Hundal, S.S. and De Datta, S.K. (1984) Water table and tillage effects on root distribution, soil water extraction, and yield of sorghum grown after wetland rice in a tropical soil. Field Crops Research, 9. pp. 291-303.
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Abstract
An increase in cropping intensity by introducing a dryland crop after rice can increase food production in many rainfed rice growing areas of Asia. However, seedbed preparation, crop establishment, and stored soil water availability are critical to successful production of dryland crops in a soil previously puddled for wetland rice. Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench) was grown after wetland rice in a rice-based cropping system during the post-monsoon season in a clayey soil. No tillage and complete tillage were compared for their effects on soil moisture regime, root growth, and crop yield in the presence of declining water table levels in the range of 50 – 150 cm depth. Sorghum depleted up to 22 cm of water from the 0–90 cm root zone which exceeded the available water capacity of the soil (water released between 0.1 and 15 bar). Soil water depletion in the deep water table (125 ± 25 cm) treatment ranged from 17.4 to 21.9 cm of water and was nearly twice that from the shallow water table (75 ± 25 cm) treatment. Tillage treatments did not significantly affect soil water depletion, maximum depth of root penetration and depth distribution of roots. In the deep and shallow water table treatments roots penetrated to a maximum of 90 and 75 cm soil depths, respectively. Root length densities in the shallow water table treatment exceeded those in the deep water table treatment by 90 – 150% in the surface 30-cm soil depth. Early season seedling root extension in the previously puddled soil was faster in the tilled treatment and reached 30-cm depth 20 days after sowing compared to 10-cm depth in the no-tillage treatment. Tillage and water table treatments did not significantly affect grain and dry matter yield. This study indicates that sorghum may be successfully grown without tillage after wetland rice where soil water availability is not constrained by water table depth.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Author Affiliation: | International Rice Research Institute, P.O.Box 933, Manila (The Philippines) Present Address:Division of soils and agronomy, Central soil salinity Research Institute, Karnal-132001 (india) |
| Subjects: | Plant Protection Soil Science and Microbiology > Soil Sciences |
| Divisions: | Sorghum |
| Depositing User: | Library ICRISAT-InfoSAT |
| Date Deposited: | 27 Mar 2012 10:38 |
| Last Modified: | 27 Mar 2012 10:38 |
| Official URL: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0378-4290(84)90033-9 |
| URI: | http://eprints.icrisat.ac.in/id/eprint/4160 |
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