Response of Malt Barley to Special Liquid Fertilizer (Rutter AA) in the Central Highlands of Ethiopia

The experiment was conducted at Welmera (Holeta &Telecho) and Ejere (Cheri) districts during 2016 and 2017 main cropping season to evaluate response of yield and yield components of malt barley to special liquid fertilizer (Rutter AA) applications. The experiment was laid out in randomized complete block design with three replications. The treatments were different doses of Ruter AA with recommended NP, that is,0, 100% NP, 100% NP + Ruter AA 4 L/ha, 100% NP + Ruter AA 2 L/ha and 100% NP + Ruter AA 6 L/ha). The results of this study indicated that the productivity of malt barley was significantly affected by different dose of Ruter AA applied. Applications of 100% NP fertilizer with Ruter AA liquid nutrient sources combination had a significant (p<0.05) effect on grain yield and biomass yield of malt barley. In general application of liquid fertilizer (Rutter AA) indicates positive response on grain quality of malt barley. In conclusion, based on the findings of the experiment without application of liquid fertilizer but 100% recommended NP fertilizer are economically optimum for malt barley production with acceptable grain quality in the Holeta, Cheri and Telecho study sites. Keywords: Grain yield, Liquid fertilizer, Protein content DOI : 10.7176/JNSR/9-2-01