Potential Alternative Crops for Eastern Oregon

The winter wheat/summer fallow rotation is the most common cropping system in eastern Oregon. It is used to store winter precipitation and control weeds. This cropping system, however, destroys soil organic carbon, reduces water infiltration and thus leads to soil erosion, and is not sustainable. Conservation tillage, annual cropping, and the introduction of alternative crops are ways to improve sustainability of cropping systems in eastern Oregon. The following review briefly discusses the uses, climatic requirements, and yield potential of potential alternative crops for eastern Oregon. These crops include legumes, cereals, and crops with industrial and pharmaceutical uses. Based on this review, research should focus on evaluating potential alternative crops for suitability to eastern Oregon conditions and provide growers with information they need to integrate these crops into existing cropping systems. Introduction The Pacific Northwest (PNW) Columbia Plateau is semi-arid with rainfall ranging from 12 to 18 inches. About 70 percent of annual precipitation occurs from November to April during winter and water available to plants during spring and summer depends on how much water is stored in the soil. Because of steep slopes prevalent in the PNW, soil erosion is a major problem in fields that do not have sufficient residue cover. Cropping systems that improve water infiltration and storage, reduce evaporation, and increase water use efficiency of crops on a sustainable basis should be developed. Wheat/fallow rotation is the traditional crop production system in the PNW Columbia Plateau. The winter wheat/summer fallow rotation is used on 4.5 million acres in the drier portion of the region, where rainfall is considered inadequate to produce a crop every year. This cropping system is most economical where rainfall is less than 13 inches. Summer fallowing is used to store winter precipitation and control weeds. This cropping system, however, depletes soil organic carbon and reduces water infiltration, leading to soil erosion (Rasmussen and Parton 1994). In the long-run, soil productivity decreases. Research should focus on developing biologically and economically sustainable farming systems. Conservation tillage, annual cropping, and the introduction of alternative crops are ways to improve sustainability of cropping systems in the PNW. No-till (direct-seeding) systems increase infiltration, reduce runoff, and reduce tillage costs but adoption has been slow. This is primarily because of cultural inertia, cost of equipment, and uncertain crop yields due to weed and disease build up (Williams and Wuest 2001). Annual cropping is limited by low rainfall and soil moisture. Planting every year, however, has the potential to reduce soil erosion when compared to summer fallow. When annual cropping includes alternative crops and spring plantings, weeds and diseases can be controlled (Williams and Wuest 2001). Cropping systems that include alternative crops should improve soil fertility and structure and reduce weed and disease incidences. Alternative crops, however, suffer from lack of markets and stable prices and their yields have been inconsistent primarily