Book ChapterDOI
Conservation agriculture, improving soil quality for sustainable production systems?
Nele Verhulst,Bram Govaerts,Els Verachtert,A. Castellanos-Navarrete,Monica Mezzalama,Patrick C. Wall,A. Chocobar,Jozef Deckers,Ken D. Sayre +8 more
- pp 137-208
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TLDR
In this article, a comparative soil quality evaluation is performed in which the performance of the system is determined in relation to alternatives, and the results show that the effect of a reduction in tillage on the variation in total porosity with depth may be related to differences in traffic on different sites, or on soil quality at the time tillage was reduced or stopped.Abstract:
Conservation agriculture has been proposed as a widely adapted set of management principles that can assure more sustainable agricultural production. Conservation agriculture removes the emphasis from the tillage component alone and addresses a more enhanced concept of the complete agricultural system. Applying conservation agriculture essentially means altering literally generations of traditional farming practices and implement use. Within the framework of agricultural production, high soil quality equates to the ability of the soil to maintain a high productivity without significant soil or environmental degradation. A comparative soil quality evaluation is one in which the performance of the system is determined in relation to alternatives. Inconsistent effects of a reduction in tillage on the variation in total porosity with depth may be related to differences in traffic on different sites, or on soil quality at the time tillage was reduced or stopped.read more
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Journal ArticleDOI
Conservation agriculture and ecosystem services: An overview
TL;DR: The potential and limitations of conservation agriculture for low productivity, small-scale farming systems in Sub Saharan Africa and South Asia is discussed in this article. But, the authors highlight some research priorities for ecosystem services in conservational agriculture.
Journal ArticleDOI
Limited potential of no-till agriculture for climate change mitigation
David S. Powlson,Clare M. Stirling,Mangi L. Jat,Bruno Gérard,Cheryl A. Palm,Pedro A. Sanchez,Kenneth G. Cassman +6 more
TL;DR: In this paper, the potential for climate change mitigation through soil carbon sequestration that is possible from a change to no-till agriculture has been widely overstated, arguing that the potential of climate adaptation through carbon sequestering is limited.
Journal ArticleDOI
When does no-till yield more? A global meta-analysis
Cameron M. Pittelkow,Bruce A. Linquist,Mark E. Lundy,X. Q. Liang,Kees Jan van Groenigen,Juhwan Lee,Natasja van Gestel,Johan Six,Rodney T. Venterea,Rodney T. Venterea,Chris van Kessel +10 more
TL;DR: The authors conducted a meta-analysis to evaluate the influence of various crop and environmental variables on no-till relative to conventional tillage yields using data obtained from peer-reviewed publications (678 studies with 6005 paired observations, representing 50 crops and 63 countries).
Journal ArticleDOI
Achieving yield gains in wheat.
Matthew P. Reynolds,John Foulkes,Robert T. Furbank,Simon Griffiths,Julie King,Erik H. Murchie,Martin A. J. Parry,Gustavo A. Slafer +7 more
TL;DR: Crop development should favour spike fertility to maximize harvest index so phenology must be tailored to different photoperiods, and sensitivity to unpredictable weather must be modulated to reduce conservative responses that reduce harvest index.
Journal ArticleDOI
Crop residue management and soil health: A systems analysis
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors reviewed crop residue management practices, mainly surface retention, incorporation or removal, describing their advantages and limitations in cereal-based agroecosystems in developing countries.
References
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Journal ArticleDOI
Conventionally Tilled and Permanent Raised Beds with Different Crop Residue Management: Effects on Soil C and N Dynamics
Bram Govaerts,K. D. Sayre,J. M. Ceballos-Ramirez,Marco Luna-Guido,Agustin Limon-Ortega,Jozef Deckers,Luc Dendooven +6 more
TL;DR: In this article, the authors investigated the dynamics of soil C and N and normalized difference vegetative index (NDVI) crop values in zero-tilled permanent beds (PB) and CTB after 26 successive maize and wheat crops.
Journal ArticleDOI
Impact of crop residues on nutrient availability in conservation tillage systems
TL;DR: Greater immobilization in reduced and no-till systems can enhance the conservation of soil and fertilizer N in the long term, with higher initial N fertilizer requirements decreasing over time because of 1) reduced losses by erosion ...
Journal ArticleDOI
Nitrogen Mineralization Responses to Cropping, Tillage, and Nitrogen Rate in the Northern Great Plains
TL;DR: More intensive cropping and conservation tillage increased N-mineralization rates in this soil and may ameliorate the decline in N fertility associated with crop-fallow systems.
Journal ArticleDOI
Stubble height effects on microclimate, yield and water use efficiency of spring wheat grown in a semiarid climate on the Canadian prairies
H. W. Cutforth,B. G. McConkey +1 more
TL;DR: In this paper, a four year study was conducted at Swift Current, SK, to determine how seeding into tall (>30 cm high), short (about 15 cm high) and cultivated cereal stubble altered the microclimate thereby affecting the growth and yield of hard red spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.).
Journal ArticleDOI
Biodiversity in soil ecosystems: the role of energy flow and community stability
TL;DR: It is argued that future research should be directed to answer the question which energetic properties of the organisms form the basis of the patterning of the interaction strengths, as this would improve the understanding of the interrelationships between energetics, community stability, and hence the maintenance of biological diversity.