Utility of a simple soil water budget model in agronomic research. 1. Effects of plant density, time of sowing and fallow water on available soil water under spring wheat

1973 ◽  
Vol 13 (65) ◽  
pp. 714 ◽  
Author(s):  
RG Fawcett ◽  
OG Carter

A simple soil water budget model was used to estimate weekly changes in available soil water as affected by plant density, time of sowing and level of available fallow water for spring wheat cultivars grown on a black earth in northern New South Wales. Estimated values of available water were mostly within �10 mm of observed values (ranging from 50-270 mm) obtained at four intervals during the growing season. The results are discussed in relation to both the interpretation of agronomic field experiments and use of the model in regions where conserved fallow water contributes significantly to cereal production.

1974 ◽  
Vol 14 (66) ◽  
pp. 80 ◽  
Author(s):  
RG Fawcett ◽  
OG Carter

A study was made of the effects of plant density, time-of-sowing and level of fallow water on profile changes in soil water content and potential during the growing season of spring wheat. The pattern of soil moisture extraction was affected by all treatments although water depletion occurred chiefly in the 0-90 cm zone. The results are discussed in relation to limitations of a simple soil water budget model and to wheat cropping on the north-west slopes and plains of New South Wales.


1985 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
pp. 922 ◽  
Author(s):  
D Lemerle ◽  
AR Leys ◽  
RB Hinkley ◽  
JA Fisher

Twelve spring wheat cultivars were tested in southern New South Wales for their tolerances to the recommended rates and three times the recommended rates of trifluralin, pendimethalin, tri-allate and chlorsulfuron. Recommended rates of these herbicides did not affect the emergence or grain yield of any cultivar. However, differences between cultivars in their tolerances to trifluralin, pendimethalin and chlorsulfuron at three times the recommended rate were identified. The extent of the reduction in emergence and/or grain yield varied with herbicide and season, and there was also a herbicidexseason interaction. Durati, Songlen and Tincurrin were the most susceptible cultivars to trifluralin, and Teal was the most tolerant. Yield losses from trifluralin were more severe in 1979 than in 1980 or 1981. The differential between cultivars treated with pendimethalin was smaller and more variable; Tincurrin was the only cultivar with a yield reduction in more than one season. Durati, Songlen and Shortim were the only cultivars affected by chlorsulfuron. A reduction in crop emergence of a cultivar treated with trifluralin or pendimethalin did not correlate consistently with any grain yield loss, and reductions in emergence were always greater than yield loss.


1967 ◽  
Vol 7 (28) ◽  
pp. 465 ◽  
Author(s):  
CR Kleinig ◽  
JC Noble

In two field experiments at Deniliquin, New South Wales, time of flowering was found to be closely related to grain yield of three japonica varieties of rice ( Oryza sativa L.). Later sowing and increasing nitrogen supply delayed the mid-flowering point in all varieties. For any particular sowing time and nitrogen level Early Caloro flowered first, followed by Calrose and then Caloro II. Heavy seedling density also delayed the onset of anthesis in Caloro II at each level of nitrogen applied. Total spikelet production and total dry matter yield increased with increasing nitrogen supply. The percentage of grain filled spikelets was a major determinant of yield. Values ranged from 3 to 83 per cent and percentage decreased as flowering was delayed. There was no clear relation between temperature during flowering and low yields although critical levels were recorded.


2011 ◽  
Vol 62 (12) ◽  
pp. 1067 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. G. Gaynor ◽  
R. J. Lawn ◽  
A. T. James

The response of irrigated soybean to sowing date and to plant population was evaluated in field experiments over three years at Leeton, in the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area (MIA) in southern New South Wales. The aim was to explore the options for later sowings to improve the flexibility for growing soybean in double-cropping rotations with a winter cereal. The experiments were grown on 1.83-m-wide raised soil beds, with 2, 4, or 6 rows per bed (years 1 and 2) or 2 rows per bed only (year 3). Plant population, which was manipulated by changing either the number of rows per bed (years 1 and 2) or the within-row plant spacing (year 3), ranged from 15 to 60 plants/m2 depending on the experiment. Two sowings dates, late November and late December, were compared in years 1 and 3, while in year 2, sowings in early and late January were also included. Three genotypes (early, medium, and late maturity) were grown in years 1 and 2, and four medium-maturing genotypes were grown in year 3. In general, machine-harvested seed yields were highest in the November sowings, and declined as sowing was delayed. Physiological analyses suggested two underlying causes for the yield decline as sowing date was delayed. First and most importantly, the later sown crops flowered sooner after sowing, shortening crop duration and reducing total dry matter (TDM) production. Second, in the late January sowings of the medium- and late-maturing genotypes, harvest index (HI) declined as maturity was pushed later into autumn, exposing the crops to cooler temperatures during pod filling. Attempts to offset the decline in TDM production as sowing was delayed by using higher plant populations were unsuccessful, in part because HI decreased, apparently due to greater severity of lodging. The studies indicated that, in the near term, the yield potential of current indeterminate cultivars at the late December sowing date is adequate, given appropriate management, for commercially viable double-cropping of soybean in the MIA. In the longer term, it is suggested that development of earlier maturing, lodging-resistant genotypes that retain high HI at high sowing density may allow sowing to be delayed to early January.


1992 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 447 ◽  
Author(s):  
G Sweeney ◽  
RS Jessop ◽  
H Harris

The yields and yield structure of cultivars of triticales and bread wheats (with a range of phasic development patterns in both species) were compared in 2 field experiments at Narrabri in northern New South Wales. The experiments were performed on a grey cracking clay soil with irrigation to prevent severe moisture stress. Triticales, both early and midseason types, appeared to have reached yield parity with well-adapted wheat varieties. Meaned over the 2 experiments and all sowings, the triticales yields were 19% greater than the bread wheats. Triticales were generally superior to wheat in all components of yield of the spike (1000-grain weight, grain number/spikelet and spikelet number/spike), whilst the wheats produced more spikes per unit area. The triticales also had higher harvest indices than the wheats. The results are discussed in relation to the overall adaptability of triticale for Australian conditions.


1977 ◽  
Vol 17 (88) ◽  
pp. 842 ◽  
Author(s):  
RG Fawcett

The effect of cone diameter (9.5 to 24.4 mm; 9.5 mm shaft) on the entry of penetrometers into swelling clay soils, and the relations between penetration and soil water contents, have been studied in northern New South Wales. Cones with diameters of approx. 14 mm were chosen for calibration tests on farms. The depth of wet soil and the amount of available water within the wetted zone were both related to the depth of maximum cone penetration (r2 values of 0.78-0.98 at sites with relatively uniform profiles of soil texture). Available soil water contents and water potentials were also related to the force needed for cone penetration. The penetrometer will assist in estimating soil water contents in areas where grain yields are related to available fallow water at seeding.


2004 ◽  
Vol 44 (3) ◽  
pp. 283 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. R. Murphy ◽  
G. M. Lodge ◽  
S. Harden

Surface runoff can represent a significant part of the hydrological balance of grazed pastures on the north-west slopes of New South Wales, and is influenced by a range of rainfall characteristic, soil property, and pasture conditions. Runoff plots were established on grazed pastures at 3 sites as part of the Sustainable Grazing Systems National Experiment (SGS NE). Pastures were either native (redgrass, wallaby grass and wire grass) or sown species (phalaris, subterranean clover and lucerne) and a range of grazing management treatments were imposed to manipulate pasture herbage mass, litter mass and ground cover. Rainfall and runoff events were recorded using automatic data loggers between January 1998 and September 2001. Stored soil water in the surface layer (0–22.5 cm) was monitored continuously using electrical resistance sensors and automatic loggers. Pasture herbage mass, litter mass and ground cover were estimated regularly to provide information useful in interpreting runoff generation processes.Total runoff ranged from 6.6 mm at Manilla (0.3% of rainfall) to 185 mm at Nundle (5.7% of rainfall) for different grazing treatments, with the largest runoff event being recorded at Nundle (46.7 mm). Combined site linear regression analyses showed that soil depth, rainfall depth and rainfall duration explained up to 30.3% of the variation in runoff depth. For individual sites, these same variables were also important, accounting for 13.3–33.6% of the variation in runoff depth. Continuous monitoring of stored soil water in relation to these runoff events indicated that the majority of these events were generated by saturation excess, with major events in winter contributing substantially to regional flooding. Long-term simulation modelling (1957–2001) using the SGS Pasture Model indicated that most runoff events were generated in summer, which concurred with the number of flood events recorded at Gunnedah, NSW, downstream of the SGS sites. However, floods also occurred frequently in winter, but the simulations generated few runoff events at that time of the year. These results have important implications for sustainability of grazed pastures and long-term simulation modelling of the hydrological balance of such systems, since runoff generation processes are likely to vary both spatially and temporally for different rainfall events.


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