under greenhouse conditions with 5 levels of added N including control (no additional N). At maturity the grain and straw were harvested separately and analyzed for total N. The results show that there was a highly significant variation among genotypes in both yield per pot and PEN. Grain yield was positively and significantly related to PEN (r = 0.95**). The total N absorbed by plants was much less correlated with grain yield than PEN. The results suggest that PEN may be used in a plant breeding program to detect the potentially high yielding oat genotypes and to evaluate those capable of exploiting N input most efficiently.