New Cropping Strategy to Reduce Chemical Fertilizer Application to Silage Corn Production Using Subterreanean Clover Reseeding.

Abstract

This study was conducted to evaluate the effects of reseeding sub clover as a cover crop on silage corn growth, nitrogen accumulation, and the changes in soil nitrogen under different chemical nitrogen application levels. The cropping systems of sub clover reseeding based management and fallow treatment were compared to DM and N accumulation of silage corn at 0, 50, and 100kg N ha-1 application levels. The experiment was conducted at two sites, one where no-till corn was sown in June, and the other where conventional corn was sown in July. DM accumulation of corn in the fields of sub clover reseeding system was significantly higher than in the fields of fallow system at both sites. Based on this co-relationship, the amounts of nitrogen supplied by sub clover reseeding to no-till and conventional tilled corn estimated to be 108 and 88kg N ha-1, respectively. However, the evaluation of sub clover N supply in this experiment was obviously influenced by sub clover N that was also produced other years were obvious. So these results also suggested that there is some possibility to increase the soil total nitrogen in the field of sub clover reseeding system. However, the amount of sub clover N supply per year is still not clear, so additional research is needed.