Traffic effects on soil compaction and sugar beet (Beta vulgaris L.) taproot quality parameters

Abstract

Soil compaction is a critical issue in agriculture having a significant influence on crop growth. Sugar beet (Beta vulgaris L.) is accounted as a crop susceptible to compaction. Reduction of leaf area, final yield, and root quality parameters are reported in compacted soils. The most obvious visual indicator of topsoil compaction is root depth affected by agricultural tractor and machinery traffic up on the soil. Such indicators are mainly correlated to initial soil condition, tyre features, and number of passages. Monitoring and controlling frequency and position of machine traffic across the field, in such a way that passages are completed on specific, well-defined tracks, can assist with minimization of compaction effects on soil. The objective of the present work was to analyze the subsoil compaction during the growing period of sugar beet with different farming approaches including controlled traffic passages and random traffic. To this end, tests were carried out following each agro technical operation using penetrometer readings in order to monitor the state of cone-index after each step. In addition, at the harvesting time, root quality parameters were analyzed with particular attention to length and regularity of the taproot, total length, circumference, mass, and above-ground biomass. Such parameters were usefully implemented in order to evaluate the effects of controlled traffic passages compared to the random traffic in a cultivation of sugar beet. Results highlight how an increase in crop yield, derived from samples monitored, higher than 10% can be expected with implementation of a careful traffic management.Additional key words: soil; traffic management; compaction; crop parameters.Correspondence should be addressed to Andrea Pezzuolo: andrea.pezzuolo@unipd.itAbbreviations used: CI (cone index); CT (controlled traffic area); CTF (controlled traffic farming); CT0 (soil portion not affect by machines compaction); CT3 (lanes undergoing three machines passes); CT8 (lanes undergoing eight machines passes); RT (random traffic area); WW (work widths). Funding:The authors received no specific funding for this work.

Soil seedbed engineering and its impact on germination and establishment in sugar beet (Beta vulgaris L.) as affected by seed–soil contact

“…soil texture, bulk density and water content), climate, tillage, and drilling procedures (Aubertot et al , 1999). Soil compaction (a decrease in pore space and increase in bulk density) poses a serious problem for the sugar beet industry as conventional field preparation techniques result in subsoil compaction, reducing root development and yield (Marinello et al ., 2017). The ideal conditions for a seedbed are thought to consist of both fine and coarse aggregates to prevent erosion (erosion prevention facilitated by a proportion of coarse aggregates) and to ensure sufficient soil–seed and soil–root contact (improved contact facilitated by a proportion of fine aggregates) whilst minimizing compaction which represents a challenge to the farmer (Fig.…”

Persistencia de los efectos de la descompactación del suelo con paratill

“…En la Figura 4 se aprecia la materia seca obtenida por hectárea en ambos tratamientos. El tratamiento descompactado duplica la masa del testigo, al igual que Tolon-Becerra et al, (2011); Marinello et al, (2017) y Jorajuría et al (1997 quienes encontraron reducciones de rendimiento a causa de compactaciones inducidas. La persistencia del efecto de la descompactación sobre la variable rendimiento, coincide con Vepraskas et al (1995) quienes manifiestan que los efectos del subsolado se mantienen dos años después de la labranza.…”

“…Respecto a la variable infiltración, la descompactación antes de la siembra influyó notablemente sobre el ingreso del agua al suelo, pero la misma no se mantuvo en el tiempo y al momento de la cosecha los valores de infiltración no mostraron diferencias significativas con el testigo sin subsolado. Existen antecedentes sobre reducción en el rendimiento por causas de la compactación (Tolon-Becerra et al, 2011;Marinello et al, 2017). Jorajuría et al (1997) encontraron una disminución significativa de materia seca de una pastura atribuible a la compactación inducida.…”

The Influence of the Driving Speed and Vertical Acceleration of the Mobile Machine on the Change of Soil Packing

“…The above features greatly complicate the creation of calculated dependencies necessary to identify the distribution of the contact pressure of pneumatic tires on the wheel support, which is soil [6][7][8]. Two schemes, which are used for mathematical description [9][10][11] of the wheel interaction with a bearing surface, are known. In the first scheme they consider the fixed moment of a rolling wheel on the support surface.…”