The no-tillage system is perceived as having lower soil temperatures, wetter soil conditions, and greater surface penetration resistance compared with conventional and other conservation tillage systems. Concerns associated with the effect of the no-tillage system on certain soil physical properties (i.e. soil temperature, moisture, and compaction) prompted this study to evaluate the effect of ...

In 1987, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA-ARS) National Sedimentation Laboratory, in cooper­ ation with the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experi­ ment Station (MAFES) and the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), initiated an interdisciplinary research project to develop profitable and environmentally sustainable conservation production systems for silty upland...

Appropriate tillage plays an important role in mitigating the emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG) in regions with higher crop yields, but the emission situations of some reduced tillage systems such as subsoiling, harrow tillage and rotary tillage are not comprehensively studied. The objective of this study was to evaluate the emission characteristics of GHG (CH4 and N2O) under four reduced til...

Introduction Conservation tillage has been one of the most rapidly adopted agricultural practices of the past 15 years (CTIC, 1983). The primary impetus for conservation tillage has been decreased soil erosion; fuel, labor, and machinery costs; and increased soil water storage and yields (USDA, 1975). Conservation tillage may be broad­ ly defined as tillage practices that reduce soil and water ...

Kucey and Schaalje, 1986; Reeves et al., 1993; Randall et al., 1997; Torbert et al., 2001). Tillage and N management systems can have a significant effect Many soil and water quality problems are associated on N use by corn (Zea mays L.) and nitrate (NO3–N) movement with conventional tillage, along with other problems that through the soil profile. Potential water quality and NO3–N loss probaff...

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...

A field study was conducted to assess the effects of soil tillage practices and straw management on soil CO2, and yield-scaled CO2 emissions in a rain-fed summer corn field on the Loess Plateau. Tillage treatments consisted of sub-soiling tillage (CP), no tillage (NT) and moldboard plow tillage (CT). Wheat straw was removed from half of the CP, NT and CT plots after harvest, allowing us to test...

In rice (Oryza sativa L.) culture the effect of puddling (wet tillage) on puddle quality, weed growth and yield of crop depends upon initial soil manipulations by pre-puddling tillage. However, the role of pre-puddling tillage on these aspects has not been studied adequately. These effects were studied for three years (1994±1996) in a ®eld experiment with a rice±wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cro...

In this study, a fixed-site field experiment was conducted to study the influence of different combinations of tillage and straw incorporation management on carbon storage in different-sized soil aggregates and on crop yield after three years of rice-wheat rotation. Compared to conventional tillage, the percentages of >2 mm macroaggregates and water-stable macroaggregates in rice-wheat double-c...

Organic farming has been identified as promoting soil quality even though tillage is used for weed suppression. Adopting zero tillage and other conservation tillage practices can enhance soil quality in cropping systems where synthetic agri-chemicals are relied on for crop nutrition and weed control. Attempts have been made to eliminate tillage completely when growing several field crops organi...