Effects of different soil tillage systems and coverages on soybean crop in the Botucatu Region in Brazil

J.G Lança Rodrígues,J Costa Fernándes,C.A Gamero,J.M Mirás-Avalos

doi:10.5424/sjar/2009071-409

Abstract

Nowadays, agricultural practices should combine high yields with a sustainable use of resources. Different tillage practices and crop covers, if combined, may help to achieve both objectives. In this work, several traits of a soybean (Glycine max L. Merr) cultivar were studied under different conditions of tillage and previous soil coverages. The experiment was installed at Lageado Research Station, Botucatu county, SP, Brazil, on a Paleudult. It consisted of nine treatments (combining three systems of soil tillage and three cover crops) and 4 replicates, yielding 36 plots of a randomized block experimental design. The soil tillage systems considered were: (1) conventional tillage with two heavy harrowing and a levelling harrowing; (2) chiseling, and (3) no-tillage with chemical drying of vegetation. The three cover crops used were: black oat, sorghum and spontaneous vegetation. Analyzed variables were: plant height, initial and final plant densities, height of first pod insertion, weight of a thousand grains, number of pods per plant, number of grains per pod, and crop yield. No significant differences were observed for most of the analyzed variables; however, conventional tillage produced significantly heavier grains and a higher number of pods per plant. The selected covers were considered an excellent coverage prior to planting soybean in a crop rotation. The three tillage systems can be used for deployment of culture without compromising the development of soybean.

Highlights

Development and improvement of new technologies is one of the challenges in current research on agriculture
Slightly higher values were observed under conventional tillage (CT) except in the case that soybean was preceded by spontaneous vegetation when it presented the lowest plant height for the three tillage systems
Plant height results were in accordance with those found by Santos et al (1994a) who evaluated several agronomic characteristics of soybean culture under different soil tillage systems at Roraima (Brazil)

Summary

Introduction

Development and improvement of new technologies is one of the challenges in current research on agriculture. This development is mainly related to agricultural machines in order to evaluate or increase their efficiency under different conditions (Camacho-Tamayo and Rodríguez, 2007; Serrano and Peça, 2008; Serrano et al, 2008). As pointed out by Barrios et al (2006), agricultural scientists are searching for new ways to enhance crop production, reduce costs, and improve soil and water conservation while reducing the environmental impact of agriculture. Conventional tillage favors water erosion processes because it promotes an excessive mobilization of topsoil. Conservation managements reduce the mobilization of the soil and, maintain vegetal residues on the topsoil improving the environment for plant growth (Negi et al, 1990)

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