Abstract
The effects of four continuous tillage regimes; mouldboard ploughing, tine-tillage, shallow tine-tillage, no-tillage; and three tillage rotations (involving shallow tine-tillage once every two, three, and four years in rotation with no-tillage), and two rates of synthetic agrochemicals (standard: with regular application of synthetic agrochemicals; and reduced: fewer synthetic agrochemicals in combination with biostimulants) on wheat and canola yield and quality were investigated between 2018 and 2020 under typical Mediterranean climatic conditions in South Africa. It was hypothesised that a combination of tillage rotations and the application of reduced synthetic agrochemicals will improve crop yield and quality relative to mouldboard ploughing or no-tillage. Results showed that a combination of reduced application of synthetic agrochemicals and tillage rotation practices maintained but did not significantly increase crop
yield and quality, relative to no-tillage and mouldboard ploughing. Results also showed that intensive ploughing is unnecessary as it did not significantly increase yields (p>0.05). In addition, it is possible to reduce the quantity of synthetic agrochemicals applied by partially replacing them with biostimulants without significant changes in grain or seed yields and quality. We, therefore, suggest that producers opt for biostimulants in combination with no-tillage or tillage rotation as a sustainable way of farming.
yield and quality, relative to no-tillage and mouldboard ploughing. Results also showed that intensive ploughing is unnecessary as it did not significantly increase yields (p>0.05). In addition, it is possible to reduce the quantity of synthetic agrochemicals applied by partially replacing them with biostimulants without significant changes in grain or seed yields and quality. We, therefore, suggest that producers opt for biostimulants in combination with no-tillage or tillage rotation as a sustainable way of farming.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | 2352958 |
| Number of pages | 12 |
| Journal | Cogent Food & Agriculture |
| Volume | 10 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| Early online date | 15 May 2024 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 2024 |
Bibliographical note
© 2024 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis GroupThis is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. The terms on which this article has been published allow the posting of the Accepted Manuscript in a repository by the author(s) or with their consent
Funder
The Western Cape Department of Agriculture, Coventry University and Stellenbosch University are acknowledged for funding the long-term trials within which this study was conducted.Funding
The Western Cape Department of Agriculture, Coventry University and Stellenbosch University are acknowledged for funding the long-term trials within which this study was conducted. The authors thank the Western Cape Agricultural Research Trust for providing the research bursary and the Western Cape Department of Agriculture staff for their work in maintaining these trials and assisting with data collection. They also thank Real IPM for their technical support and for supplying the biostimulants.
| Funders | Funder number |
|---|---|
| Western Cape Government Department of Agriculture | |
| Coventry University | |
| Stellenbosch University | |
| Western Cape Agricultural Research Trust |
Keywords
- Agriculture & Environmental Sciences
- Biostimulant
- Environmental Issues
- Environmental Management
- Sustainable Development
- Tejada Manuel, Universidad de Sevilla, Spain
- crop yield
- mouldboard plough
- no-tillage
- rotational tillage
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Food Science
- Agricultural and Biological Sciences (miscellaneous)