Application of different cover crops and mineral fertilizer doses for no-till cultivation of broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage

Abstract

No-till practices have not been widely adopted by vegetable producers due to the necessity of seedbed preparation to incorporate organic fertilizers and plant residues of the preceding crops. This study evaluated biomass yield and residue decomposition of different cover crops, and their influence on agronomic performance of Brassica crops cultivated under no-till system. The experiment was laid out in randomized complete blocks with 4 x 3 factorial treatment combinations of four cover crops: Sunn hemp (SH), Signal grass (SG), Pearl millet (PM), and SH + PM mixture, and three doses of mineral fertilizer-0, 50, and 100% of the recommended fertilizer doses for broccoli. The same design and treatments were used for cauliflower and then for cabbage, separately.. The experiment was carried out with 4 repetitions on parcels of 20 m2. No beds were raised, for the planting of seedlings was done in pits. The following agronomic traits were evaluated: Dry biomass (DB) and decomposition of cover crop residues (DR), and the number of leaves (NL), height (H), fresh head weight (FHW) and dry head weight (DHW), and yield (Y) of Brassica crops. The highest DB occurred in treatments with SH (Give value). SG presented the highest DR constant and the shortest half-life of residues in this study.; Broccoli presented better agronomic performance when cultivated on residues containing SH.; Fertilizer doses influenced broccoli and cabbage productivity, which were the highest for the treatment with 100% dose of mineral fertilizer.