Effect of deep tillage on dryland crop production in red soils of India

Vittal, K. P. R.; Vijayalakshmi, K.; Rao, U. M. B.

doi:10.1016/0167-1987(83)90039-9

Cited by 34 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 2 publications

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“…However all of the bene®t occurred immediately post tillage, before the soil had crusted Rao et al 1998a,b) and in®ltration was similarly restricted for all tillage later in the cropping season, when short intraseason droughts may occur with resultant yield loss. Our results support the view that tillage is of limited temporal value in these soils and that there are no persistent bene®ts of different tillage depths to crop yield (Vittal et al 1983;Cogle et al 1997). Soil erosion was not different for tillage treatments, and our results did not indicate that the loosening of soil via cultivation caused any greater soil erosion; the greatest effects were due to organic amendments, as discussed below.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 86%

Soil management for Alfisols in the semiarid tropics: erosion, enrichment ratios and runoff

Cogle

Rao

Yule

et al. 2002

Soil Use and Management

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Continuous cultivation of soils of the semiarid tropics has led to signi®cant land degradation. Soil erosion and nutrient loss caused by high runoff volumes have reduced crop yields and contributed to offsite damage. We compared a number of soil management practices (tillage, mulch and perennial/annual rotational based systems) for their potential to improve crop production and land resource protection in an Al®sol of the semiarid tropics of India. Runoff and soil erosion were monitored and surface soil and sediment were analysed for nitrogen and carbon to determine enrichment ratios. Amelioration of soils with organic additions (farmyard manure, rice straw) or rotating perennial pasture with annual crops increased soil carbon and nitrogen contents and reduced runoff, soil erosion and nutrient loss. Soil erosion totalled less than 7 t ha ±1 , but enrichment ratios were often greater than 2 resulting in up to 27 kg N ha ±1 and 178 kg C ha ±1 being lost in sediment. Up to an extra 250 mm of water per year in®ltrated the soil with organic additions and was available for crop water use or percolation to groundwater. The results show that there are good opportunities for reducing degradation and increasing productivity on farms.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 86%

Soil management for Alfisols in the semiarid tropics: erosion, enrichment ratios and runoff

Cogle

Rao

Yule

et al. 2002

Soil Use and Management

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“…At IW/ CPE=1.0 and 1.2, T 4 and T 3 tillages did not differ much in the B : C ratio, however, the difference due to these tillage practices (T 4 and T 3 ) was wide under limited moisture supply (IW/CPE=0.6 and 0.8). It confirms the overall superiority of deep tillage treatments under limited water supply as stated by Vittal (1983).…”

Section: Benefit/cost Ratiosupporting

confidence: 87%

Optimizing tillage and irrigation for sunflower cultivation in rice fallow alfisols of semiarid tropics

Gurumurthy¹,

Rao

Reddy³

et al. 2008

Helia

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Studies were conducted on sandy clay loam soil (Typic Haplustalf) to evaluate the effect of five different tillage practices versus four irrigation regimes, 60 mm irrigation at IW/CPE=0.6, 0.8, 1.0 and 1.2, and their interaction on soil physical changes and performance of sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) under rice fallow condition. Tillage in general had more positive effect on seedling emergence, growth and yield of sunflower than zero tillage in puddle rice fallows. Deep primary tillage with tractor-drawn disc plow or MB plow produced significantly larger heads with higher test weight, however, secondary tillage with rotavator, either power-tiller-or tractor-drawn, made finer tilth and recorded significantly higher seedling emergence (80.7%). Tillage with tractor-drawn disc plow + rotavator (deep-fine tillage) gave significantly higher mean seed yield (1311 kg ha -1 ) over tractor-drawn MB plow + tractor-drawn cultivator -deep tillage (1172 kg ha -1 ), ox-drawn desi plow + power-tiller-operated rotavator -shallow fine tillage (1054 kg ha -1 ) and ox-drawn desi plow + ox-drawn cultivator -shallow tillage (931 kg ha -1 ). The irrigation regime at IW/ CPE=1.2 recorded higher seed yield than IW/CPE=0.6, 0.8 and 1.0. Water use (ETa) by sunflower increased with increase in intensity of tillage and irrigation. WUE was higher in deep tillage practices and in irrigation regime of IW/ CPE=0.8. Deep tillage, besides saving 18% of irrigation water, resulted in about 24% higher sunflower seed yield compared with shallow tillage. Interaction effects revealed that significantly higher sunflower growth and yields (both seed and oil) was realized when tillage was done with tractor-drawn disc plow + rotovator coupled with scheduling irrigations at IW/CPE=1.0 or 1.2. Tillage with two passages of country plow + once with power-tiller-operated rotavator and scheduling irrigation at IW/CPE=1.2 produced significantly superior yields of sunflower than farmers' practice.

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“…Under dryland crop production, effect of deep tillage was found to depend on rainfall pattern and plant type (Vittal et al 1983), previous crop history and soil nitrogen status (Delroy and Bowden 1986).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of deep tillage and seedbed preparation on the growth and yield of wheat on a hard-setting soil

Mead¹,

Chan²

1988

Aust. J. Exp. Agric.

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The preparation of a seedbed using either conventional cultivation (3 scarifyings) or deep tillage increased the vegetative and grain yield of a wheat crop (cv. Banks in 1983, and Quarrion in 1984) when compared with the direct drill technique of crop establishment on a hard-setting red duplex soil (Dr 2.62). Neither vegetative nor grain yield was increased by the inclusion of a deep tillage operation on the conventionally cultivated treatment prior to seedbed preparation with a scarifier.The poor seedling vigour of direct drilled plots was eliminated by deep tillage. However, the effect of deep tillage was short-lived. The importance of good soil physical condition during crop establishment was highlighted by the recompaction of the cultivated soil to bulk density and shear strength levels similar to those ofthe uncultivated plots in the latter part ofthe growing season. Because of the fragile nature of the soil, there were no residual benefits from the deep tillage operation on the undisturbed plots in the following season.Although cultivation had obvious benefits in enhancing seedling vigour on the hard-setting soil, the destruction of the soil's macroporosity reduced water infiltration down the soil profile. The adoption of conservation farming practices on hard-setting soils should initially involve reduced cultivation techniques to promote early seedling vigour. This cultivation should be timed to minimise the risks of soil erosion and recompaction. Further work is needed to identify the optimal cultivation techniques for these soils.

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Effect of deep tillage on dryland crop production in red soils of India

Cited by 34 publications

References 2 publications

Soil management for Alfisols in the semiarid tropics: erosion, enrichment ratios and runoff

Soil management for Alfisols in the semiarid tropics: erosion, enrichment ratios and runoff

Optimizing tillage and irrigation for sunflower cultivation in rice fallow alfisols of semiarid tropics

Effect of deep tillage and seedbed preparation on the growth and yield of wheat on a hard-setting soil

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