B. G. McConkey

Response of three Brassica species to high temperature stress during reproductive growth.

The effect of short periods of high temperature stress on the reproductive development and yield of three Brassica species were studied in a growth chamber experiment conducted for 2 yr. Two genotypes from Brassica juncea L. and one each from B. napus L. and B. rapa L. were grown under day/night temperatures of 20/15 °C till early flowering or early pod development, subjected to high temperature stress of 28/15 °C or 35/15 °C for 7 d and then allowed to recover at 20/15 °C. Species differed in optimum temperatures, with B. juncea and B. rapa having higher optimum temperature than B. napus. Dry matter was unaffected by moderate temperature stress, while it was reduced by high temperature stress. The 35/15 °C treatment was injurious to reproductive organs at different developmental stages of all three species. High temperatures at flowering affected yield formation more than high temperature at pod development. On the main stem, mean seed yield reduction due to heat stress was 89%, but partial compensation ...

Energy use and efficiency in two Canadian organic and conventional crop production systems

A goal in sustainable agriculture is to use fossil fuel energy more efficiently in crop production. This 12-year study investigated effects of two crop rotations and two crop production systems (organic versus conventional management) on energy use, energy output and energy-use efficiency. The grain-based rotation included wheat ( Triticum aestivum L.)–pea ( Pisum sativum L.)–wheat–flax ( Linum usitatissimum L.), while the integrated rotation included wheat–alfalfa ( Medicago sativa L.)–alfalfa–flax. Energy use was 50% lower with organic than with conventional management, and approximately 40% lower with integrated than with the grain-based rotation. Energy use across all treatments averaged 3420 MJ ha −1 yr −1 . Energy output (grain and alfalfa herbage only) across treatments averaged 49,947 MJ ha −1 yr −1 and was affected independently by production system and crop rotation. Energy output in the integrated rotation was three times that of the grain-based rotation; however, this difference was largely due to differences in crop type (whole plant alfalfa compared with grain seed). Energy output was 30% lower with organic than with conventional management. Energy efficiency (output energy/input energy) averaged to 17.4 and was highest in the organic and integrated rotations. A significant rotation by production system interaction ( P

Quantifying short-term effects of crop rotations on soil organic carbon in southwestern Saskatchewan

Crop management practices can have a major influence on soil fertility and soil organic C (SOC) sequestration. We need to accurately measure and estimate changes in SOC in the short term (<20 yr). A 10-yr crop rotation experiment, conducted on a medium-textured Orthic Brown Chernozem at Swift Current, in southwestern Saskatchewan, was sampled in 1990 (3 yr after initiation of the study) and in 1993 and 1996, to measure SOC changes under nine crop rotation treatments. Minimum tillage practices were used. The stubble was cut high to enhance snow trap and N and P fertilizer applied based on soil tests. Grain and straw yields of the cereals, and hay yields of the crested wheatgrass (CWG) [Agropyron cristatum (L.) Gaeertn.] were measured annually. An empirical equation which uses two simultaneous first order kinetic expressions, one to estimate crop residue decomposition and the other to estimate soil humus C mineralization was used, together with crop residue (straw and estimated root) C inputs, to estimate S...

Tillage and crop rotation effects on soil organic C and N in a coarse-textured Typic Haploboroll in southwestern Saskatchewan

An 11 year study conducted in the semiarid prairie of southwestern Saskatchewan, Canada, to determine the influence of fallow frequency and tillage on yields and economics of durum wheat (Triticum turgidum L.) production, was used to assess changes in soil organic C and N. The soil was a coarse-textured, Typic Haploboroll. Cropping frequency (fallow-wheat vs. continuous wheat) had no effect on organic C or N concentrations or amount in this study. Compared with conventional mechanical or minimum tillage, no-tillage increased organic C and N concentrations in the 0–7.5 cm soil depth during the final 4 years of the experiment when crop yields and residue production were above average. However, there was no effect of tillage on C or N concentration in the 7.5–15 cm depth, nor on the mass of organic C or N in either depth. The amount of organic C in the top 15 cm of soil increased by 1.6 t ha−1 over the 11 year period (average for all systems). Most of this increase occurred in the final 4 years and was generally related to the amount of crop residues returned to the soil. Because neither rotation nor tillage influenced crop production, these practices did not affect organic C or N. We concluded that there was limited opportunity to sequester additional C in coarse-textured soils located in semiarid climates if monoculture cereal systems are used under conventional (mechanical) or no-tillage.

Yield and water use efficiency of pulses seeded directly into standing stubble in the semiarid Canadian Prairie

In semiarid climates, appropriate management of the previous crop stubble in combination with seeding method is important to improve growing conditions for the subsequent crop. To determine the effects of standing stubble of various heights on the microclimate and on the growth and yield of pulse crops, we seeded desi chickpea (Cicer arietinum L. “Cheston”), field pea (Pisum sativum L. “Grande”), and lentil (Lens culinaris L. “Laird”) directly into cultivated, short (15 to 18 cm), and tall (25 to 36 cm) spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) stubble. Standing stubble changed the microclimate near the soil surface by reducing soil temperatures, solar radiation, wind speed, and potential evapotranspiration throughout the life cycle of these crops. Microclimate effects were much more pronounced for tall versus short stubble. The three pulses responded similarly to increasing stubble height. Vine length increased as stubble height increased, but the plants did not stand more erect. However, there was a tendency ...

Optimum plant population density for chickpea and dry pea in a semiarid environment

Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.), an annual grain legume, is being broadly included in cereal-based cropping systems throughout the semiarid Canadian prairies, but information on optimum plant population density (PPD) has not been developed for this region. This study, which was conducted from 1998 to 2000 in southwestern Saskatchewan, determined the effect of PPD on field emergence, seed yield and quality, and harvestability of kabuli and desi chickpea compared with dry pea (Pisum sativum L.). Seed yields of all legumes increased with increasing PPD when the crops were grown on conventional summerfallow. The PPD that produced the highest seed yields ranged from 40 to 45 plants m-2 for kabuli chickpea, from 45 to 50 plants m-2 for desi chickpea, and from 75 to 80 plants m-2 for dry pea. When the legumes were grown on wheat stubble, the PPD that gained optimum seed yield ranged from 35 to 40 plants m-2 for kabuli chickpea, from 40 to 45 plants m-2 for desi chickpea, and from 65 to 70 plants m-2 for dry pea. T...

Effects of crop rotations and fertilizer management on leaf spotting diseases of spring wheat in southwestern Saskatchewan

The objective of this study was to determine the effect of crop sequence, summerfallow frequency, and fertilizer application, on the severity of leaf spotting diseases of spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). In the field experiment examined, Pyrenophora tritici-repentis (Died.) Drechs. was the pathogen most commonly isolated from lesioned leaf tissue, followed by stagonospora blotch (Phaeosphaeria nodorum [E. Muller] Hedjaroude). The severity of leaf spots in wheat after fallow was greater than in monoculture continuous wheat, or in wheat after a noncereal crop. Percent area with leaf spots in wheat grown after wheat was higher than in wheat grown after flax (Linum usitatissimum L.) or lentil (Lens culinaris Medikus) in years with high disease pressure (1995 and 1996), but not in 1993 or 1994 when overall disease levels were low. Under soil N-deficient conditions, leaf spot levels increased in years with dry summers (1994 and 1996), whereas a P deficiency decreased leaf spot severity in years that had coo...

Long-term effect of cropping system and nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizer on production and nitrogen economy of grain crops in a Brown Chernozem

Assessment of the long-term impact of fertilizers and other management factors on crop production and environmental sustainability of cropping systems in the semi-arid Canadian prairies is needed. This paper discusses the long-term influence of N and P fertilizers on crop production, N uptake and water use of hard red spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), and the effect of the preceding crop type [flax (Linum usitatissimum L.) and fall rye (Secale cereale L.)] on wheat grown on a medium-textured, Orthic Brown Chernozem at Swift Current, Saskatchewan. We analysed 36 yr of results (1967–2002) from eight crop rotation-fertility treatments: viz., fallow-wheat receiving N and P (F-W, N + P), three F-W-W treatments fertilized with (i) N + P, (ii) P only, and (iii) N only; two other 3-yr mixed rotations with N + P (i) F-flax-W (F-Flx-W) and (ii) F-fall rye-W (F-Rye-W); and two continuous wheat rotations (Cont W), one receiving N + P and the other only P. Growing season weather conditions during the 36-yr period w...

Effect of crop management on C and N in long-term crop rotations after adopting no-tillage management: Comparison of soil sampling strategies

Society is interested in increasing C storage in soil to reduce CO2 concentration in the atmosphere, because the latter may contribute to global warming. Further, there is considerable interest in the use of straw for industrial purposes. Using soil samples taken from the 0- to 7.5-cm and 7.5- to 15-cm depths in May 1987 and September 1996, we determined organic C and total N in five crop rotations (nine treatments) using automated Carlo Erba combustion analyzer. The experiment was managed using conventional mechanical tillage from 1957 to 1989; it was changed to no-tillage management in 1990. Our objective was to determine: (a) if change to no-tillage management had changed soil C and N storage, and (b) if method of calculating organic C and N change would influence interpretation of the results. All three methods of calculation confirmed the efficacy of employing best management practices (e.g., fertilization based on soil tests, reducing summerfallow, including legumes in rotations) for increasing or m...

SLOPE POSITION AND SUBSOILING EFFECTS ON SOIL WATER AND SPRING WHEAT YIELD

A study was conducted on a 4-m-high ridge in southwestern Saskatchewan to determine the relationship of slope position with the soil water regime and spring wheat (Triticumaestivum L.) production and to determine if those relationships were altered by subsoiling. In all years, available soil water in the spring to 120 cm increased significantly with distance upslope. This pattern was attributed to residual subsoil water in the rooting zone that had not been used by previous crops in a long-term crop-fallow rotation. After 3 yr of annual spring wheat production, soil water to 1.2 m at all slope positions approximately equalled the water content wilting point (4.0 MPa) water content, showing this residual water had been largely consumed. Apparent use of soil water between seeding and harvest at the upper slope positions was equal to or greater than that at the lower slope positions. Over-winter soil water conservation, using tall (≥ 30-cm-high) wheat stubble for snow trapping, at the upper slope positions w...