Nitrogen-limited light use efficiency in wheat crop simulators: comparing three model approaches

Three different explanatory indicators for reduced light use efficiency (LUE) under limited nitrogen (N) supply were evaluated. The indicators can be used to adapt dry matter production of crop simulators to N-limited growth conditions. The first indicator, nitrogen factor (NFAC), originates from the CERES-Wheat model and calculates the critical N concentration of the shoot as a function of phenological development. The second indicator, N nutrition index (NNI), calculates a critical N concentration as a function of shoot dry matter. The third indicator, specific leaf nitrogen (SLN) index (SLNI), has been newly developed. It compares the actual SLN with the maximum SLN (SLNₘₐₓ). The latter is calculated as a function of the green area index (GAI). The comparison was based on growth curves and fitted to empirical data, and was carried out independently from a dynamic crop model. The data set included four growing seasons (2004–2006, 2012) in Northern Germany and seven modern bread wheat cultivars with varying N fertilization levels (0–320 kg N/ha). The influence of N shortage on LUE was evaluated from the beginning of stem elongation until flowering. With the exception of 2005, the highest productivity was observed for the highest N level. A moderate N shortage primarily reduced GAI and therefore light interception, while LUE remained stable under moderate N shortage. The relative LUE (rLUE) of a specific day was defined as the ratio of actual to maximal LUE. None of the indicators was proportional to rLUE, but the relationships were described well by quadratic plateau curves. The correlation between simulated and measured rLUE was significant for all explanatory indicators, but different in terms of mean absolute error and coefficient of determination (R ²). The performance of SLNI and NNI was similar, but the goodness of prediction was much lower for NFAC. Compared with NNI and NFAC, SLNI corresponded to leaf N and was therefore sensitive to N translocation from leaves to growing grains during the reproductive stage. For this reason, SLNI may have the potential to improve simulation of dry matter production in wheat crop simulators.