Plot size for evaluation of the yield in irrigated wheat under two planting systems
Abstract
The objective of the work was to estimate the appropriate size of the experimental unit for evaluation of the grain yield in wheat. Uniformity trials were conducted, during the period of May to September of 2002, in the experimental area of the Universidade Federal de Viçosa, in the agricultural region of Coimbra-MG. The essays were implanted in no-tillage system and conventional tillage and carried under irrigated conditions by sprinkler. The methods of the maximum curvature, modified maximum curvature and comparison of variances were used to determine the plot size. Smaller plots were estimated with the method of the modified maximum curvature , while the largest sizes were obtained by the method of the comparison of variances. Plots with 1.6 to 2.4 m2 of useful area showed appropriate for the evaluation of grains yield in the different studied conditions. Considering area and shape, plots with 2.4 m2 of useful area, formed by six rows of 2.0 m of length, represent the appropriate type for study of grain yields in irrigated wheat.