Wheat residue management options for no-till corn

1997 ◽  
Vol 77 (2) ◽  
pp. 207-213 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Opoku ◽  
T. J. Vyn

Corn (Zea mays L.) yield reduction following winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) in no-till systems prompted a study on the effects of tillage and residue management systems on corn growth and seedbed conditions. Four methods for managing wheat residue (all residue removed, straw baled after harvest, straw left on the soil surface, straw left on the soil surface plus application of 50 kg ha−1N in the fall) were evaluated at two tillage levels: fall moldboard plow (MP) and no-till (NT). No-till treatments required at least 2 more days to achieve 50% corn emergence and 50% silking, and had the lowest corn biomass at 5 and 7 wk after planting. Grain yield was similar among MP treatments and averaged 1.1 t ha−1 higher than NT treatments (P < 0.05). Completely removing all wheat residue from NT plots reduced the number of days required to achieve 50% corn emergence and increased grain yields by 0.43 and 0.61 t ha–1 over baling and not baling straw, respectively, but still resulted in 8% lower grain yields than MP treatments. Grain yield differences among MP treatments were insignificant regardless of the amount of wheat residue left on the surface or N application in the fall. Early in the growing season, the NT treatments where residue was not removed had lower soil growing degree days (soil GDD) compared with MP (baled) treatment, and higher soil moisture levels in the top 15 cm compared with all other treatments. The application of 50 kg N ha−1 in the fall to NT (not baled) plots influenced neither the amount of wheat residue on the soil surface, nor the soil NO3-N levels at planting. Our results suggest that corn response in NT systems after wheat mostly depends on residue level. Key words: Winter wheat, straw management, no-till, corn, soil temperature, soil moisture

1996 ◽  
Vol 11 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 52-57 ◽  
Author(s):  
R.I. Papendick

AbstractThe Northwest Wheat Region is a contiguous belt of 3.3 million ha in Idaho, Oregon and Washington. Its climate varies from subhumid (<650 mm annual precipitation) to semiarid (<350 mm), with more than 60% of the annual precipitation occurring during the winter. Winter wheat yields range from a high of 8 t/ha in the wetter zones to a low of 1.5 t/ha in the drier zones. Winter wheat is grown in rotation with spring cereals and pulses where annual precipitation exceeds 450 mm; winter wheat-fallow prevails where annual precipitation is less than 330 mm. Tillage practices are designed to maximize infiltration and retention of water through soil surface and crop residue management. Because of the combination of winter precipitation, steep topography, and winter wheat cropping, much of the region is subject to a severe water erosion hazard, accentuated by freeze-thaw cycles that increase surface runoff and weaken the soil structure. Wind erosion is a major problem in the drier zones, where cover is less and soils are higher in sand. Residue management, primarily through reduced tillage and no-till systems, is the first defense against both wind and water erosion, but yields often are higher with conventional intensive ti llage. Factors that limit yields with conservation farming include weed and disease problems and th e lack of suitable tillage and seeding equipment. Conservation strategies must shift from relying on traditional tillage methods to development of complete no-till systems. Spring cropping as a replacement for winter wheat also needs to be investigated. In some cases, tillage for water conservation must be made compatible with tillage for erosion control.


Agronomy ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 37 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yan Liang ◽  
Shahbaz Khan ◽  
Ai-xia Ren ◽  
Wen Lin ◽  
Sumera Anwar ◽  
...  

Dryland winter wheat in the Loess Plateau is facing a yield reduction due to a shortage of soil moisture and delayed sowing time. The field experiment was conducted at Loess Plateau in Shanxi, China from 2012 to 2015, to study the effect of subsoiling and conventional tillage and different sowing dates on the soil water storage, Nitrogen (N) accumulation, and remobilization and yield of winter wheat. The results showed that subsoiling significantly improved the soil water storage (0–300 cm soil depth) and increased the contribution of N translocation to grain N and grain yield (17–36%). Delaying sowing time had reduced the soil water storage at sowing and winter accumulated growing degree days by about 180 °C. The contribution of N translocation to grain yield was maximum in glume + spike followed by in leaves and minimum by stem + sheath. Moreover, there was a positive relationship between the N accumulation and translocation and the soil moisture in the 20–300 cm range. Subsoiling during the fallow period and the medium sowing date was beneficial for improving the soil water storage and increased the N translocation to grain, thereby increasing the yield of wheat, especially in a dry year.


2011 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 89-109 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. E. OBALUM ◽  
U. C. AMALU ◽  
M. E. OBI ◽  
T. WAKATSUKI

SUMMARYOver a decade after the forest-savanna transition zone of Nigeria was deemed suitable for production of sorghum (Sorghum bicolor), no research has been undertaken on the crop's tillage requirements in the southeastern part of the zone. This study evaluated the effects of tillage-mulch practices on soil moisture, water use (WU), grain yield and water use efficiency (WUE) of the crop in a Typic Paleustult (sandy loam) at Nsukka during 2006 and 2007 growing seasons. In a split-plot design, no-till (NT) and conventional tillage (CT) treatments were left bare (B) or covered with mulch (M) at 5 Mg ha−1. The ensuing treatments (NTB, NTM, CTB, and CTM) represented four tillage methods, which were replicated four times in a randomized complete block. In the monitored root zone, NTB and CTM significantly (p ≤ 0.05) enhanced the soil moisture status over NTM and CTB, but the main effects of the tillage and the mulch factors were not significant. The crop WU was uninfluenced by the treatments throughout the study. Although the grain yield showed higher values with NT than with CT, the differences were significant (p ≤ 0.05) only in 2007 that was marked with erratic rainfall and relatively low mean yield. Mulch significantly (p ≤ 0.05) enhanced the grain yield in 2006, with greater effect in CT than NT. On average, the mulch plots out-yielded their bare counterparts by about 26%. The tillage × mulch interaction was significant (p ≤ 0.01), and showed higher grain yields in NTB, NTM and CTM than in CTB. In the year-weighted average, yield increments in NTB, NTM and CTM over CTB were 53, 53 and 67% respectively, a pointer to the relevance of mulch with the CT but not the NT. Relative WU showed that the crop's water demand was met under all treatments. Hence, the yield reduction in the CTB was not due to water shortage. The WUE varied among the treatments in the same pattern as grain yield. In summary, NTB and CTM proved superior to NTM only in soil moisture status but to CTB in all measured parameters. From a socio-economic viewpoint, however, NTB would be preferable to CTM for growing sorghum in this area.


Plants ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 2047
Author(s):  
Matthew R. Ryan ◽  
Sandra Wayman ◽  
Christopher J. Pelzer ◽  
Caitlin A. Peterson ◽  
Uriel D. Menalled ◽  
...  

Mulch from cover crops can effectively suppress weeds in organic corn (Zea mays L.) and soybean (Glycine max L.) as part of cover crop-based rotational no-till systems, but little is known about the feasibility of using mulch to suppress weeds in organic winter small grain crops. A field experiment was conducted in central NY, USA, to quantify winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) seedling emergence, weed and crop biomass production, and wheat grain yield across a gradient of mulch biomass. Winter wheat seedling density showed an asymptotic relationship with mulch biomass, with no effect at low rates and a gradual decrease from moderate to high rates of mulch. Selective suppression of weed biomass but not wheat biomass was observed, and wheat grain yield was not reduced at the highest level of mulch (9000 kg ha−1). Results indicate that organic winter wheat can be no-till planted in systems that use mulch for weed suppression. Future research should explore wheat tolerance to mulch under different conditions, and the potential of no-till planting wheat directly into rolled-crimped cover crops.


2004 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 252-257 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. Lane Crooks ◽  
Alan C. York ◽  
David L. Jordan

Tolerance of six soft red winter wheat cultivars to AE F130060 00 plus AE F115008 00 applied at 12.5 plus 2.5 g ai/ha and 25 plus 5 g ai/ha, respectively, at the two- to three-tiller stage was examined under weed-free conditions at four locations over 2 yr. Visible injury averaged 5 and 15% 3 wk after treatment (WAT) in years 1 and 2, respectively. Injury was 2% or less 10 WAT. No differences among cultivars were noted for visible injury, and AE F130060 00 plus AE F115008 00 did not reduce grain yield in year 1. In year 2, averaged over herbicide rates, grain yields of the cultivars ‘Coker 9663’, ‘Pioneer 2580’, ‘Coker 9704’, ‘Pioneer 2684’, ‘FFR 555’, and ‘Jackson’ were reduced 3, 5, 6, 8, 10, and 16%, respectively. The yield reduction for Jackson was different from those for the other cultivars. Yield reduction was attributed to reduced numbers of kernels per spike.


1975 ◽  
Vol 55 (2) ◽  
pp. 359-362
Author(s):  
J. A. MACLEOD ◽  
L. B. MACLEOD

The effects of spring N fertilization on yield and N content of grain were studied over a 3-yr period on four cultivars of winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) with three rates of fall-applied fertilizer. No increases in grain yield, grain N concentration or grain N yield were observed when fall-applied N was increased from 22 to 44 kg/ha, or when fall-applied K was increased from 37 to 74 kg/ha. Increasing the rate of spring-applied N from 0 to 33 kg/ha increased grain yields by 0.84 metric ton/ha with no increase in grain N concentration. Increasing the rate of N application from 33 to 67 kg/ha increased grain yield by 0.59 metric ton/ha. This was accompanied by a 0.14% increase in grain N concentration. Increasing the rate of N application from 67 to 100 kg/ha increased grain yields by only 0.14 metric ton/ha. This was accompanied by an increase of 0.21% in grain N concentration. The increase in grain N yield was similar with each increment of N application and averaged 0.40 kg N in grain per kg fertilizer N applied in the spring. Larger increases in yield and smaller increases in grain N concentration were generally obtained with the high yielding, low N cv. Yorkstar than with the low yielding, high N cv. Richmond. The effects of N on Genesee and Talbot were intermediate.


2000 ◽  
Vol 80 (4) ◽  
pp. 729-738 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. R. Domitruk ◽  
B. L. Duggan ◽  
D. B. Fowler

Higher water use efficiency provides no-till-seeded winter wheat with an advantage over spring-sown crops in western Canada. However, like all crops, winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L) is subject to large yield losses due to drought. This study was undertaken to identify the effect of weather and crop soil water status on water use, aboveground biomass production and grain yield of no-till winter wheat grown on the Canadian prairies. Five winter wheat cultivars were grown over a 3-yr period at a total of 17 sites scattered across the different climatic zones of Saskatchewan. Both the establishment and expression of grain yield potential were limited by drought in these dryland environments. Early-season moisture was required to set up a high grain yield potential while low ET and high precipitation during grain filling were necessary to secure yield. Rapid growth under cool temperatures during April and early May consumed much of the available water in the top 50-cm of the soil profile and large ET deficits, as a consequence of a continuous decline in available water, characterized drought stress in most trials. While stored soil water at greenup was not sufficient to support a crop, there was growing season rainfall at all trial sites and improvements in water availability led to higher grain yields and an increased range in mean environmental grain yield. Rainfall had its greatest influence on grain yield during tillering, while atmospheric conditions and soil water content were more important from heading to anthesis. Because environmental differences in drought stress were related to the volume and distribution of growing season precipitation, some dryland environments were exposed to intermittent stress while stress was terminal in others. Therefore, to be successful, winter wheat cultivars and management systems for the Canadian prairies must be able to accommodate variable patterns of growing season water availability. Key words: Triticum aestivum L., evapotranspiration, precipitation, water use, biomass, grain yield


2009 ◽  
Vol 148 (2) ◽  
pp. 191-204 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. SHAO ◽  
X. ZHANG ◽  
A. HIDEKI ◽  
W. TSUJI ◽  
S. CHEN

SUMMARYField and pot experiments were conducted to investigate the effects of defoliation on crop performance and the possibility of using defoliation as a method for conserving soil moisture. The study was conducted during 2006–2008, over two growing seasons of winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) in the North China Plain. Three levels of defoliation (mild, moderate and severe) were imposed on winter wheat in the field during the following crop phases and conditions: at heading, at anthesis under water deficit conditions and at anthesis under two or three levels of irrigation. Additional pot experiments with three levels of defoliation under two water regimes were arranged. The results showed that both the intensity of defoliation and the timing of defoliation significantly reduced grain production. Under wet conditions the reduction was over 20%, while under dry conditions the reduction was c. 12%. Yield reduction was greater for defoliation at heading than at anthesis and it was mainly caused by a reduction in kernel weight. Mild defoliation (top three leaves retained) did not affect grain yield. Moderate defoliation (top two leaves retained) slightly reduced grain production. Root length density in the topsoil profile was significantly reduced by severe defoliation at anthesis under wet conditions, but it increased under dry conditions. Dry matter remobilization to grains under moderate and mild defoliation was increased and resulted in a relatively higher harvest index (HI). The photosynthetic rate of the leaves remaining after defoliation was enhanced under all soil moisture conditions. Although defoliation reduced the seasonal water use (ET), the yield reduction was much greater than the reduction in ET under severe defoliation, resulting in lower water use efficiency (WUE). The results show that conserving soil moisture by removing leaves might not be an economic choice. Under the conditions of the present study, the WUE of winter wheat was not improved by defoliation; however, in very dry conditions the reduction in ET by defoliation might help the crop survive.


2015 ◽  
Vol 41 (5) ◽  
pp. 787 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shou-Xi CHAI ◽  
Chang-Gang YANG ◽  
Shu-Fang ZHANG ◽  
Heng-Hong CHEN ◽  
Lei CHANG

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