Harvest moisture content affecting yield and quality of wheat grains in Brazil

The wheat quality and yield may be limited or compromised by several factors in the field, being the climatic main factor at the end of the crop cycle. The aim of the study was to determine whether different harvest times affect crop yield and wheat grain quality; four experiments were conducted, differing by cultivars type and sowing time, at Ponta Grossa city, PR, Brazil. The experimental design used for both cultivars (BRS-Pardela and Quartzo)  were randomized complete block with five grain moisture content at harvest time (30, 25, 20, 15 and 13%) being 4 replications. For the first sowing time, the different harvesting times had no effect in yield, falling number (FN) or hectoliter weight (HW) for both cultivars. In the second sowing time, the yield components and yield for both cultivars were not affected by the different harvest times. A linear and quadratic decrease on the pH with the delaying of harvest time was noticed for BRS-Pardela and Quartzo, respectively, for the FN only the BRS-Pardela showed quadratic reduction delaying the harvest time.   Key words: Triticum aestivum, no-tillage, harvest time, industrial quality.