Effects of tillage and straw management on Alaskan weed vegetation: a study on newly cleared land

Abstract

The effects of tillage and straw management in a continuous spring barley system were studied during 1983–1985 on land near Delta Junction, Alaska, that had just been cleared for agricultural production. This research was a part of a multidisciplinary approach to design agricultural systems to minimize soil erosion on interior Alaskan agricultural land. Total weed ground cover and cover of native grasses such as bluejoint reedgrass ( Calamagrostis canadensis (Michx) Nutt.) and native broadleaves was highest in no-till plots and was lowest in plots that were disked twice each year. Total weed ground cover increased during 1983–1985. Ground cover of native grasses was greater when stubble and straw residues were left on the soil surface than when the residues and stubble were removed. Greater snow cover where stubble is left may help to prevent freezing injury to the native grasses.