The Effect of the Three-Field Crop Rotation System and Cereal Monoculture on Grain Yield and Quality and the Economic Efficiency of Durum Wheat Production

The advantages of the three- and four-crop rotations in relation to the two- crop rotation are reduced frequency of soil tillage, and thus savings in energy sources, lower intake of mineral nitrogen fertilisers and the amount of applied herbicides. The aim of the present study was to indicate the importance of a proper alternation of crops in the three-crop rotation system and to compare the advantages of cultivation of maize after winter wheat or soybean in terms of reducing weediness, formation of the harvest index and grain yield. Results of long-term studies have shown that the crop sequence significantly contributed to the decrease in fresh biomass of weed and the increase in the harvest index and grain yield in the maize-winter wheat-soybean rotation in relation to the maize-soybean-winter wheat rotation.

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Tropicalization of canola: commercial hybrids show potential for cultivation in the Brazilian Cerrado

Revista de la Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias UNCuyo ◽

10.48162/rev.39.035 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 53 (2) ◽

pp. 20-26

Author(s):

Lucas Nobre de Araújo ◽

Tatiana Barbosa Rosado ◽

Erina Vitório Rodrigues ◽

Adriano Dos Santos ◽

Bruno Galvêas Laviola

Keyword(s):

Grain Yield ◽

Crop Rotation ◽

Agronomic Traits ◽

National Average ◽

Joint Analysis ◽

Brazilian Cerrado ◽

Rotation System ◽

Tropical Conditions ◽

Dry Conditions ◽

Crop Rotation System

Canola is a potential feedstock for the production of biodiesel due to its high levels of energy efficiency. However, Brazil has not yet consolidated its production as typical of temperate regions. Thus, the objective of the study was to evaluate the agronomic performance of canola hybrids in the tropical conditions of the Brazilian Cerrado in order to select promising candidates to contribute to the expansion of canola culture in the country. Eight commercial canola hybrids were evaluated for seven agronomic traits, in three experiments with varying water conditions. The data obtained for each variable were subjected to joint analysis of variance and the averages compared using the Scott-Knott test. The grain yield of the evaluated hybrids was higher than the national average, which includes plantations only in the southern region. The hybrids that stood out in grain yield were Hyola 61 and Hyola 76 followed by Diamond, which besides presenting a high magnitude for this characteristic, was less precocious even in dry conditions. Due to its characteristics, the Diamond hybrid can be considered the best option to be inserted in the crop rotation system. These results are promising and reveal adaptation and cultivation potential of these hybrids in the Brazilian Cerrado. Highlights The yield of canola grains in the experiments was promising as the values achieved were above the national average. Hyola 61, Hyola 76 and Diamond showed prominent grain yield in relation to the other hybrids investigated. Diamond presented high grain yield and shorter cycle, thus being considered the best option for the crop rotation system. For the Brazilian Cerrado, the hybrids Hyola 61, Hyola 76 and Diamond are valuable alternatives for planting.

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Allelopathic Activity of Spearmint (Mentha spicata L.) and Peppermint (Mentha × piperita L.) Reduces Yield, Growth, and Photosynthetic Rate in a Succeeding Crop of Maize (Zea mays L.)

Agronomy ◽

10.3390/agronomy9080461 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 9 (8) ◽

pp. 461 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Anestis Karkanis ◽

Alexandros Alexiou ◽

Christos Katsaros ◽

Spyridon Petropoulos

Keyword(s):

Grain Yield ◽

Crop Rotation ◽

Photosynthetic Rate ◽

Mentha Piperita ◽

Maize Crop ◽

Mentha Spicata ◽

Allelopathic Activity ◽

Rotation System ◽

Dry Biomass ◽

Crop Rotation System

The inclusion of species with allelopathic activity in crop rotation systems may have benefits for crop management such as weed control, but less is understood about their wider impacts on succeeding crops. The main objective of this study was to investigate the effects of two allelopathic species (spearmint and peppermint) on growth, physiological characteristics, and yield of a following maize crop. Thus, field experiments were carried out at two sites, according to a randomized complete block design, while the examined treatments were: (a) fallow–fallow–maize crop rotation system (FFM), (b) spearmint–spearmint–maize crop rotation system (SSM), and (c) peppermint–peppermint–maize crop rotation system (PPM). Our results indicated that the inclusion of spearmint or peppermint in crop rotation systems negatively affect the growth of maize plants. The highest plant height was recorded for FFM rotation system where no allelopathic species were used. At both sites and for four sampling dates, the aboveground dry biomass was also affected by the implemented crop rotation system. In particular, dry biomass was significantly lower in the PPM and SSM crop rotation systems comparing to the FFM system, whereas there were no significant differences between these two crop rotation systems. Similar to the maize biomass, the highest values of photosynthetic rate, stomatal conductance, and relative chlorophyll content were observed for the FFM rotation system. Additionally, differences in grain yield were observed among the tested crop rotation systems. Grain yield ranged from 10,200 to 13,346 kg ha−1 and from 11,773 to 14,106 kg ha−1 at site A and B, respectively, while it was reduced by 16.54–23.58% and 12.16–17.83% in the SSP and PPM rotation systems comparing to the FFM system. In conclusion, our results indicate that the inclusion of peppermint or spearmint in crop rotation may inhibit plant growth and reduce grain yield of maize as successive crop, an effect that could be attributed to the allelopathic activity of spearmint and peppermint.

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