Agricultural Sciences: Techniques and Innovations Vol. 8

Wheat (Triticum aestivum) is one of the most widely cultivated crops globally. Wheat productivity can be significantly enhanced through integrated nutrient management involving biofertilizers, organic manures, and chemical fertilisers. Nitrogen-fixing bacteria and phosphate-solubilising biofertilizers improve growth, physiological traits, and yield components, with positive correlations observed between grain yield, leaf area, tiller number, and biomass, highlighting their critical role in sustainable wheat production. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of biofertilizer (nitrogen-fixing bacteria) in combination with nitrogen fertiliser on the physiological traits and yield performance of wheat. A multi-location experiment was carried out over two consecutive winter seasons (2017/2018 and 2018/2019) across three regions of the New Halfa scheme to evaluate the effects of biofertilizers—specifically nitrogen-fixing bacteria and phosphorus-solubilising bacteria—combined with nitrogen and phosphorus supplementation via chicken manure on the growth and performance of wheat plants. Ten plants were randomly selected per plot, and physiological parameters such as shoot dry weight (DWT), leaf area (LA), and leaf area duration (LAD) were measured. Yield attributes, including spike length, 1000-grain weight, and grain yield (kg ha⁻¹), were recorded. Correlation analysis was performed using mean values of the measured parameters, and statistical analysis was conducted using Statistix 10, appropriate for a randomised complete block design (RCBD). The results revealed that, addition of amended N or P to bio fertilizer causes significant positive correlation between the grain yield of wheat with physiological traits such as leaf area duration (LAD, r = 0.45), net assimilation rate (NAR, r = 0.21), crop growth rate (CGR), and yield components including shoot dry weight (DWT, r = 0.34), grains per spike (r = 0.13), 1000-grain weight (r = 0.77), spike grain weight (r = 0.61), and harvest index, while LAD also showed strong correlations with DWT (r = 0.70) and NAR (r = 0.16), indicating their critical contribution to yield formation. These findings indicate that the measured traits substantially contribute to the final yield. The study concludes that the combined application of biofertilizer with nitrogen substantially improves wheat growth and yield by enhancing carbohydrate synthesis and the uptake of essential nutrients.