Response of Crops to Conservation Tillage and Nitrogen Fertilization under Different Agroecological Conditions

Abstract

Effects of soil tillage (CTconventional, SS-subsoiling, CH-chiselling, DH-disk-harrowing and NT-no-till) and nitrogen rate (reduced N1, optimal N2 and luxury N3) on yield and yield components of maize and winter wheat in two different agricultural subregions of Croatia (Magadenovac and Cacinci site), were studied in the years 2013–2014 as part of a long-term experiment. Maize yield and yield components were influenced by site properties, tillage and nitrogen treatments. The highest yields and yield components were recorded at the Magadenovac site with N2 and N3. The lowest values of the yield and yield components of maize were recorded on NT and were significantly lower than CT, SS, CH and DH, among which no significant differences were recorded. Winter wheat yield and yield components were affected by site properties and nitrogen rates while soil tillage treatments only had an influence on grain and straw yield and plant height. Winter wheat achieved maximum yield and yield components on a N3 and N2 and at the Magadenovac site. Winter wheat grain yield decreased in the following order: SS > DH > CH > NT > CT. The obtained results indicate the importance of optimal nitrogen fertilization and the possibility of the implementation of conservation tillage for maize and winter wheat production in different agroecological conditions.

Spatial Variability of Soil Properties and Its Effect on Maize Yields within Field—A Case Study in Hungary

“…The positive and significant correlations in the cereal yields and similar spatial distribution of the crop yields were discussed [29]. Maize yield was influenced by site properties, tillage, and nitrogen treatments [9]. This paper highlighted the rainfall amounts in the critical period (May).…”

“…Maize is highly sensitive to environmental conditions, especially to abiotic factors such as rainfall, available soil moisture, air and soil temperature, soil type, etc. [9]. The variability of the physical, chemical, and biological properties of the soil is the major factor for the diversity in crop production [10].…”

Agronomic management response in maize (Zea mays L.) production across three agroecological zones of Kenya

“…Tillage practices also influence the yield of various crops. Although with varied influence across locations, tillage affects the structure of the soil, which in turn affects the capacity for water and nutrient conservation (Jug et al., 2021). On the contrary, barriers to yield increase emanate from suboptimal input use and a lack of improved technologies (Assefa et al., 2020).…”

Tillage system regulates the soil moisture tension, penetration resistance and temperature responses to the temporal variability of precipitation during the growing season

“…It has a significant impact on biological activity of the soil and on the possibility of ensuring conditions for the proper growth and development of crops (Piotrowska and Wilczewski, 2020;Souza et al, 2021). Penetration resistance (PR) is especially important as it is a result of soil water content and bulk density (Lardy et al, 2022) which are largely influenced by both tillage systems and field traffic (Jug et al, 2021;Wang et al, 2022). Since measurements of PR are relatively rapid, they are suitable for the evaluation of the mechanical impedance to root elongation (Colombi et al, 2018;Gliński and Lipiec, 2018) and the effects of tillage on pore and aggregate structure (Dexter et al, 2007, Alaoui et al, 2011, the size of the structural units and also the structural discontinuities in the soil profile (Whalley et al, 2000;Lowery and Morrison, 2002).…”

“…These physical properties of soil are substantially influenced by shifting from conventional (intensive) tillage coupled with monocropping and the partial recycling of crop residues to conservation tillage systems including practices involving minimized soil disturbance, permanent soil cover with crop residues and diversified crop rotation (Powlson et al, 2016;Gonzalez-Sanchez et al, 2019;Devkota et al, 2022;Du et al, 2022). These practices are the main components of conservation agriculture (CA) (Ranaivoson, 2017;Xiao, 2021;Francaviglia et al, 2023) which has been shown to be suitable for improving soil structure and organic carbon sequestration (Kocira et al, 2020;Hussain, 2021;Mia et al, 2023), soil moisture conservation and in the reduction of erosion (Kocira et al, 2020;Mia et al, 2023), thereby sustaining soil health and reducing soil degradation (Kocira et al, 2020;Jug et al, 2021;Jayaraman and Dalal, 2022) and also lowering the input costs of crop production (Busari et al, 2015;Smith et al, 2021;Musto et al, 2023). Therefore, in recent years, CA has been promoted as an alternative to conventional agriculture in many parts of the world (Jug et al, 2019;Hussain et al, 2021;Hessel et al, 2022).…”