Effect of Fertilizer Dose on Soil Water Profile and Root Distribution of Wheat Grown under Residual Moisture and Partially Irrigated Conditions

In a field experiment with a soil having sandy clay loam surface texture and classified as an Ochraquept, the mean length of the longest root of wheat increased with increasing fertilizer doses. Five centimetres of irrigation provided once at crown root initiation and again at flowering induced longer roots compared with the same quantity of irrigation at any other growth stages studied. Root volume, root mass and volume of soil in contact with the root system increased with increase in the fertilizer dose and the resulting grain yield; while the root volume, when irrigation was applied at crown root initiation and flowering, appeared to be depressed in comparison with the no irrigation treatment. Soil water content at 80 days of crop growth showed that the root zones under higher fertilizer doses were relatively more depleted up to about 60 cm depth of the profile.