Effect of cultivar and foliar application of arginine on growth characters and yield of sorghum

A field experiment was conducted at the Agricultural Research Station of Anbar University College of Agriculture during the spring and autumn seasons of 2021. The aim of the experiment was to investigate the effect of four concentrations of arginine on the growth and yield of three sorghum cultivars: Inqath, Babel, and Giza 113. A split plot design was used with three replicates, where the main plots were assigned to four arginine concentrations (0, 100, 200, and 300 mg L-1), and the subplots were assigned to three sorghum cultivars. The cultivar Inqath excelled significantly in leaf area, number of grains, and grain yield, with the highest average grain yield of 4.03 and 4.52 tons ha-1 for the spring and autumn seasons, respectively. On the other hand, the cultivar Giza 113 recorded the lowest average of 3.31 and 3.94 tons ha-1. As for the concentrations of arginine, the concentration of 300 mg L-1 excelled in the studied traits, recording the highest average grain yield of 4.51 and 4.98 tons ha-1. Additionally, the interaction between the two factors of the study was significant in most of the studied traits.