Is it true that lodging can be reduced by planting crops with zero till and raised bed planting systems?
It is generally observed that crops lodging are generally less in zero till and raised bed planted crops. In zero till system, plant seems to receive good mechanical support from undisturbed soil in the close vicinity of the narrow slits. Also, higher root biomass provides better anchorage to plants against lodging. In raised bed planting also improved the grain yields by significantly affecting the lodging score.
Zero tillage not only reduce the cost of cultivation it also reduces the soil erosion, crop duration and irrigation requirement and weed effect which is better than tillage. Zero Tillage (ZT) also called No Tillage or Nil Tillage.Less soil erosion from wind and water (because the mulch cover of previous crops covers the soil) less soil compaction. more fertile and resilient soils. less moisture evaporation.In zero till system, plant seems to receive good mechanical support from undisturbed soil in the close vicinity of the narrow slitsZero tillage refers to the arable land on which no tillage is applied between harvest and sowing. Zero tillage is a minimum tillage practice in which the crop is sown directly into soil not tilled since the harvest of the previous crop.No-till farming (also known as zero tillage or direct drilling) is an agricultural technique for growing crops or pasture without disturbing the soil through tillage. No-till farming decreases the amount of soil erosion tillage causes in certain soils, especially in sandy and dry soils on sloping terrain.Crops are grown from year to year with zero or minimum soil disturbance through tillage in this system. In Minimum tillage, soil disturbance is kept to minimum level. In Zero tillage or No-Till system, no soil disturbance is done season in season out.
Can a raised bed system reduce lodging?
Yes, somewhat but it will not be 100%.
I believe that weakness and disease of roots and stalks are major cause of lodging.
The major effect of raised bed is to avoid the super saturation of the seed bed which will lead to root disease.
Raised beds are particularly recommended in root sensitive vegetable crops which often are grown in sandy soils to prevent the waterlogged soil condition.
When raised beds are implemented in a permanent way the trafficking will eliminate much of the issues with generalized soil compaction as the compaction is restricted to a permanent traffics way.
The issues of lodging are often overcome by optimizing potassium fertilization which increases the stalk strength and root systems.
The use of dwarf varieties are able to prevent many of lodging issues and are widely used in intensive system which optimize growth using intense fertilization.
the experance of farming practice and our previous work, the no till or reduced till has much lower lodging rate than normal planting method in Northeast China.
It has an indirect effect in ameliorating lodging (for example, raised beds remain dry and hence dried plants remain more intact, in addition a raised bed is less prone to root diseases which are supporting organs of crops). However, biologically, the major effect comes from the phenological character of the plants. For example in wheat, a recent report (A mechanistic view on lodging resistance in rye and wheat: a multiscale comparative study, Article A mechanistic view on lodging resistance in rye and wheat: a...
) concluded that lodging resistant plants have specific arrangements of vascular tissues. Similarly, biological basis of lodging resistance can be sought in other crop plants such as cotton/rice etc.
It is generally observed that crops lodging are generally less in zero till and raised bed planted crops in northeast China.So, the conservationa tillage such as no till or strip till has been widely accepted by most farmer, currently.
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