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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Tifton, Georgia » Southeast Watershed Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #225813
Title: Evaluating Crop Response to Tillage Regime in the Southeastern Coastal Plain

Author
item Sullivan, Dana
item LEE, DEWEY - UGA
item BEASLEY, JOHN - UGA
item BROWN, STEVE - UGA
item WILLIAMS, JAY - UGA

Submitted to: Soil and Water Conservation Society Proceedings
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 6/5/2008
Publication Date: 6/5/2008
Citation: Sullivan, D.G., Lee, D., Beasley, J., Brown, S., Williams, J. 2008. Evaluating Crop Response to Tillage Regime in the Southeastern Coastal Plain. Soil and Water Conservation Society Proceedings.

Interpretive Summary: Reduced tillage and crop residue management have long been accepted as conservation practices that reduce erosion, increase infiltration and improve soil quality. In some cases these benefits have led to improved yields and a reduction in supplemental irrigation. The objective of the current study was to evaluate crop response to tillage regime using multispectral reflectance in the visible, near-infrared and thermal infrared regions of the light spectrum. The study was established at a site in southern Georgia in the fall of 2003 as a component of a cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) – corn (Zea mays L.) – peanut (Arachis hypogaeo L.) rotation, with all three phases of the rotation present each year. Tillage treatments consisted of: 1) no-tillage (NT), 2) no-tillage with sub-soiling (NTss), 3) strip-tillage (ST) and 4) conventional tillage (CV). Winter rye (Secale cereale L.) was planted in November of each preceding crop year. Ground based reflectance and canopy temperature measurements were collected at 30, 60, and 90 days after planting. Reflectance and canopy temperatures were then compared with yield and soil water content. Preliminary analyses of peanut response indicate NT systems (without sub-soiling) exhibited warmer canopies and reduced reflectance preceding an irrigation event compared to CV, ST or NTss. Yield varied between years with ST systems exhibiting significantly higher yields compared to NT. Results are promising and suggest that remotely sensed data may be used to evaluate the utility of conservation tillage systems as a sustainable management practice.

Technical Abstract: Reduced tillage and crop residue management have long been accepted as conservation practices that reduce erosion, increase infiltration and improve soil quality. In some cases these benefits have led to improved yields and a reduction in supplemental irrigation. The objective of the current study was to evaluate crop response to tillage regime using multispectral reflectance in the visible, near-infrared and thermal infrared regions of the light spectrum. The study was established at a site in southern Georgia in the fall of 2003 as a component of a cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) – corn (Zea mays L.) – peanut (Arachis hypogaeo L.) rotation, with all three phases of the rotation present in any given year. Treatments were arranged in a completely randomized block design having four replications of the following tillage regimes: 1) no-tillage (NT), 2) no-tillage with sub-soiling (NTss), 3) strip-tillage (ST) and 4) conventional tillage (CV). Winter rye (Secale cereale L.) was planted in November of each preceding crop year. Ground-based reflectance data were collected in the 0.45 – 1.65 µm and 8.0-12.0 µm at 30, 60, 90 and 120 days after planting. All treatments were irrigated (2.5 cm) on a weekly basis using a checkbook method that adjusted irrigation amount for precipitation. Yield and soil water content (0-20 cm) were collected as ground truth. Preliminary analyses of peanut response indicate NT systems (without sub-soiling) exhibited warmer canopy temperatures and lower near-infrared reflectance preceding an irrigation event compared to CV, ST or NTss. Yield varied between years with ST systems exhibiting significantly higher yields compared to NT. Although ST treatments yielded numerically higher than CV and NTss in two consecutive growing seasons, differences were not significant.