Cereal Chem 62:427-430   |  VIEW ARTICLE
Influence of Nitrogen Fertilization on the Physicochemical and Functional Properties of Bread Wheats.

O. Paredes-Lopez, M. M. Covarrubias-Alvarez, and J. Barquin-Carmona. Copyright 1985 by the American Association of Cereal Chemists, Inc. 

Soft (Salamanca) and semihard (Anahuac) red wheat cultivars were grown with three levels of N fertilizer (0, 110, and 220 kg N/ha). Commercial urea and urea labeled with 15N were used. Emission spectrometry was used to detect 15N in the grain incorporated from the fertilizer. The ratio of N from fertilizer to total N in the grain ranged from 22.5 to 23.8% for the lower level of fertilization, and from 29.5 to 39.5% at the higher level. Grain N for each cultivar increased slightly at each level of application. N application caused a reduction in test weight and 1,000-kernel weight, whereas no change was observed in falling number. Sedimentation values, elasticity, and deformation energy measured by Chopin alveograph increased with N application. Farinograph water absorption and mixing stability were significantly increased with N treatments only in the Anahuac wheat. With both the soft and semihard wheats, the mixograph peak time exhibited a general tendency to decrease with increasing protein content. Surprisingly, at the high fertilization level the proportion of essential amino acids of both cultivars went down. Functionality properties of Salamanca and Anahuac wheat flours, as assessed with the baking test, were improved with N application.