• Authors:
    • Zieminska-Smyk,M.
  • Source: Annales Universitatis Mariae Curie-Skodowska. Sectio E, Agricultura
  • Volume: 63
  • Issue: 3
  • Year: 2008
  • Summary: The characteristics of weeding in cereals were based on 68 phytosociological releves taken from ploughlands of traditional management. The main crops there were: rye, winter wheat, spring wheat, mixture of oat and barley, oat and triticale. Most of the records were taken from winter wheat (30). Cereal was the main crop of the area in Skierbieszowki Landscape Park. 26 samples were taken from spring cereals and 42 samples from winter cereal. Segetal weeds communities of the winter cereals were richer than spring cereals when the number of species is considered, which is shown with an average number of weed species in one single sample: 20.3 species in winter cereals and 17.7 species in spring cereals. Weed coverage varied from 20% to 70% but only occasionally reached 70%. Cereals fields were not very weeded because of good fertilization and crop protection chemicals. Most of the weeds in spring and winter cereals were short-lived rather than perennial, which can be a result of progress rhythm in arable crops. Spring cereals were less weeded than winter cereals. It can be noticed by covering coefficient which were 7.500 in spring cereals and 9.600 in winter cereals.
  • Authors:
    • Rossi, R.
    • Harsh, J.
    • Huggins, D.
    • Koenig, R.
    • Brown, T.
  • Source: Soil Science Society of America Journal
  • Volume: 72
  • Issue: 3
  • Year: 2008
  • Summary: Soil acidification threatens dryland crop production in the inland Pacific Northwest. Our objective was to assess the efficacy of lime to lower soil acidity, alter Al chemistry, and increase crop yield in a direct-sown system in Washington, USA. Treatments of subsurface banded fertilizer (120-168 kg N ha -1 year -1) alone or with subsurface banded lime (224 kg ha -1 year -1), or a one-time broadcast application of lime (7000 kg ha -1) or elemental S (1000 kg ha -1) were initiated in spring 2002. Grain yield was measured annually from 2002 to 2005 in a spring barley ( Hordeum vulgare)-spring wheat ( Triticum aestivum)-winter wheat rotation. Soil was sampled in spring 2004 to assess pH and model Al speciation. Low pH was evident at the depth of fertilizer placement (5-10 cm). Broadcast lime increased pH in the surface 15 cm, although reductions in Al 3+ activity ((Al 3+)) occurred only in the 0- to 5-cm layer. Relative to banded N, there was no increase in pH at the 5- to 10-cm depth where banded lime was placed. At the 0- to 5-cm depth, lower pHs were observed with broadcast S (4.6) compared with the banded N control (5.1) or banded lime (5.0). There was no effect of treatment on yield. Modelling suggests that soluble Al is dominated by organic matter-Al complexes (fulvic acid, FA; FA 2Al + and FA 2AlOH 0). Solid- and solution-phase organic complexes may control (Al 3+) at pH
  • Authors:
    • Rhinhart, K.
    • Kling, J.
    • Hayes, P.
    • Corey, A.
    • Budde, A.
    • Petrie, S.
    • Castro, A.
  • Source: Crop Management
  • Issue: November
  • Year: 2008
  • Summary: Winter malting barley ( Hordeum vulgare L.) is a potential alternative crop for the dryland region of the Pacific Northwest. Nitrogen fertilization can increase grain yield but may also increase lodging and grain protein and reduce test weight. The objectives of this research were to determine the effect of N application rate and timing on grain yield and quality of winter feed and malting barley varieties. Field trials were conducted at Pendleton, OR (17 inches annual precipitation) and Moro, OR (12 inches annual precipitation). Nitrogen was applied at 0, 50, 100, or 150 lb N per acre in the fall and at 0 or 50 lb N per acre in the spring at Pendleton and at 0, 30, 60, or 90 lb N per acre in the fall and at 0 or 30 lb N per acre in the spring at Moro. Nitrogen fertilization increased grain yields at Pendleton to a maximum of 5,800 lb/acre in 2001 and 5,200 lb/acre in 2002 and at Moro to a maximum of 3,000 lb/acre. Nitrogen fertilization increased grain protein and reduced test weights. Yields of the advanced lines of malting barley were about 90% of the yields of feed type barley varieties. Spring N applications did not increase grain yield or protein more than fall N applications.
  • Authors:
    • Miller, P. S.
    • Karthikeyan, K. G.
    • Panuska, J. C.
  • Source: Geoderma
  • Volume: 145
  • Issue: 3-4
  • Year: 2008
  • Summary: The impact of field surface conditions and erosion processes on runoff volume, soil loss and sediment particle size during the rainfall runoff period was investigated. Results are reported for multiple events and from within individual events (intra-event) for sites with different corn (Zea mays L.) management systems (i.e., grain (CG), silage (CS), and silage-manure (CSM)). The multi-event bulk runoff volume and soil loss for CG were less than that for CS and CSM due to higher residue levels increasing surface roughness, ponding and infiltration. The aggregate stability for CG treatment was greater than that for CS and CSM and aggregate size peaks were identified at 5.4, 32,160 and 570 pm. Size peaks at 32 and 570 pm had the highest combined frequency (64%). Intra-event continuous monitoring covered silage plots with crop-rows oriented up-and-down the slope (CS) and along the contour (CScont). The crop-row orientation significantly influenced both runoff and sediment loss (concentration, load, size-distribution) patterns. The runoff volume and sediment concentration for CS was twice that of CScont. While no treatment difference attributable to residue coverage was evident for particle-size dynamics, crop-row orientation had a significant effect with finer-sized particles exported from the contoured site. Surface sealing, more pronounced at the silage sites, occurred after the 1st major storm in a season for all monitoring periods, types, and treatments, and it significantly influenced runoff generation, sediment load, and size distribution characteristics. Under crusted conditions, a storm with slightly higher rainfall depth but significant lower erosive potential, generated 53% more runoff and twice as much sediment compared to an early-season event. During crust development finer particles dominated sediment composition, later shifting to larger particles due to rill erosion once a stable crust was established. These results are expected to improve our understanding and, hence, predictive capability for transport of particulate-bound contaminants from row-crop systems, especially under conditions promoting surface crust formation. (c) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
  • Authors:
    • Basnyat, P.
    • Huber, D.
    • Fernandez, M. R.
    • Zentner, R. P.
  • Source: Soil & Tillage Research
  • Volume: 100
  • Issue: 1-2
  • Year: 2008
  • Summary: Fusarium head blight (FHB) is an important disease which has been causing damage to wheat and barley crops in western Canada. Because crop residues are an important source of inoculum, it is important to know the ability of Fusarium spp. to colonize and survive in different residue types, and how their populations might be affected by agronomic practices. Sampling of residue types on producers' fields for quantification of Fusarium and other fungi was conducted in 2000-2001 in eastern Saskatchewan. Fusarium spp. were isolated from most fields, whereas their mean percentage isolation (MPI) was over 50% for cereal and pulse residues, and under 30% for oilseed residues. The most common Fusarium, F. avenaceum, had a higher MPI in pulse and flax (45-48%) than in cereal or canola (10-22%) residues. This was followed by F. equiseti, F. acuminatum, F. graminearum, F. culmorum and F. poae which were isolated from all, or most, residue types. Factors affecting Fusarium abundance in residues included the current crop, cropping history, and tillage system. In cereal residues, the MPI of F. avenaceum was higher when the current crop was another cereal (24%) versus a noncereal (4-8%). When the current crop was another cereal, the lowest MPI of F. avenaceum and F. culmorum occurred when the field had been in summerfallow (SF) two years previous (F. avenaceum: 17% for SF, 28% for a crop; F. culmorum: 1% for SF, 4% for a crop); in contrast, F. equiseti and Cochliobolus sativus were most common in residues of cereal crops preceded by SF (F. equiseti: 16% for SF, 10% for a crop; C. sativus: 22% for SF, 13% for a crop). The MPI of F graminearum was higher when the crop two years previous was an oilseed (7%) versus a cereal (4%). In regards to tillage effects, when the current crop was a cereal, the MPI of F. avenaceum was higher under minimum (MT) and zero tillage (ZT) (22-37%) than conventional tillage (CT) (15%), that of F. graminearum was lowest under ZT (3% for ZT, 7-11% for CT-MT), whereas that of C. sativus was highest under CT (27% for CT, 6-11% for MT-ZT). Under ZT, previous glyphosate applications were correlated positively with F. avenaceum and negatively with F. equiseti and C. sativus. These observations generally agreed with results from previous FHB and root rot studies of wheat and barley in the same region. Percentage isolation of F avenaceum from noncereal and of F. graminearum from cereal residues were positively correlated with FHB severity and percentage Fusarium-damaged kernels of barley and wheat caused by the same fungi. Crown Copyright (C) 2008 Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
  • Authors:
    • Blackshaw, R. E.
    • Johnson, E. N.
    • Beckie, H. J.
    • Gan, Y.
  • Source: Canadian Journal of Plant Science
  • Volume: 88
  • Issue: 2
  • Year: 2008
  • Summary: Competitive crops or cultivars can be an important component of integrated weed management systems. A study was conducted from 2003 to 2006 at four sites across semiarid prairie ecoregions in Saskatchewan and Alberta to investigate the productivity and quality of canola (Brassica napus L.) and mustard cultivars under weed competition. Four open-pollinated canola cultivars, four hybrid canola cultivars, two canola-quality mustard and two oriental mustard cultivars [Brassica juncea (L.) Czern. & Coss.], and two yellow mustard (Sinapis alba L.) cultivars were grown under weedy and weed-free conditions. When combined across site-years, crop aboveground biomass at maturity and seed yield were reduced by weed interference, except for yellow and oriental mustard. However, seed oil and protein content of cultivars were not affected by weed competition. Among crop types, yellow and oriental mustard were best able to maintain biomass and seed yield under weed interference, followed in decreasing order of competitiveness by hybrid and open-pollinated canola, then canola-quality mustard.
  • Authors:
    • Brenzil, C. A.
    • Hall, L. M.
    • Thomas, A. G.
    • Leeson,J. Y.
    • Beckie, H. J.
  • Source: Weed Technology
  • Volume: 22
  • Issue: 4
  • Year: 2008
  • Summary: Agricultural practices, other than herbicide use, can affect the rate of evolution of herbicide resistance in weeds. This study examined associations of farm management practices with the occurrence of herbicide (acetyl-CoA carboxylase or acetolactate synthase inhibitor)-resistant weeds, based upon a multi-year (2001 to 2003) random Survey of 370 fields/growers from the Canadian Prairies. Herbicide-resistant weeds Occurred in one-quarter of the surveyed fields. The primary herbicide-resistant weed species was wild oat, with lesser occurrence of green foxtail, kochia, common chickweed, spiny sowthistle, and redroot pigweed. The risk of weed resistance was greatest in fields with cereal-based rotations and least in fields with forage crops, fallow, or where three or more crop types were grown. Weed resistance risk also was greatest in conservation-tillage systems and particularly low soil disturbance no-tillage, possibly due to greater herbicide use or weed seed bank turnover. Large farms (> 400 ha) had a greater risk of weed resistance than smaller farms, although the reason for this association Was unclear. The results of this study identify cropping system diversity as the foundation of proactive weed resistance management.
  • Authors:
    • Dimitrova, T.
  • Source: Herbologia
  • Volume: 8
  • Issue: 1
  • Year: 2007
  • Summary: Field experiments were conducted in Pleven, Bulgaria, from 2003 to 2005, on slightly leached chernozem and a natural background of weed infestation, to determine the effect of weeds and their control by using the herbicide imazamox alone or combined with an adjuvant (Desh) and with oat as a cover crop, on the grain productivity of spring forage pea. It was found that at a high weed infestation degree and under the conditions of the study, the reduction of spring forage pea yield reached approximately 33%, imazamox 40 a.i./litre at 24 ml a.i./ha + 500 ml Desh/ha could be applied to spring forage pea at the 3-5 leaf stage to control the annual mono- and dicotyledonous weeds. The treatment with the herbicide at the mentioned rate resulted in a decrease of weed infestation degree by 96% and an increase of grain yield by 43% (on average for a 3-year period). Oat, sown as a cover crop for pea, decreased the weed infestation degree by 55% and the grain yield was 17% higher than that from the pure untreated stand.
  • Authors:
    • Puzynski, S.
    • Wrzesinska, E.
    • Dzienia, S.
  • Source: Folia Universitatis Agriculturae Stetinensis
  • Volume: 255
  • Issue: 2
  • Year: 2007
  • Summary: Drawski Landscape Park is located in the centre of Drawskie Lake District in the Zachodniopomorskie Voivodship, Poland. The park covers 41 430 ha with 10.5% of lakes belonging to the following communes: Barwice, Borne Sulinowo, Czaplinek, Ostrowice, Poczyn Zdroj and Zocieniec. The condition for agricultural production in these communes are mostly medium-favourable. Soils have predominately medium as well as poor and very poor properties. The land use in administrative boundaries of the communes is varied, the lowest share of agricultural area at 19.6% is in Borne Sulinowo commune whereas the highest at 50.2% is in Barwice. In agricultural land use structure, the share of arable land among communes ranged from 82.4% in Borne Sulinowo to 88.3% in Czaplinek, and grasslands from 11.6% in Czaplinek, to 17.5% in Borne Sulinowo. Relatively high share of afforestated areas (30.0-57.3%), as well as low population density (17-81 persons per km 2), favours development of tourism in these communes. Small farms (with less than 5 ha of agricultural land) are dominant and they operate on poor soils which causes problems. Areas sown with cereals have been recorded at 76.7-89.3%, potatoes at 1.6 to 6.8%, industrial crops at 2.8 to 12.1% and fodder crops at 0.4 to 8.7%. The major crops among cereals are rye- 24.1 to 49.2% and wheat- 17.7 to 35.2%. The biggest share (26.4%) of oat among cereals is in Barwice commune. The share of potato is in the range of 1.6-6.8%, whereas oilseed rape and agrimony is planted on 2.8 to 12.1% of sown area. The number of livestock unit per 100 ha of agricultural area is very low (12.0-29.0 LU), which do not provide the required amount of manure.
  • Authors:
    • Menzies, J. G.
    • Haber, S. M.
    • Fetch, T. G.,Jr.
    • Chong, J.
    • Brown, P. D.
    • Duguid, S. D.
    • Fetch, J. W. M.
    • Ames, N.
    • Noll, J.
    • Aung, T.
    • Stadnyk, K. D.
  • Source: Canadian Journal of Plane Science
  • Volume: 87
  • Issue: 3
  • Year: 2007
  • Summary: Leggett is the first oat ( Avena sativa L.) cultivar released in western Canada carrying the crown rust resistance gene Pc94. Leggett carries the crown rust resistance combination Pc68 and Pc94, which provides good resistance to the crown rust populations currently present on the eastern Canadian Prairies. As a result of the presence of Pc94 providing resistance to oat crown rust, this line should exhibit excellent yield stability in the rust-prone regions of the prairies. Leggett has very good resistance to loose and covered smut, resistance to the prevalent races of oat stem rust other than NA67, but poor tolerance to barley yellow dwarf virus (BYDV). Leggett has kernel characteristics suited to milling end uses, with high test weight and 1000-kernel weight and high percent plump kernels. The beta-glucan content of Leggett is equal to or higher than that of the checks, making it a desirable milling quality cultivar.