RESPONSE OF FOOD BARLEY (Hordeum vulgare L.) VARIETIES TO BLENDED FERTILIZER NPS IN JIRU GAMACHU GURAWA DISTRICT, EASTERN ETHIOPIA

Barley is one of the popular crops cultivated since ancient time in the world. Food barley is one of the main cereal crops produced in Ethiopia. In Gurawa district, the productivity of food barley is low due to poor agronomic practices. Most of the farmers in this area do not use fertilizer except few other who use below the optimum rate. The unsuitable NPS fertilizer applications rate is also among the most important agronomic factors that hindered productivity of food barley around the study area. An experiment was conducted at Jiru gamachu in Gurawa district in 2020 main cropping season to assess the effect of NPS fertilizer rates on yield and yield related traits of barley. Five different NPS fertilizer rates (0, 50,100,150 and 200 kg ha-1 ) and three barley varieties (EH1493, BH1307 and Cross#41/98) were combined and used as treatment. A total of 15 treatment combinations were laid out in randomized complete block design with three replications. Phenology, growth, yield and yield related data were collected and analyzed using genstat 16thedtn. The results of this study indicated the effects of different varieties and NPS fertilizer rates were significant on yield and yield components of food barley. The fertilizer application of 200 NPS kg ha-1 have been gained highest grain yield and benefit for most of yield related parameters of foodbarly. The number of days required for varieties to reach days to 50% heading were between 58.87 and 75.20 days. The shortest (107.9) days to 90% physiological maturity and the longest (123.8) were recorded from Cross#41/98 and EH1493 respectively. /The maximum (64.10) number of seed per spike, the highest (49.9 gm) 1000 grain weight, the greatest (12337 kgha-1 ) above ground biomass was recorded from the highest application of NPS rate. Application of 200 kg ha-1 NPS fertilizer rate with HB1307 variety was resulted the highest grain yield (4797 kg ha 1 ) compared to the other NPS fertilizer rates. The results of the partial budget analysis indicated that the application of 200 kg ha-1NPS fertilizer rate resulted in maximum marginal rate of return (672.99%) and are economically profitable with a net benefit of 125531 birr ha 1 compared to other treatments. The improved food barley variety growing with application 200NPS kgha-1 can be recommended for effective production in the study area. However, this result was from one season and location, to give reliable recommendation further study is required