Actual Grain Research Articles

Electrode Modified by Reduced Graphene Oxide for Monitoring of Total Thallium in Grain Products.

Grain products and the associated industry have a notable economic and social impact all over the world. The toxicological safety of grain products is a nutritional prerogative. This study focused on the determination of thallium content in grain product samples collected from a commercial brand commonly available in Poland. The samples were analyzed with the use of differential pulse anodic stripping voltammetry (DPASV) with graphene oxide based on glassy carbon. The stripping anodic peak current of thallium was linear over its concentration range from 9.78 × 10−9 to 97.8 × 10−9 M. The limit of detection (LOD) was calculated according to the formula LOD = (κ × SDa)/b, where κ is 3.3, SDa is the standard deviation of the intercept, and b is the slope. The determined value of LOD was 1.229 µg L−1 (6.01 × 10−9 M). The proposed method was successfully applied for the determination of thallium ions in samples of actual grain products. The obtained results confirmed that thallium was present in the studied cereal samples (average content at 0.0268 ± 0.0798 mg/kg). Thallium has a half-life of 60 days; therefore, the consumption of foods with thallium content of approximately 0.08 mg/kg has the potential for harmful bioaccumulation in the body. Thallium contamination in cereal products should be a critical parameter for health environmental regulations.

Numerical simulation and interpretation of the grain size effect on rock strength

Although the grain size effect on rock’s physical–mechanical properties has been widely studied, little attention has been paid to the reasons for this phenomenon. In this paper, an attempt is made to interpret the effect of grain size on uniaxial compressive strength (UCS) from the point of view of mechanics. Based on the microscopic images of rock with different mineral grain size, actual mineral types and grain sizes were identified and characterized using digital image processing techniques and microstructure analysis. By mapping this real rock microstructure into a well-established rock failure process analysis code, numerical specimens were built to model the grain size effect on the UCS. The results showed that considering only mineral type and grain size, the numerical method can reveal the grain size effect on UCS. Further, an ideal conceptual model is proposed to clearly interpret and discuss the grain size effect on strength. It was found that grain size results in different stress concentrations within rock. Under identical loading conditions, the bigger the grain size is, the stronger the stress concentration is. This different mechanical response can eventually affects the UCS of the rock, resulting in the grain size effect on rock strength. Moreover, fractal geometry is also introduced to quantify rock microstructure with different grain sizes. The results show that there exists a good relationship between the fractal dimension and the grain size, which can describe the grain size effect on rock strength both quantitatively and effectively.

Reducing vulnerability of rainfed agriculture through seasonal climate predictions: A case study on the rainfed rice production in Southeast Asia

Rainfed rice production needs to contribute more to the current and future world food security due to the increasing competition for limited water supplies including irrigation water. However, it is vulnerable to climate variabilities and extremes hence the utilization of climate predictions is crucial. In this study, the predictive accuracy and applicability of a seasonal climate predictions (SINTEX-F) were evaluated for rainfed rice areas where climate uncertainties are main constraints for a stable and high production. Outputs from SINTEX-F such as daily rainfall, maximum and minimum air temperatures, and wind speed were tested for Indonesia and Lao PDR through the cumulative distribution function-based downscaling method (CDFDM), which is a simple, flexible and inexpensive bias reduction method through removing bias from the empirical cumulative distribution functions of the GCM outputs. The CDFDM outputs were compared with historical weather data. Obtained results showed that discrepancies between SINTEX-F and the historical weather data were significantly reduced through CDFDM for both sites. ORYZA, an ecophysiological rice growth model that simulate agroecological rice growth processes, was used to evaluate the applicability of the SINTEX-F for grain yield predictions. Obtained results from on-farm field validation showed that the predicted grain yield was close to the actual grain yield that was obtained through optimum sowing timing given by the predictions. A normalized root mean square error between predicted and actual grain yield showed satisfactory model fit in predictions. This implies that SINTEX-F was applicable for improving rainfed rice production through CDFDM. However, CDFDM has a limitation in orographic precipitation, the high-resolution daily weather data or a sophisticated special interpolation method should be considered in order to improve the representation of the geographical pattern for the parameters derived from CDFDM.

Evaluation of the CropSyst Model during Wheat-Maize Rotations on the North China Plain for Identifying Soil Evaporation Losses.

The North China Plain (NCP) is a major grain production zone that plays a critical role in ensuring China's food supply. Irrigation is commonly used during grain production; however, the high annual water deficit [precipitation (P) minus evapotranspiration (ET)] in typical irrigated cropland does not support double cropping systems (such as maize and wheat) and this has resulted in the steep decline in the water table (~0.8 m year−1 at the Luancheng station) that has taken place since the 1970s. The current study aimed to adapt and check the ability of the CropSyst model (Suite-4) to simulate actual evapotranspiration (ETa), biomass, and grain yield, and to identify major evaporation (E) losses from winter wheat (WW) and summer maize (SM) rotations. Field experiments were conducted at the Luancheng Agro-ecosystem station, NCP, in 2010–2011 to 2012–2013. The CropSyst model was calibrated on wheat/maize (from weekly leaf area/biomass data available for 2012–2013) and validated onto measured ETa, biomass, and grain yield at the experimental station from 2010–2011 to 2011–2012, by using model calibration parameters. The revalidation was performed with the ETa, biomass, grain yield, and simulated ETa partition for 2008–2009 WW [ETa partition was measured by the Micro-lysimeter (MLM) and isotopes approach available for this year]. For the WW crop, E was 30% of total ETa; but from 2010–11 to 2013, the annual average E was ~40% of ETa for the WW and SM rotation. Furthermore, the WW and SM rotation from 2010–2011 to 2012–2013 was divided into three growth periods; (i) pre-sowing irrigation (PSI; sowing at field capacity) to emergence period (EP), (ii) EP to canopy cover period (CC) and (iii) CC to harvesting period (HP), and E from each growth period was ~10, 60, and 30%, respectively. In general, error statistics such as RMSE, Willmott's d, and NRMSE in the model evaluation for wheat ETa (maize ETa) were 38.3 mm, 0.81, and 9.24% (31.74 mm, 0.73, and 11.89%); for wheat biomass (maize biomass) they were 1.25 Mg ha−1, 0.83, and 9.64% (0.78 Mg ha−1, 0.96, and 7.96%); and for wheat grain yield (maize grain yield) they were 0.65 Mg ha−1, 0.82, and 9.87% (0.2 Mg ha−1, 0.99, and 3.79%). The results showed that CropSyst is a valid model that can be use with a reliable degree of accuracy for optimizing WW and SM grain yield production and water requirement on the NCP.

Proportional distribution method for estimating actual grain flow under combine harvester dynamics

The yield monitors use a constant delay time to match the grain flow with location. Therefore, mixing and smoothing effects on the grain flow are neglected. Although constant time delay compensates for time mismatch, actual grain flow at a combine harvester head is not equal to the grain flow measured by a sensor due to the dynamics effects. In order to eliminate the dynamics effects, a new method for estimating actual grain flow, called proportional distribution (PD), is proposed. This method assumes that actual grain flow is directly proportional to the feedrate. Based on this assumption, the actual grain flow results from redistributing accumulated grain mass over a certain time according to the profile of the feedrate. The PD can avoid the dynamics effects because the feedrate is measured at a combine harvester’s head. Compared with constant time delay, the proposed method can effectively estimate actual grain flow and be applied to improve the accuracy of yield maps. Keywords: grain flow, combine harvester, estimation method, proportional distribution, time delay, yield map, yield monitoring sensor DOI: 10.25165/j.ijabe.20171004.2732 Citation: Wang H, Bai X P, Liang H B. Proportional distribution method for estimating actual grain flow under combine harvester dynamics. Int J Agric & Biol Eng, 2017; 10(4): 158–164.

A Three-Dimensional Cellular Automata Model Coupling Energy and Curvature-Driven Mechanisms for Austenitic Grain Growth

A 3D cellular automata model is used to simulate normal austenitic grain growth in this study. The proposed model considers both the curvature- and thermodynamics-driven mechanisms of growth. The 3D grain growth kinetics shows good agreement with the Beck equation. Moreover, the growth exponent and grain size distribution calculated by the proposed model coincides well with experimental and simulation results from other researchers. A linear relationship is found between the average relative grain size and the grain face number. More specifically, for average relative grain sizes exceeding ~0.5, the number of faces increases linearly with relative grain size. For average relative grain sizes <0.5, this relationship is changed. Results simulated by the proposed model are translated to physical meaning by adjusting the actual temperature, space, and time for austenitic grain growth. The calibrated results are found to be in agreement with the simulation results from other research as well as the experimental results. By means of calibration of the proposed model, we can reliably predict the grain size in actual grain growth.

Adapatation of Sowing Date for Improving Sorghum Yield in Rainfed Areas in Sudan Using AQUACROP Model

Due to the rapid growth in world population, the pressure on water resources to feed the growing population is increasing. The Nile water share of Sudan is almost exploited; and agricultural production by rained water is threatened by the pressure of climate change. It is inevitable that the production per unit water consumed, the water productivity, must be increased to meet this challenge. This research therefore focuses on the benchmarking of physical water productivity in rain fed areas and gaining a better understanding of the temporal and spatial variations and the scope for possible improvement. A review of the available records and sources that provide measurements of crop-water productivity was consulted to assess plausible ranges of water productivity levels for rain fed Sorghum crop and to provide a first explanation for the differences that are found using AQUACROP model. As such this study may be considered as crucial step was to establish a water productivity database for the rain fed sorghum crop in the country. Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench) which is the most important cereal crop in Sudan has been constrained by the detrimental effect of drought which has often caused food shortages. Almost 90% of the total sorghum cropped area is rain-fed, and 60% of that is in drought prone soil conditions. Spatial information on water use, crop production and water productivity will play a vital role for water managers to assess where scarce water resources are wasted and where in a given region the water productivity can be improved. Hence, a methodology has been developed in this study to quantify spatial variation of crop yield, evapotranspiration and water productivity using the AQUACROP model in five stations. The AQUACROP model is used to investigate optimum sowing date that result in maximization of grain yield.Benchmarking of rain fed Sorghum actual and potential grain efficiency in different agro-climate zones was made for the year 1979 to 2013. AQUACROP model was applied at five locations (Gedaref, Damazin, Dalang, El Fashir, and El Obyied) each representing an agro-climate zone. Causes of poor yield performance were investigated and consequently measures needed to improve performance were identified. The study indicates that increase in sorghum yields under historical climate conditions in the different studied stations is possible when early sowing is used and initial rain showers are utilized, yield decrease by 43% when sowing date is delayed from July 15 (the recommended date) to August 1. Stations with high rain fall (Damazin, Gadaref and Dalang) show little variations in inter-annual yields but with a tendency towards high yields, 3536, 3741, 3737 kg/fed for the above stations respectively compared to 2266 and 1086 kg/fed for El Obyied and El Fashir respectively at 15 June. The obtained WUE is lower in the driest regions (El Fashir, and El Obyied) and higher for those of high rain fall. To aid decision makers and crop growers in rain fed areas a set of recommendations for policy making and for future research were identified.

Pengaruh kecepatan udara dan massa gabah terhadap kecepatan pengeringan gabah menggunakan pengering terfluidisasi

Grain processing does not meet the actual grain harvests. This is due to the unsuitable drying process. Milling grain entrepreneurs and farmers in Indonesia are currently conducting a drying process under the sun. Based on the National Standards Body (BSN), grain moisture content must be at 14% to maintain the grain at high qualities. The purpose of this study is to determine the effect of velocity and grain mass variations on drying times. The grain used in this study contains an initial moisture content of 22% ± 0.5%. The grain is dried by inserting it into the drying chamber and varying the air velocities and grain mass. The air velocities used are 4 m/s, 5 m/s, 6 m/s and the variations of the grain mass are 1 kg 2 kg and 3 kg. The results show that increasing the air velocity decreases the drying time. On the other hand, when the grain mass is increased, the drying time elevates. The air velocity and mass of the grain that results in the fastest drying time are 6 m/s and 2 kg. The time required for achieving the water content of 13.6% is 30 menit. At the air velocity of 4 m/s, and the grain masses of 1 kg, 2 kg, and 3 kg, to achieve moisture contents of 13.4%, 13.5% and 13.4% the drying time needs 50 minutes.

Relationship between spectral vegetation indices and crop parameters of maize under nitrogen and water stress

Field experiments were conducted at the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamilnadu, India during kharif and rabi season of 2014 with maize crop (TNAU maize hybrid Co 6). To ensure the stressed environment, the crop was subjected to two irrigation levels (IW/CPE: 0.80 and 0.50) and five staggered nitrogen levels (0, 50, 75, 100 and 125 per cent of recommended dose of nitrogen (RDN). The experiment was laid out in randomized blocks design RBD (Factorial) with three replications. A higher value of spectral vegetation indices viz., NDVI, GNDVI, RVI, LCI, IR-RED and SR were recorded with irrigation at IW/CPE ratio 0.80 either with 100 or 125 per cent RDN (unstressed) applied to maize crop. Maize under stressed environment recorded reduced values of spectral vegetation indices when the crop was irrigated at 0.50 IW/CPE ratio with no nitrogen. All the spectral vegetation indices expressedpositive correlation (highly significant at 1 per cent probability level) with crop parameters. The overall best fit was linear with a regression coefficient between vegetation indices (GNDVI, NDVI) and with crop parameters, and actual grain yield and predicted yield (0.81 to 0.85) of maize. The ability of spectral vegetation indices to quantify the combined effect of nitrogen and water stress on maize too early through remote sensing paves the way for large scale application of satellite remote sensing.

The importance of an oral digestion step in evaluating simulated in vitro digestibility of starch from cooked rice grain

To examine the effect of oral digestion step in a simulated in vitro starch digestion model, the digestibility of intact, homogenized and actual chewed cooked rice grains was investigated and analyzed. The kinetics of starch digestibility were calculated from changes in the hydrolysis percent of starch that were achieved during simulated small intestinal digestion stage. Morphological and histological microscopic tissue structures were also examined. Compared with the trend of starch hydrolysis changes of the actual chewed grain, 1.3U/ml of salivary α-amylase concentration treated for 60min was regarded as a mimicked condition to the simulate in vitro oral digestion step in this study. The results showed that the equilibrium percent of starch hydrolysis for all of the samples ranged from 84.2% to 95.9% with no significant differences observed regardless of whether the oral digestion step was included (p>0.05). In contrast, the kinetic constant, which is one of the measure of starch digestion rate during small intestinal stage, significantly increased with the degree of grain homogenization increased: 120s>actual chewed ≥1s>intact, for both the gastrointestinal and oral plus gastrointestinal processes. These results indicated that the kinetic constant was influenced by the change of cooked rice grain structure in oral digestion step that would be related to increase in enzyme accessibility to rice starch. Thus, rice grain digestibility was affected by grain-scale structural changes, including grain tissue damages which were normally observed during the oral digestion step.

Proportional distribution method for estimating actual grain flow under combine harvester dynamics

The yield monitors use a constant delay time to match the grain flow with location. Therefore, mixing and smoothing effects on the grain flow are neglected. Although constant time delay compensates for time mismatch, actual grain flow at a combine harvester head is not equal to the grain flow measured by a sensor due to the dynamics effects. In order to eliminate the dynamics effects, a new method for estimating actual grain flow, called proportional distribution (PD), is proposed. This method assumes that actual grain flow is directly proportional to the feedrate. Based on this assumption, the actual grain flow results from redistributing accumulated grain mass over a certain time according to the profile of the feedrate. The PD can avoid the dynamics effects because the feedrate is measured at a combine harvester’s head. Compared with constant time delay, the proposed method can effectively estimate actual grain flow and be applied to improve the accuracy of yield maps. Keywords: grain flow, combine harvester, estimation method, proportional distribution, time delay, yield map, yield monitoring sensor DOI: 10.25165/j.ijabe.20171004.2732 Citation: Wang H, Bai X P, Liang H B. Proportional distribution method for estimating actual grain flow under combine harvester dynamics. Int J Agric & Biol Eng, 2017; 10(4): 158–164.

Evaluation and analysis of internal flow field uniformity in grain stack based on multi zone model of porous media

Mechanical ventilation technology is widely used in storage, and ventilation uniformity is an important indicator to measure the effect of internal mechanical ventilation in the granary. Based on the actual experimental data of the storage grain stack mechanical ventilation, using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) technology numerical simulations were carried out to obtain the distribution of grain pile internal air flow field and pressure field of 3D real time with the fluid flow in porous media. The results show that the simulation model is better to simulate the distribution of flow field and pressure field in the storage grain stack mechanical ventilation. The study results can provide reference for the further application of CFD technology in grain storage ventilation system, and has certain guiding significance to the actual grain storage ventilation system optimization.

Laboratory measurements of light polarization on samples targeted for the lunar regolith

We carried out multi-band (B, V, and R bands) polarimetric measurements of several soil samples targeted for the lunar regolith (JSC-1A, Fe2O3, SiC, and JSC-1Mars). Our laboratory experiments are intended to provide some constraints to the theoretical and numerical studies of the light scattering off the particulate surface of airless bodies in the solar system. Among our samples, the lunar soil simulant JSC-1A has the closest αmax to the typically observed value on the lunar surface, ∼100°, where αmax is the phase angle at which the polarization has the maximum value. In the other samples, αmax is higher than 120° or significantly wavelength dependent. The empirical relationship between the grain size, maximum polarization and albedo for the lunar regolith overestimates the actual grain sizes of some of our samples by a factor of up to ∼6. The measured polarization degrees and albedos of the JSC-1A sample are similar to the typical observed values of the lunar maria. We also find that the wavelength dependence of both polarization degree and albedo is larger for smaller-grain samples.

Snow Depth Retrieval Based on a Multifrequency Dual-Polarized Passive Microwave Unmixing Method From Mixed Forest Observations

Due to their low spatial resolution (≥ 10 km), passive microwave data from satellites often contain many mixed pixels. This is one of the main reasons that the retrieval accuracy of snow depth data is unsatisfactory for current practical demands. This paper proposes a multifrequency dual-polarized passive microwave unmixing method for snow. The land cover type of the observation area is partitioned into broadleaf forest, needleleaf forest, annual grass vegetation, and urban types. The component brightness temperature (CBT) of each land cover type, that is, unmixed data, with a 500-m data resolution, is obtained using the proposed unmixing method. Considering that the actual snow grain size was larger than 0.4 mm in the study area, Foster's snow depth retrieval algorithm, which refines the empirical coefficient, is employed in this paper. Compared with Chang's snow depth retrieval algorithm, the overall accuracy of snow depth data improved by approximately 29.2% using Foster's algorithm. Based on Foster's algorithm, the obtained results indicate that the overall accuracy of the snow depth data improved by approximately 22.9% when using the CBT compared with the original mixed-pixel method. The accuracy of snow depth data in annual grass vegetation is improved by approximately 38%, whereas those in needleleaf forest and broadleaf forest are improved by approximately 4.6% and 4.3%, respectively. The experimental results demonstrate that the CBT effectively improves the retrieval accuracy of snow depth data when compared with the case of using only the mixed-pixel method.

A lattice discrete particle model for pressure-dependent inelasticity in granular rocks

This paper details the formulation, calibration, and validation of a Lattice Discrete Particle Model (LDPM) for the simulation of the pressure-dependent inelastic response of granular rocks. LDPM is formulated in the framework of discrete mechanics and it simulates the heterogeneous deformation of cemented granular systems by means of discrete compatibility/equilibrium equations defined at the grain scale. A numerical strategy is proposed to generate a realistic microstructure based on the actual grain size distribution of a sandstone and the capabilities of the method are illustrated with reference to the particular case of Bleurswiller sandstone, i.e. a granular rock that has been extensively studied at the laboratory scale. LDPM micromechanical parameters are calibrated based on evidences from triaxial experiments, such as hydrostatic compression, brittle failure at low confinement and plastic behavior at high confinement. The results show that LDPM allows exploring the effect of fine-scale heterogeneity on the inelastic response of rock cores, achieving excellent quantitative performance across a wide range of stress conditions. In addition, LDPM simulations demonstrate its capability of capturing different modes of strain localization within a unified mechanical framework, which makes this approach applicable for a wide variety of geomechanical settings. Such promising performance suggests that LDPM may constitute a viable alternative to existing discrete numerical methods for granular rocks, as well as a versatile tool for the interpretation of their complex deformation/failure patterns and for the development of continuum models capturing the effect of micro-scale heterogeneity.

3D Crystal Plasticity Finite Element Modeling of the Tensile Deformation of Polycrystalline Ferritic Stainless Steel

A mesoscale model of plastic deformation of ferritic stainless steels (FSSs) is formulated by combining a crystal plasticity finite element model with 3D cellular automaton algorithm. The actual grain orientations of FSS cold rolling and annealing sheet have been detected by electron backscatter diffraction and selected to be assigned to the polycrystal model. The simulation results have been validated by comparing the calculated true stress–strain response with the experimental one. For the lack of considering the interactions of dislocations with impurities, there are no upper and lower yield points in the simulation stress–strain curves. However, the calculated yield strength and the stress–strain response after yielding agree well with the real material. The local stress and strain fields show inhomogeneous at mesoscale. The plastic deformations of the grains with typical orientations have been characterized. The analysis reveals that the grains with α fiber texture show higher thickness reduction ratio as compared to others. The deformation behaviors of the grains in polycrystal are not only related to the orientations but also to the interactions from adjacent grains.

The relationship between the wheat plants at different tap organozenesis and phytophagous, their harmfulness

The basic types of herbivores wheat groups on their affinity to damage of the plants and their impact on the formative processes. It is shown that the constant pressure on the formative processes, inhibition of plant growth and development adversely affects the productivity and quality of grain.&#x0D; Calculated in terms of population of crops of pests, taking into account existing EPSH potential losses from individual groups of herbivores that exceed 5%. Showing actual average loss grain cereals from pests, which is 12.7%, which is evidence of the need to strengthen protective measures and reduce the actual loss to the level of &lt;5%.

Visualization of Grain Structure and Boundaries of Polycrystalline Graphene and Two-Dimensional Materials by Epitaxial Growth of Transition Metal Dichalcogenides.

The presence of grain boundaries in two-dimensional (2D) materials is known to greatly affect their physical, electrical, and chemical properties. Given the difficulty in growing perfect large single-crystals of 2D materials, revealing the presence and characteristics of grain boundaries becomes an important issue for practical applications. Here, we present a method to visualize the grain structure and boundaries of 2D materials by epitaxially growing transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs) over them. Triangular single-crystals of molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) epitaxially grown on the surface of graphene allowed us to determine the orientation and size of the graphene grains. Grain boundaries in the polycrystalline graphene were also visualized reflecting their higher chemical reactivity than the basal plane. The method was successfully applied to graphene field-effect transistors, revealing the actual grain structures of the graphene channels. Moreover, we demonstrate that this method can be extended to determine the grain structure of other 2D materials, such as tungsten disulfide (WS2). Our visualization method based on van der Waals epitaxy can offer a facile and large-scale labeling technique to investigate the grain structures of various 2D materials, and it will also contribute to understand the relationship between their grain structure and physical properties.

Grain shape as a factor governing the parameters of diamond electroplated coating of dressing tools. Part 2. Actual grain–graphite form contact area and related characteristics as input data for calculating the conditions of diamond electroplated coating application by electroforming method

The paper gives experimental data on the actual contact area between grains and the graphite form used in the process of deposition of a diamond coating onto a dressing tool by the electroforming method. Also, the authors provide the results of determination of the maximum section of diamond grains in the powders of different grain sizes, the specific number of grains on the surface and their orientation—the data needed for the calculation of the free surface area of nickel being deposited, and thus the deposition rate and time as well as the final thickness of the diamond electroplated coating.

Maize Water Productivity and Its Relationship to Soil Properties under Integrated Cattle Manure and Mineral‐Nitrogen Fertilizer in a Smallholder Cropping System

Crop water productivity is often regarded as indicating the water use efficiency of crops, an important aspect, particularly under erratic rainfall conditions. This study investigated the effects of cattle manure and mineral‐N fertilizer application on maize (Zea mays L.) water productivity (MWP) on clay and sandy soils in a smallholder farming area of Zimbabwe. Four fields previously exhibiting heterogeneous fertility were managed under the following treatments: control (no amendment) and cattle manure (5, 15, and 25 Mg ha−1) + 100 kg ha−1 mineral‐N fertilizer for 7 yr. Thereafter, the effects of fertility treatment on MWP were expressed as actual maize grain yield produced per unit of seasonal transpiration modeled using AquaCrop. Furthermore, the relationship of MWP to physical soil properties was determined using principal component analysis. The MWP significantly (P &lt; 0.05) improved with an increase in cattle manure plus mineral‐N fertilizer application over control on both soils ranging between 0.5 and 1.7 kg m−3 and between 0.24 and 1.1 kg m−3 on clay and sandy soils, respectively. The MWP was significantly correlated (P &lt; 0.05) with the steady‐state infiltration rate on the clay soil and with soil organic C on the sandy soil. We concluded that cattle manure and mineral‐N fertilizer application is key to MWP improvement in rainfed smallholder cropping systems and is closely coupled with improvements in physical soil properties on clay soil than sandy soil. Therefore, the observations attest to the importance of site‐specific management that could contribute to efficient resource use in resource‐constrained farming areas.