Cover crop grazing impacts on soil properties and crop yields under irrigated no‐till corn‐soybean management

To meet the requirements of California's Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, there is a critical need for crop production strategies with less reliance on irrigation from surface and groundwater sources. One strategy for improving agricultural water use efficiency is reducing tillage and maintaining residues on the soil surface. We evaluated high residue no-till versus standard tillage in the San Joaquin Valley with and without cover crops on the yields of two crops, garbanzo and sorghum, for 4 years. The no-till treatment had no primary or secondary tillage. Sorghum yields were similar in no-till and standard tillage systems while no-till garbanzo yields matched or exceeded those of standard tillage, depending on the year. Cover crops had no effect on crop yields. Soil cover was highest under the no-till with cover crop system, averaging 97% versus 5% for the standard tillage without cover crop system. Our results suggest that garbanzos and sorghum can be grown under no-till practices in the San Joaquin Valley without loss of yield.

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Can Cover Crop and Manure Maintain Soil Properties After Stover Removal from Irrigated No-Till Corn?

Soil Science Society of America Journal ◽

10.2136/sssaj2013.12.0550 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 78 (4) ◽

pp. 1368-1377 ◽

Cited By ~ 32

Author(s):

Humberto Blanco-Canqui ◽

Richard B. Ferguson ◽

Virginia L. Jin ◽

Marty R. Schmer ◽

Brian J. Wienhold ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Soil Properties ◽

Cover Crop ◽

No Till

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Cover Crop as Living Mulch: Effects on Energy Flows in Mediterranean Organic Cropping Systems

Agronomy ◽

10.3390/agronomy10050667 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (5) ◽

pp. 667

Author(s):

Francesco Montemurro ◽

Alessandro Persiani ◽

Mariangela Diacono

Keyword(s):

Energy Balance ◽

Total Energy ◽

Cover Crop ◽

Crop Yields ◽

Cropping Systems ◽

Cropping System ◽

Energy Output ◽

Living Mulch ◽

No Till ◽

Energy Inputs

Sustainability of agricultural practices is one of the most important issues in organic agriculture and its assessment is crucial. To this aim, evaluating the balance between the energy inputs and outputs in crop rotations could be a valuable tool. Therefore, we compared different management strategies in a four-year organic cropping system, by estimating the energy balance of crop production. Two different living mulches with no-till (B1) and green manure (B2) were compared with a cropping system without cover crop (B3), performing both energy analysis and energy balance. Energy parameters were also evaluated. The energy input of fertilizers and water was more than 55% of the total energy required by the cropping systems, suggesting that these agronomic practices should be tailored by farmers to decrease total energy inputs. The potential energy output was significantly higher in the B1 than the B2 and B3 cropping systems (20% and 54%, respectively). Results indicated that B1 and B2 could enhance the energy outputs without negatively affecting the energy consumption, since these cropping systems also showed higher energy efficiency. The introduction of the cover crop as living mulch combined with no-till could be a powerful tool to enhance systems sustainability, without compromising the crop yields.

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Single- versus Double-Species Cover Crop Effects on Soil Health and Yield in Mississippi Soybean Fields

Agronomy ◽

10.3390/agronomy11112334 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (11) ◽

pp. 2334

Author(s):

Heather L. Tyler

Keyword(s):

Cover Crops ◽

Cover Crop ◽

Management Practices ◽

Crop Yields ◽

Soil Health ◽

Trifolium Incarnatum ◽

Crimson Clover ◽

No Till ◽

Secale Cereale L ◽

Species Cover

Conservation management practices can improve soil health while minimizing deleterious effects of agriculture on the environment. However, adoption of these practices, particularly cover crops, is not widespread, as they often reduce crop yields compared to traditional management practices. The purpose of the current study was to determine if a two-species cover crop treatment of rye (Secale cereale L.) and crimson clover (Trifolium incarnatum L.) could increase soil health parameters and maximize soybean (Glycine max L.) yield greater than rye only in tilled and no-till Mississippi field soils. Enhanced microbial biomass and organic matter input from cover crops increased the activities of β-glucosidase, cellobiohydrolase, fluorescein diacetate hydrolysis, N-acetylglucosaminidase, and phosphatase in surface soils. Rye plus clover tended to elicit higher activities than rye only in no-till plots. Both cover crop treatments inhibited soybean yield in tilled plots by 11–25%. These results indicate that tillage exacerbates yield inhibition by cover crops in soybean and that double-species cover crop treatments were more consistent in increasing activities linked to nutrient cycling. Further study examining different combinations of cover crops in no-till systems is necessary to gain a better understanding of how they can be implemented to enhance soil health while maximizing crop yield.

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Weed interference with no-till soyabeans influenced by fine-scale covariation between soil properties and cover crop performance

Weed Research ◽

10.1111/wre.12334 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 58 (6) ◽

pp. 463-474

Author(s):

S V Eslami ◽

A S Davis

Keyword(s):

Soil Properties ◽

Cover Crop ◽

Fine Scale ◽

Weed Interference ◽

No Till ◽

Crop Performance

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Assessment of an Integrated Weed Management System in No-Till Soybean and Corn

Weed Science ◽

10.1614/ws-d-16-00021.1 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 64 (4) ◽

pp. 712-726 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Elina M. Snyder ◽

William S. Curran ◽

Heather D. Karsten ◽

Glenna M. Malcolm ◽

Sjoerd W. Duiker ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Weed Management ◽

Cover Crop ◽

Management System ◽

Soil Loss ◽

Crop Yields ◽

Integrated Weed Management ◽

Corn Yield ◽

Net Returns ◽

No Till ◽

Density And Biomass

The objective of this study was to evaluate weed control, crop yields, potential soil loss, and net returns to management of an integrated weed management system in no-till corn and soybean compared to an herbicide-based strategy. The integrated weed management system reduced herbicide inputs by delayed cover crop termination, herbicide banding, and high-residue cultivation (reduced herbicide [RH]), while the other system used continuous no-tillage and herbicides to control weeds (standard herbicide [SH]). Research was conducted within the Penn State Sustainable Dairy Cropping Systems Experiment, where corn and soybean are each planted once in a 6-yr crop rotation. In this 3-yr study, weed density and biomass were often greater under RH management, but weed biomass never exceeded 19 g m–2in corn and 21 g m–2in soybean. Corn yield and population did not differ in any year, and net returns to management were $33.65 ha–1higher in RH corn due to lower herbicide costs and slightly, though not significantly, higher yields. Soybean yield was lower in RH compared to SH in 2 of 3 yr, and was correlated with soybean population and cover crop residue. Net financial returns were $43.69 ha–1higher in SH soybean compared to RH. Predicted soil loss never exceeded T (maximum allowable soil loss) for any treatment and slope combination, though soil loss was 100% greater on a 10% slope under RH management (vs. SH) due to cultivation.

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Effects of Different Management Methods for Sunn-Hemp Cover Crop on Corn Production in a No-Till System in Cambodia

Applied Engineering in Agriculture ◽

10.13031/aea.14345 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 37 (5) ◽

pp. 805-818

Author(s):

Lyhour Hin ◽

Ted S. Kornecki ◽

Manuel R. Reyes ◽

Borarin Bunthong ◽

Lyda Hok ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Cover Crop ◽

Crop Yields ◽

Conservation Agriculture ◽

Growth And Yield ◽

List Type ◽

Long Term Effects ◽

Seeding Rate ◽

No Till ◽

Sunn Hemp ◽

Residue Retention

Highlights Soil type, operational speed, machinery weight, and power size affected corn seeding rate and seeding efficiency Corn growth and yield was affected by seeder type, so utilization of appropriate machinery is very important Having cover crop residue on the land can maintain soil moisture for a longer time than tilled land Abstract.Conservation agriculture (CA) is gaining popularity in Cambodia to sustain soil fertility, productivity, and profits. However, the adoption remains slow due to the low engagement so far of local services into CA machinery and technology. Therefore, this paper aimed to compare different no-till seeders and residue retention methods for corn (Zea mays L.) sowing and to determine their effects on growth and yield. The experiment was conducted in Rattanak Mondul District, Battambang Province, in the wet season of 2019. Sunn hemp (Crotalaria juncea L.) was grown as a cover crop for 74 days prior to corn. Each main plot was 14 × 34 m and was subdivided lengthwise with 4.0-m buffers for operations of two different seeders, namely one-row Morrison seeder mounted on 14 kW Oggun tractor and four-row Brazilian seeder mounted on 56 kW John Deere tractor. The results show that using Brazilian seeder saved around 50% of seed and 80% of time, when compared with Morrison seeder. Plant population, plant diameter, and kernel characteristics were also significantly greater with Brazilian seeder, when compared to the Morrison seeder. A combination of the Brazilian seeder and Cambodia made crimper plots had larger ear size and weight. Volumetric Moisture Content (VMC) was significantly affected by residue retention with higher VMC for rolled and crimped residue compared to disked/incorporated residue. The study demonstrates that using no-till equipment such as roller crimpers and no-till planters is feasible in Cambodia’s small farming systems although more research is needed to study long-term effects on crop yields and soil health. Keywords: Battambang Province, Conservation agriculture, Green manure, Soil improvements

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Assessment of the Role of Different Soil Properties on Crust Strength by Linear Regression Models

Journal of AgriSearch ◽

10.21921/jas.v6i04.16895 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 6 (04) ◽

Author(s):

MINAKSHI SERAWAT ◽

V K PHOGAT ◽

ANIL Abdul KAPOOR ◽

VIJAY KANT SINGH ◽

ASHA SERAWAT

Keyword(s):

Hydraulic Conductivity ◽

Soil Properties ◽

Crop Yields ◽

Modulus Of Rupture ◽

Silty Clay ◽

Linear Regression Models ◽

Wide Range ◽

Dispersion Ratio ◽

Crust Strength

Soil crust strength influences seedling emergence, penetration and morphology of plant roots, and, consequently, crop yields. A study was carried out to assess the role of different soil properties on crust strength atHisar, Haryana, India. The soil samples from 0-5 and 5-15 cm depths were collected from 21 locations from farmer’s fields, having a wide range of texture.Soil propertieswere evaluated in the laboratory and theirinfluence on the modulus of rupture (MOR), which is the measure of crust strength, was evaluated.The MOR of texturally different soils was significantly correlated with saturated hydraulic conductivity at both the depths. Dispersion ratio was found to decrease with an increase in fineness of the texture of soil and the lowest value was recorded in silty clay loam soil,which decreased with depth. The modulus of rupture was significantly negatively correlative with the dispersion ratio.There was no role of calcium carbonate in influencing the values of MOR of soils. Similarly,the influence of pH, EC and SAR of soil solution on MOR was non-significant.A perusal of thevalues of the correlations between MOR and different soil properties showed that the MOR of soils of Haryana are positively correlated with silt + clay (r = 0.805) followed by water-stable aggregates (r = 0.774), organic carbon (r = 0.738), silt (r = 0.711), mean weight diameter (r = 0.608) and clay (r = 0.593) while negatively correlated with dispersion ratio (r = - 0.872), sand (r = -0.801) and hydraulic conductivity (r = -0.752) of soils.

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Corrigendum to: Conservation agriculture effects on soil properties and crop productivity in a semiarid region of India

Soil Research ◽

10.1071/sr18145_co ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 57 (2) ◽

pp. 200 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

J. Somasundaram ◽

M. Salikram ◽

N. K. Sinha ◽

M. Mohanty ◽

R. S. Chaudhary ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Soil Properties ◽

Management Practices ◽

Crop Yields ◽

Cropping Systems ◽

Soil Layer ◽

Conservation Agriculture ◽

Semiarid Region ◽

Reduced Tillage ◽

Organic C ◽

Residue Retention

Conservation agriculture (CA) including reduced or no-tillage and crop residue retention, is known to be a self–sustainable system as well as an alternative to residue burning. The present study evaluated the effect of reduced tillage coupled with residue retention under different cropping systems on soil properties and crop yields in a Vertisol of a semiarid region of central India. Two tillage systems – conventional tillage (CT) with residue removed, and reduced tillage (RT) with residue retained – and six major cropping systems of this region were examined after 3 years of experimentation. Results demonstrated that soil moisture content, mean weight diameter, percent water stable aggregates (>0.25mm) for the 0–15cm soil layer were significantly (Pmoderately labile>less labile. At the 0–15cm depth, the contributions of moderately labile, less labile and non-labile C fractions to total organic C were 39.3%, 10.3% and 50.4% respectively in RT and corresponding values for CT were 38.9%, 11.7% and 49.4%. Significant differences in different C fractions were observed between RT and CT. Soil microbial biomass C concentration was significantly higher in RT than CT at 0–15cm depth. The maize–chickpea cropping system had significantly (P–1 followed by soybean+pigeon pea (2:1) intercropping (3.50 t ha–1) and soybean–wheat cropping systems (2.97 t ha–1). Thus, CA practices could be sustainable management practices for improving soil health and crop yields of rainfed Vertisols in these semiarid regions.

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