Nitrogen redistribution from the roots in post-anthesis plants of spring wheat

The aim of this study was to investigate post-anthesis N redistribution from the roots to other organs in the wheat plant. Two cultivars of spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) Sport and WL were grown to maturity in culture solution with stepwise-decreasing N supply and 15N before sampling. The N concentration of dry weight in the roots decreased from anthesis to full maturity. At maturity the root N concentration was 5.5 mg g−1 dry weight for Sport and 4.9 mg g−1 dry weight for WL, while the main shoot N concentration was 2.1 mg g−1 dry weight for Sport and 2.2 mg g−1 dry weight for WL. The roots were a major sink for N taken up post-anthesis and contained the main proportion of the 15N during the whole post-anthesis period. The N redistributed from the roots contributed 24.3% of the total N amount in the grains at maturity in cv Sport and 8.7% in cv WL. For cv Sport, 46.3% of the root N amount was redistributed to other parts of the plant and for WL 25.4%. The tiller grains were supplied with N from the 15N applied post-anthesis to a higher degree than the main shoot grains. The transport capability was maintained until 12 days after complete yellowness. We concluded that wheat has a great ability to redistribute nitrogen from the root system to the grains.