In dryland cropping systems, optimal yields require that nutrient supply matches the soil’s yield potential supported by available moisture. Conservation tillage systems that leave at least 30 percent of the soil surface covered by residue dramatically increase moisture retained in the soil compared to crop-fallow systems. This enables producers to plant two, three, or four consecutive crops, o...

Over the last 50 years, the most increase in cultivated land area globally has been due to a doubling of irrigated land. Long-term agronomic management impacts on soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks, soil greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and global warming potential (GWP) in irrigated systems, however, remain relatively unknown. Here, residue and tillage management effects were quantified by measur...

There is interest in reducing or even eliminating tillage in organic production systems. In this special Issue, research teams in Europe and North America summarize recent and on-going efforts to develop conservation-tillage systems that can be used on commercial organic farms. While progress is being made in the development of organic no-tillage (no-till) systems, considerable work still needs...

Effects of six tillage practices on some soil microbiological properties and crop yields were evaluated for a clay soil (Typic Haploxererts) under semi-arid Mediterranean conditions in a three year study (2006-2009). The experiment was designed as a completely randomized-block with three replications. Treatments were: conventional tillage with residue incorporated (CT1), conventional tillage wi...

The objective of this research is to quantify the effects of liquid swine manure application on antibiotic and nutrient (N and P) losses via surface runoff and subsurface drainage under a conventional (moldboard plowing) and a conservation (chisel plowing) tillage system. The field experiment is set up at the University of Minnesota Southwest Research and Outreach Center, Lamberton, Minnesota. ...

This study investigates the effect of conventional tillage and application of the monoculture of sugar cane on soil health. Variables like density, moisture, texture, consistency limits, and preconsolidation stress were taken as indicators of soil quality. The measurements were made at a 120 × 120 m field cropped with sugar cane under conventional tillage. The objective of this work was to char...

Increased CO2 release from soils resulting from agricultural practices such as tillage has generated concerns about contributions to global warming. Maintaining current levels of soil C and/or sequestering additional C in soils are important mechanisms to reduce CO2 in the atmosphere through production agriculture. We conducted a study in northern Alabama from 2003 to 2006 to measure CO2 efflux...

Adoption of sustainable tillage can protect soils from biological degradation and maintain soil quality, as compared with conventional management. This paper presents findings from a long-term tillage experiment carried out in Endocalcari-Endohypogleyic Cambisols on a sandy loam soil in Lithuania. The tillage systems were: conventional (CT), moderate (MT), and no tillage (NT). Tillage intensity...

Subsoil compaction can result in unfavourable soil physical conditions and hinder the root growth of maize. The effects of deep tillage and conventional tillage on soil physical properties and root growth of maize were studied during 2010–2011 at two sites (loam at Hebi and clay at Luohe) in central China. The results showed that soil penetration resistance, bulk density, water content and root...

Abstract Conservation tillage is a promising practice for enhancing soil moisture conservation. The objective of the study to evaluate conservation methods on and maize grain yield in Silte Gurage zone Ethiopia. No tillage, one-time two times conventional were evaluated. treatments laid out randomized complete block design with three replications consecutive years (2018–2020). Besides data, sel...