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ARS Home » Plains Area » Mandan, North Dakota » Northern Great Plains Research Laboratory » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #188172
Title: DYNAMIC CROPPING SYSTEMS FOR EFFECTIVE USE OF WATER

Author
item Merrill, Stephen
item Tanaka, Donald
item Krupinsky, Joseph
item Liebig, Mark
item Hanson, Jonathan

Submitted to: ASA-CSSA-SSSA Annual Meeting Abstracts
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 6/4/2005
Publication Date: 11/6/2005
Citation: Merrill, S.D., Tanaka, D.L., Krupinsky, J.M., Liebig, M.A., Hanson, J.D. 2005. Dynamic cropping systems for effective use of water. No. 102-3 IN: ASA-CSSA-SSSA Annual Meeting Abstracts CD-ROM. November 6-10, 2005. Salt Lake City, UT. ASA-CSSA-SSSA, Madison, WI.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: The principles of dynamic cropping systems require that producers consider climatic, market, ecological, and other factors on an annual basis in making crop choices. One of the factors that must be considered in dryland management is that the different amounts of water depleted from the soil by different crops can impact following crops. May-to-September soil water depletion was determined over 1.8 m by neutron moisture meter for 3 years in a crop sequence project with a 10 x 10 species biennial matrix under no-till management on Haplustoll soil and land in central North Dakota. Crops depleted soil water in the following order, from highest to lowest: sunflower, maize, sorghum, spring wheat, canola, buckwheat, proso millet, chickpea, lentil, and dry pea. On average, sunflower depleted 8.1 cm more soil water than dry pea. Sunflower left the least amount of water in the soil the next spring, dry pea the most – 4.0 cm more than sunflower. Superior overwinter snowcapture by 4th highest-depleting spring wheat caused it to rank 2nd only to dry pea in spring soil water, 3.9 cm greater than sunflower. High seasonal water depletion by sunflower has been observed in our experiment and by producers to have negative effects on following crops under relative drought.