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ARS Home » Midwest Area » Columbia, Missouri » Cropping Systems and Water Quality Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #84420
Title: ELECTROMAGNETIC INDUCTION AS A SOIL PRODUCTIVITY INDEX

Author
item Kitchen, Newell
item Sudduth, Kenneth - Ken
item DRUMMOND, SCOTT - UNIV OF MO

Submitted to: International Conference on Precision Agriculture Abstracts & Proceedings
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 9/10/1997
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Inexpensive and accurate methods for measuring within-field soil productivity variations, particularly those related to soil water characteristics, would provide useful information to improve site-specific crop management strategies. This paper reports on use of an electromagnetic induction (EM) sensor to map soil electrical conductivity variations and on evaluation of the relationship of EM readings and grain yield. While the regression models for yield and EM had fairly low r**2 values, EM sensing of soil conductivity still helped explain crop productivity variability on both claypan and alluvial soils. This variability seemed to be related closely to plant-available water. On claypan soil fields, EM sensing was correlated to topsoil depth above the claypan horizon. For alluvial soil fields, EM was strongly correlated to clay content in the surface soil. Using the EM sensing technique, soil variability within fields was detected with much more spatial detail than traditional soil survey maps.