Winter wheat: results of long-term fertilizer experiment in Prague-Ruzyně over the last 60 years

The study evaluates how sixty years of application of organic manures and mineral fertilizers (ten fertilizer treatments altogether), planting of cultivars with different length of stem (long- and short-stem cultivars) and preceding crops (potatoes and alfalfa) affected grain and straw yields of winter wheat in the Prague-Ruzyně long-term fertilizer experiment (RFE). Fertilizer treatments did not affect grain yield during the first ten years of the RFE experiment (1959-1968), but influenced straw yield. The grain yield ranged from 5.08 (control) to 5.43 (farmyard manure) t/ha, straw yield varied from 6.02 t/ha (control) to 8.31 t/ha (poultry slurry (PS) + N4P2K2). In the last ten years of the RFE experiment (2004-2013) grain yield ranged from 7.01 t/ha (control) to 8.88 t/ha (stale + N4P2K2), while straw yield decreased and varied from 3.12 (control) to 6.21 t/ha (PS + N4P2K2). Comparing the potatoes and alfalfa as preceding crops, the grain yield was 0.5 t/ha higher after alfalfa, but straw yield was 1.3 t/ha higher after potatoes. Introduction of short-stem cultivars increased average grain yield about 2 t/ha and decreased average straw yield about 0.85 t/ha.