Switchgrass intercropping reduces soil inorganic nitrogen in a young loblolly pine plantation located in coastal North Carolina

Abstract A productivity study and system evaluation was carried out on a tree-length operation working in a second thinning of loblolly pine near Greenville, North Carolina. The average tree volume was 8.1 ft3 and the average dbh was 8.4 in. The machines studied in the system were the Tigercat 720B feller-buncher, the Tigercat 630 skidder, and the tracked loader Tigercat 245. The goal was to reduce the standing timber from 225 trees/ac down to 92. Standard time-study methodology and multivariance statistical analyses were used to capture and evaluate the data. The key productivity parameters identified for the feller-buncher was piece volume and number of trees in the bunch, and for the skidder extraction distance, average piece volume and number of bunches picked up to make a turn. The ability of the loader to process increasing number of trees as average tree volume decreased, and the increased difficulty of delimbing the larger trees resulted in no significant variance for average piece size. Productivity functions were developed for the feller-buncher and the skidder. The system evaluation discusses the productivity balance between the machines for the given range of piece size as well as potential operational improvements based on in-field observations. South. J. Appl. For. 27(2):77–82.

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Simulating maize (Zea mays L.) growth and yield, soil nitrogen concentration, and soil water content for a long-term cropping experiment in Ontario, Canada

Canadian Journal of Soil Science ◽

10.4141/cjss2013-096 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 94 (3) ◽

pp. 435-452 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

S. Liu ◽

J. Y. Yang ◽

C. F. Drury ◽

H. L. Liu ◽

W. D. Reynolds

Keyword(s):

Water Content ◽

Soil Water ◽

Soil Water Content ◽

Inorganic Nitrogen ◽

Nitrogen Concentration ◽

Growth And Yield ◽

Model Data ◽

Soil Inorganic Nitrogen ◽

Soil Inorganic

Liu, S., Yang, J. Y., Drury, C. F., Liu, H. L. and Reynolds, W. D. 2014. Simulating maize (Zea mays L.) growth and yield, soil nitrogen concentration, and soil water content for a long-term cropping experiment in Ontario, Canada. Can. J. Soil Sci. 94: 435–452. A performance assessment of the Decision Support Systems for Agrotechnology Transfer (DSSAT) model (v4.5) including the CERES-Maize and CENTURY modules was conducted for continuous maize production under annual synthetic fertilization (CC-F) and no fertilization (CC-NF) using field data from a long-term (53-yr) cropping experiment in Ontario, Canada. The assessment was based on the accuracy with which DSSAT could simulate measured grain yield, above-ground biomass, leaf area index (LAI), soil inorganic nitrogen concentration, and soil water content. Model calibration for maize cultivar was achieved using grain yield measurements from CC-F between 2007 and 2012, and model evaluation was achieved using soil and crop measurements from both CC-F and CC-NF for the same 6-yr period. Good model–data agreement for CC-F grain yields was achieved for calibration (index of agreement, d=0.99), while moderate agreement for CC-NF grain yields was achieved for evaluation (d=0.79). Model–data agreement for above-ground biomass was good (d=0.83–1.00), but the model consistently underestimated for CC-F and overestimated for CC-NF. DSSAT achieved good model–data agreement for LAI in CC-F (d=0.82–0.99), but moderate to poor agreement in CC-NF (d=0.46–0.64). The CENTURY module of DSSAT simulated soil inorganic nitrogen concentrations with moderate to good model–data agreement in CC-F (d=0.74–0.88), but poor agreement in CC-NF (d=0.40–0.50). The model–data agreement for soil water content was moderate in 2007 and 2008 for both treatments (d=0.60–0.76), but poor in 2009 (d=0.46–0.53). It was concluded that the DSSAT cropping system model provided generally good to moderate simulations of continuous maize production (yield, biomass, LAI) for a long-term cropping experiment in Ontario, Canada, but generally moderate to poor simulations of soil inorganic nitrogen concentration and soil water content.

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