EFFECT OF LONG-TERM USE OF TILLAGE, RESIDUES AND N LEVELS IN SORGHUM (SORGHUM VULGARE (L)) – CASTOR (RICINUS COMMUNIS) CROPPING SYSTEM UNDER RAINFED CONDITIONS – CROP RESPONSES AND ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE – PART I

2013 ◽  
Vol 49 (3) ◽  
pp. 395-415 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. KUSUMA GRACE ◽  
K. L. SHARMA ◽  
D. SUMACHANDRIKA ◽  
K. SRINIVAS ◽  
U. K. MANDAL ◽  
...  

SUMMARYThis experiment was conducted to study the long-term effect of soil management treatments on crop yields, sustainability yield indices (SYI) and soil fertility in rainfed semi-arid tropical Alfisol at Hayathnagar Research Farm, Hyderabad, India, during the period 1995 to 2009. The experiment was conducted in a split–split plot design with conventional tillage (CT) and minimum tillage (MT) as main factors, surface application of sorghum stover @ 2 t ha−1 (SS), fresh Gliricidia loppings @ 2 t ha−1 (GL) and ‘no’ residue (NR) as sub-factors and levels of N viz. 0 (N0), 30 (N30), 60 (N60) and 90 (N90) kg N ha−1 as sub–sub factors in a castor–sorghum two-year rotation. On an average, CT maintained 30.4 and 57.0% higher grain yields of sorghum and castor, respectively, over MT. Between two residues, GL performed well in both the crops. The highest yields of sorghum (1425 kg ha−1) and castor (876 kg ha−1) were recorded at 90 kg N ha−1. CT maintained higher SYI of 0.44 compared to MT (0.38) and higher agronomic efficiency (AE) of 13.5 and 6.76 kg grain kg−1 N for sorghum and castor crop, respectively. Use of crop residue as mulch had an advantage in increasing the yield of both the crops with increase in rainfall under CT even without N application (control), probably by making the soil more receptive to water infiltration, better moisture storage and by reducing the evaporative losses. Using response functions, the optimum fertilizer N requirement was also computed for a given set of tillage and residue combinations. The revised optimum fertilizer N doses for sorghum and castor varied from 45 to 56 kg ha−1 and 46 to 74 kg ha−1, respectively, under different tillage and residue combinations and could be recommended depending upon the soil management practices.

2014 ◽  
Vol 60 (No. 8) ◽  
pp. 351-357 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Das ◽  
Sharma RP ◽  
N. Chattopadhyaya ◽  
R. Rakshit

We measured the long-term (28 years) sustainability of rice-wheat cropping system under integrated nutrient management practices emphasizing the trends in grain yields, sustainable yield index (SYI) and nutrient budgeting. The data of long-term experiment revealed that grain yield of both rice and wheat declined under control and sub-optimal fertilizer inputs (50% or 75% recommended fertilizer NPK). Negative yield trend (slope) was observed in control plots for rice (–0.0296) and wheat (–0.0070); whereas positive yield trend was observed under treatments receiving organic supplements. The SYI values indicate that rice yields are more sustainable than wheat. Data on apparent nutrient balance showed a deficit of N (–42.2 kg/ha/year), P (–9.1 kg/ha/year) and K (–52.2 kg/ha/year) under control plots. Surprisingly, there was net depletion of K under the organic supplemented plots. Correlation study revealed that apparent balance of K was negatively correlated with SYI (r = –0.921 for rice; r = –0.914 for wheat) and yield slope (r = –0.870 for rice; r = –0.896 for wheat). If the trend of K imbalance is not reversed, the potential to improve N and P fertilizer use efficiency and crop yields will be limited.


2013 ◽  
Vol 49 (2) ◽  
pp. 161-178 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. R. MARUTHI SANKAR ◽  
K. L. SHARMA ◽  
K. SRINIVAS REDDY ◽  
G. PRATIBHA ◽  
RESHMA SHINDE ◽  
...  

SUMMARYLong-term tillage and fertilizer experiments were conducted in rice in kharif followed by lentil in dry subhumid Inceptisols at Varanasi and Faizabad; horse gram at Phulbani and linseed at Ranchi in moist subhumid Alfisols in rabi during 2001 to 2010. The study was conducted to assess the effect of conventional tillage (CT), low tillage + interculture (LT1) and low tillage + herbicide (LT2) together with 100% N (organic) (F1), 50% N (organic) + 50% N (inorganic) (F2) and 100% N (inorganic) (F3) on productivity, profitability, rainwater and energy use efficiencies. The results at Varanasi revealed that CT was superior with mean yield of 2389 kg ha−1, while F1 was superior with 2378 kg ha−1 in rice. At Faizabad, CT was superior with mean rice yield of 1851 kg ha−1 and lentil yield of 977 kg ha−1, while F1 was superior with 1704 and 993 kg ha−1 of rice and lentil, respectively. At Phulbani, F2 was superior with rice yield of 1170 kg ha−1. At Ranchi, F2 with rice yield of 986 kg ha−1 and F3 with linseed yield of 224 kg ha−1 were superior. The regression model of crop seasonal rainfall and yield deviations indicated an increasing trend in rice yield over mean (positive deviation) with increase in rainfall at all locations; while a decreasing trend (negative deviation) was found for lentil at Faizabad, horse gram at Phulbani and linseed at Ranchi. Based on economic analysis, CTF1 at Varanasi and Faizabad, CTF2 at Phulbani and LT2F2 at Ranchi were superior.


Agronomy ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 291
Author(s):  
Ramón Bienes ◽  
Maria Jose Marques ◽  
Blanca Sastre ◽  
Andrés García-Díaz ◽  
Iris Esparza ◽  
...  

Long-term field trials are essential for monitoring the effects of sustainable land management strategies for adaptation and mitigation to climate change. The influence of more than thirty years of different management is analyzed on extensive crops under three tillage systems, conventional tillage (CT), minimum tillage (MT), and no-tillage (NT), and with two crop rotations, monoculture winter-wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and wheat-vetch (Triticum aestivum L.-Vicia sativa L.), widely present in the center of Spain. The soil under NT experienced the largest change in organic carbon (SOC) sequestration, macroaggregate stability, and bulk density. In the MT and NT treatments, SOC content was still increasing after 32 years, being 26.5 and 32.2 Mg ha−1, respectively, compared to 20.8 Mg ha−1 in CT. The SOC stratification (ratio of SOC at the topsoil/SOC at the layer underneath), an indicator of soil conservation, increased with decreasing tillage intensity (2.32, 1.36, and 1.01 for NT, MT, and CT respectively). Tillage intensity affected the majority of soil parameters, except the water stable aggregates, infiltration, and porosity. The NT treatment increased available water, but only in monocropping. More water was retained at the permanent wilting point in NT treatments, which can be a disadvantage in dry periods of these edaphoclimatic conditions.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yang Su ◽  
Benoit Gabrielle ◽  
Damien Beillouin ◽  
David Makowski

AbstractConservation agriculture (CA) has been promoted to mitigate climate change, reduce soil erosion, and provide a variety of ecosystem services. Yet, its impacts on crop yields remains controversial. To gain further insight, we mapped the probability of yield gain when switching from conventional tillage systems (CT) to CA worldwide. Relative yield changes were estimated with machine learning algorithms trained by 4403 paired yield observations on 8 crop species extracted from 413 publications. CA has better productive performance than no-till system (NT), and it stands a more than 50% chance to outperform CT in dryer regions of the world, especially with proper agricultural management practices. Residue retention has the largest positive impact on CA productivity comparing to other management practices. The variations in the productivity of CA and NT across geographical and climatical regions were illustrated on global maps. CA appears as a sustainable agricultural practice if targeted at specific climatic regions and crop species.


Agronomy ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 650
Author(s):  
Jesús Aguilera-Huertas ◽  
Beatriz Lozano-García ◽  
Manuel González-Rosado ◽  
Luis Parras-Alcántara

The short- and medium—long-term effects of management and hillside position on soil organic carbon (SOC) changes were studied in a centenary Mediterranean rainfed olive grove. One way to measure these changes is to analyze the soil quality, as it assesses soil degradation degree and attempts to identify management practices for sustainable soil use. In this context, the SOC stratification index (SR-COS) is one of the best indicators of soil quality to assess the degradation degree from SOC content without analyzing other soil properties. The SR-SOC was calculated in soil profiles (horizon-by-horizon) to identify the best soil management practices for sustainable use. The following time periods and soil management combinations were tested: (i) in the medium‒long-term (17 years) from conventional tillage (CT) to no-tillage (NT), (ii) in the short-term (2 years) from CT to no-tillage with cover crops (NT-CC), and (iii) the effect in the short-term (from CT to NT-CC) of different topographic positions along a hillside. The results indicate that the SR-SOC increased with depth for all management practices. The SR-SOC ranged from 1.21 to 1.73 in CT0, from 1.48 to 3.01 in CT1, from 1.15 to 2.48 in CT2, from 1.22 to 2.39 in NT-CC and from 0.98 to 4.16 in NT; therefore, the soil quality from the SR-SOC index was not directly linked to the increase or loss of SOC along the soil profile. This demonstrates the time-variability of SR-SOC and that NT improves soil quality in the long-term.


2017 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 42-50
Author(s):  
Nabin Rawal ◽  
Rajan Ghimire ◽  
Devraj Chalise

Balanced nutrient supply is important for the sustainable crop production. We evaluated the effects of nutrient management practices on soil properties and crop yields in rice (Oryza sativa L.) - rice - wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) system in a long-term experiment established at National Wheat Research Program (NWRP), Bhairahawa, Nepal. The experiment was designed as a randomized complete block experiment with nine treatments and three replications. Treatments were applied as: T1- no nutrients added, T2- N added; T3- N and P added; T4- N and K added; T5- NPK added at recommended rate for all crops. Similarly, T6- only N added in rice and NPK in wheat at recommended rate; T7- half N; T8- half NP of recommended rate for both crops; and T9- farmyard manure (FYM) @10 Mg ha-1 for all crops in rotation. Results of the study revealed that rice and wheat yields were significantly greater under FYM than all other treatments. Treatments that did not receive P (T2, T3, T7, T8) and K (T2, T4) had considerably low wheat yield than treatments that received NPK (T5) and FYM (T9). The FYM lowered soil pH and improved soil organic matter (SOM), total nitrogen (TN), available phosphorus (P), and exchangeable potassium (K) contents than other treatments. Management practices that ensure nutrient supply can increase crop yield and improve soil fertility status.Int. J. Appl. Sci. Biotechnol. Vol 5(1): 42-50


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document