The role of management in yield improvement of the wheat crop—a review with special emphasis on Western Australia

2005 ◽  
Vol 56 (11) ◽  
pp. 1137 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. K. Anderson ◽  
M. A. Hamza ◽  
D. L. Sharma ◽  
M. F. D'Antuono ◽  
F. C. Hoyle ◽  
...  

Modern bread wheat (Triticum aestivum) has been well adapted for survival and production in water-limited environments since it was first domesticated in the Mediterranean basin at least 8000 years ago. Adaptation to various environments has been assisted through selection and cross-breeding for traits that contribute to high and stable yield since that time. Improvements in crop management aimed at improving yield and grain quality probably developed more slowly but the rate of change has accelerated in recent decades. Many studies have shown that the contribution to increased yield from improved management has been about double that from breeding. Both processes have proceeded in parallel, although possibly at different rates in some periods, and positive interactions between breeding and management have been responsible for greater improvements than by either process alone. In southern Australia, management of the wheat crop has focused on improvement of yield and grain quality over the last century. Adaptation has come to be equated with profitability and, recently, with long-term economic and biological viability of the production system. Early emphases on water conservation through the use of bare fallow, crop nutrition through the use of fertilisers, crop rotation with legumes, and mechanisation, have been replaced by, or supplemented with, extensive use of herbicides for weed management, reduced tillage, earlier sowing, retention of crop residues, and the use of ‘break’ crops, largely for management of root diseases. Yields from rainfed wheat crops in Western Australia have doubled since the late 1980s and water-use efficiency has also doubled. The percentage of the crop in Western Australia that qualifies for premium payments for quality has increased 3–4 fold since 1990. Both these trends have been underpinned by the gradual elimination or management of the factors that have been identified as limiting grain yield, grain quality, or long-term viability of the cropping system.

Agronomy ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 257 ◽  
Author(s):  
Husrev Mennan ◽  
Khawar Jabran ◽  
Bernard H. Zandstra ◽  
Firat Pala

Vegetables are a substantial part of our lives and possess great commercial and nutritional value. Weeds not only decrease vegetable yield but also reduce their quality. Non-chemical weed control is important both for the organic production of vegetables and achieving ecologically sustainable weed management. Estimates have shown that the yield of vegetables may be decreased by 45%–95% in the case of weed–vegetable competition. Non-chemical weed control in vegetables is desired for several reasons. For example, there are greater chances of contamination of vegetables by herbicide residue compared to cereals or pulse crops. Non-chemical weed control in vegetables is also needed due to environmental pollution, the evolution of herbicide resistance in weeds and a strong desire for organic vegetable cultivation. Although there are several ways to control weeds without the use of herbicides, cover crops are an attractive choice because these have a number of additional benefits (such as soil and water conservation) along with the provision of satisfactory and sustainable weed control. Several cover crops are available that may provide excellent weed control in vegetable production systems. Cover crops such as rye, vetch, or Brassicaceae plants can suppress weeds in rotations, including vegetables crops such as tomato, cabbage, or pumpkin. Growers should also consider the negative effects of using cover crops for weed control, such as the negative allelopathic effects of some cover crop residues on the main vegetable crop.


Author(s):  
Raghubar Sahu ◽  
S. K. Mandal ◽  
K. Sharda ◽  
D. Kumar ◽  
Jubuli Sahu ◽  
...  

A field experiment was conducted during Kharif and rabi seasons of 2015 and 2016 at farmer’s field of Banka District as an On Farm Trial to study the crop residues management with different crop establishment methods in rice (Oryza sativa L.)–wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cropping system. Treatment comprised two levels of crop residue management ie. residue removal and residue retention (33%) and three levels of crop establishment methods ie. (a) conventional puddled transplanted rice fb conventional-till wheat (PTR-CTW), two times ploughing with cultivator followed by two times puddling and one planking was done before the manual transplanting of 21 days old seedling at 20 cm spacing from row to row. After rice harvesting, wheat was sown by broadcasting in conventional tillage plots with two times harrowing with cultivator followed by one planking; (b) unpuddled transplanted rice fb zero-till wheat (UPTR-ZTW): two times ploughing with cultivator followed by planking, after that water is submerged for transplanting and wet tillage was avoided. 21 days old rice seedlings were transplanted at a spacing of 20 x 15 cm. Wheat crop was sown under ZT using zero tillage machines; (c) zero-till direct-seeded rice fb zero-till wheat (ZTDSR-ZTW): direct-seeding of rice was done using zero-till seed-cum-fertilizer drill in ZT-flat plots at 20 cm row spacing. Wheat crop was sown in zero tillage using zero till machine. Rice variety (Rajendra Sweta) was sown directly by zero till in ZTDSR-ZT plots in the first fortnight of June. On the same date, rice seedlings for transplanting were raised in nursery by ‘Wet bed method’. Experiment was conducted in a split plot design which is replicated by thrice. Grain/panicle or spike, panicle or ear length and effective tillers/m2 recorded more in residue retention treatment and it was registered significantly superior with residue removal treatment under crop residue management in rice and wheat crop during both the years of experiment. Amongst crop establishment method, ZTDSR-ZTW was recorded more Grain/panicle or spike, panicle or ear length and effective tillers/m2 and it was significantly superior with UPTR-ZTW and PTR-CTW treatments under crop establishment methods in rice and wheat crop during both the years of experiment. Residues retention (33%) significantly improved the grain yield of both the component crops. For rice crop, 8.2–10.0% higher grain yield was realized with retention of crop residues. Grain and straw yield of rice were registered more in ZTDSR-ZTW (3.86-3.99 t/ha) & (5.56-5.75 t/ha) closely followed by UPTR-ZTW (4.38-4.45 t/ha). Concerning the data of residue management on economics revealed that the residue retention was recorded more gross return, net return as well as B: C ratio followed by residue removal treatment in both years of experimentation for rice and wheat crop and ZTDSR-ZTW was recorded more gross return, net return as well as B: C ratio followed by UPTR-ZTW and PTR-CTW treatments under crop establishment methods in rice and wheat crop during both the years of experiment.


2015 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathleen Delate ◽  
Cynthia Cambardella ◽  
Craig Chase ◽  
Robert Turnbull

<p>Long-term organic farming system trials were established across the U.S. to capture baseline agronomic, economic and environmental data related to organic conversion under varying climatic conditions. These sites have proven useful in providing supporting evidence for successful transition from conventional to organic practices. All experiments chosen for this review were transdisciplinary in nature; analyzed comprehensive system components (productivity, soil health, pest status, and economics); and contained all crops within each rotation and cropping system each year to ensure the most robust analysis. In addition to yield comparisons, necessary for determining the viability of organic operations, ecosystem services, such as soil carbon capture, nutrient cycling, pest suppression, and water quality enhancement, have been documented for organic systems in these trials. Outcomes from these long-term trials have been critical in elucidating factors underlying less than optimal yields in organic systems, which typically involved inadequate weed management and insufficient soil fertility at certain sites. Finally, these experiments serve as valuable demonstrations of the economic viability of organic systems for farmers and policymakers interested in viewing farm-scale organic operations and crop performance.</p>


2013 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 241-254 ◽  
Author(s):  
Virender Kumar ◽  
Samar Singh ◽  
Rajender S. Chhokar ◽  
Ram K. Malik ◽  
Daniel C. Brainard ◽  
...  

In the rice–wheat (RW) systems of the Indo-Gangetic Plains of South Asia, conservation tillage practices, including zero-tillage (ZT), are being promoted to address emerging problems such as (1) shortages of labor and water, (2) declining factor productivity, (3) deterioration of soil health, and (4) climate change. Despite multiple benefits of ZT, weed control remains a major challenge to adoption, resulting in more dependence on herbicides for weed control. Alternative management strategies are needed to reduce dependence on herbicides and minimize risks associated with their overuse, including evolution of herbicide resistance. The objectives of this review are to (1) highlight and synthesize research efforts in nonchemical weed management in ZT RW systems and (2) identify future weed ecology and management research needs to facilitate successful adoption of these systems. In ZT RW systems, crop residue can play a central role in suppressing weeds through mulch effects on emergence and seed predation. In ZT rice, wheat residue mulch (5 t ha−1) reduced weed density by 22 to 76% and promoted predation of RW weeds, including littleseed canarygrass and barnyardgrass seeds. For ZT wheat, rice residue mulch (6 to 10 t ha−1) in combination with early sowing reduced emergence of littleseed canarygrass by over 80%. Other promising nonchemical approaches that can be useful in suppressing weeds in ZT RW systems include use of certified seeds, weed-competitive cultivars, stale seedbed practices, living mulches (e.g., sesbania coculture), and water and nutrient management practices that shift weed–crop competition in favor of the crop. However, more research on emergence characteristics and mulching effects of different crop residues on key weeds under ZT, cover cropping, and breeding crops for weed suppression will strengthen nonchemical weed management programs. Efforts are needed to integrate multiple tactics and to evaluate long-term effects of nonchemical weed management practices on RW cropping system sustainability.


2015 ◽  
Vol 66 (6) ◽  
pp. 580 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. J. French ◽  
R. S. Malik ◽  
M. Seymour

Western Australian grain production is dominated by wheat, but growing wheat continually in unbroken sequences leads to increasing problems with soil nutrient depletion, root and leaf disease build-up, high weed burdens, and possibly other less well-defined production constraints. These can adversely affect both production and grain quality. Including breaks in the crop sequence in the form of break crops, pasture, or fallow can reduce these problems, but these breaks can be expensive to implement, in terms of both direct cost and forgone revenue. It is therefore critical to predict the response of subsequent wheat crops to a break in order to choose crop sequences rationally. We conducted a 4-year experiment at Wongan Hills, Western Australia, evaluating how wheat productivity in a wheat-based cropping sequence is affected by including wheat, barley, lupins, triazine-tolerant and Roundup Ready® canola, oaten hay, volunteer pasture, serradella pasture, and chemical fallow. Wheat yield responded positively to fallow, lupins, oaten hay, volunteer pastures and serradella but not to barley or canola when compared with continuous wheat. Responses depended on seasonal conditions; in a dry year, a very large response occurred after fallow but not after lupin or serradella, whereas in a wetter year, there were large responses after these crops. Fallowing, cutting hay, crop-topping lupins, and spray-topping volunteer and serradella pasture all reduced seedset of annual ryegrass dramatically, and reduced weed competition was a major contributor to the observed break crop responses. Nitrogen fixation by lupins and serradella and water storage by fallow in a dry year were also important, but soilborne diseases did not contribute to wheat yield responses. Some yield responses persisted for at least 3 years, and the contribution of effects of weed competition to yield responses increased over this time. These results emphasise the importance of understanding which productivity constraints are present in a cropping system at a given time when deciding whether a break is necessary and which is the most appropriate break. The results also emphasise the importance of managing the wheat crop after a break to maximise the response and its longevity.


2018 ◽  
Vol 28 (4) ◽  
pp. 253-261
Author(s):  
S Ferdousi ◽  
MR Uddin ◽  
M Begum ◽  
UK Sarker ◽  
MN Hossain ◽  
...  

Allelopathic potentiality of crop residues may be helpful to minimize the serious problems in the present agricultural production such as environmental pollution, unsafe products, human health concerns, depletion of crop diversity, soil sickness and reduction of crop productivity. In this phenomenon an experiment was conducted at the Agronomy Field Laboratory, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh during June to November, 2015 to evaluate the effect of crop residues of wheat on weed management and crop performance of T. Aman rice. The experiment consisted of three varieties (cv. BRRI dhan32, BRRI dhan33 and BRRI dhan49) and five different treatments (viz. no crop residues, wheat crop residues @ 0.5, 1.0, 1.5 and 2.0 t ha-1). The experiment was laid out in a randomized complete block design with three replications. Five weed species belonging to three families infested the experimental plots. Weed population, weed dry weight and percent inhibition of weed were significantly influenced by wheat crop residues and cultivar. The maximum weed growth was noticed where no crop residues was incorporated and the minimum was found where @ 2.0 tha-1 wheat crop residues was incorporated. The grain yield as well as the other yield contributing characters produced in BRRI dhan49 was the highest among the studied varieties. The highest percent inhibition of 75.32, 58.24, 72.60, 57.45 and 82.24 was in Shama, Panishapla, Pani chaise, Panikachu and Susnishak, respectively which was caused by the application of wheat crop residues @ 2 t ha-1. The highest loss of grain yield was obtained where no crop residues were incorporated. The highest numbers of tillers hill-1, numbers of grains panicle-1, 1000-grain weight, grain yield, straw yield were observed where wheat crop residues were incorporated @ 2.0 t ha-1. The results of this study indicate that different amount of wheat crop residues showed potential activity to suppress weed growth.Progressive Agriculture 28 (4): 253-261, 2017


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