Andy Kleinschmidt, Extension Agriculture and Natural Resources Agent
Gary Prill, Extension Associate, Farm Focus/Research Coordinator
To compare population and yield of field corn under four different tillage systems following soybeans.
| Cooperator: | Marsh Foundation/ | Herbicides: | |
| Farm Focus | PRE (May 25): | 10 oz/A Epic + 2 qt/A | |
| County: | Van Wert | Aatrex 4L + 1 pt/A | |
| Nearest Town: | Van Wert | 2,4-D LVE + 0.5 pt/A | |
| Soil Type: | Hoytville clay | Banvel | |
| Drainage: | Systematic tile | Insecticide: | 8 oz. per 1,000 row ft. |
| Previous Crop: | Soybeans | Lorsban 15G T-banded | |
| Tillage: | Variable (see Methods) | Hybrid: | Beck’s Hybrids 5322 |
| Soil Test (2002): | pH 6.1, P 43 ppm | Row Width: | 30 inch |
| K 124 ppm | Planting Rate: | 30,500 seeds/A | |
| Fertilizer: | 250 lb/A 7-26-26 in row | Planting Date: | May 24, 2002 |
| at planting | Harvest Date: | October 8, 2002 | |
| 190 lb/A nitrogen | |||
| sidedressed as NH3 | |||
| on June 14, 2002 |
Four tillage systems were replicated four times in a randomized complete block design. The four tillage systems included no-till, fall strip-till, fall deep till followed by spring field cultivate, and a shallow fall disking. Strip-till was performed on November 15, 2001, by using a six-row 30-inch Trail Blazer strip-till machine 8 to 9 inches deep. The fall deep till/spring cultivate treatment consisted of using an M&W Earthmaster disk/ripper 16-inches deep on November 16, 2001, followed by a spring field cultivation three inches deep with two passes of a Wilrich C-shank field cultivator on May 24, 2002. The two-inch deep shallow disking treatment was performed on November 16, 2001, with an International #37 disk. The study was planted using a John Deere 7000 Max-emerge six-row planter. Each individual plot contained 12 rows and was 600 feet in length.
Percent residue was determined post-plant on May 30 by using a USDA-NRCS Crop Residue Management Kit. Early season populations (June 7, corn stage V2) and harvest populations (October 7) were estimated by counting the number of plants on each side of a 17.5 feet tape at three different locations in each individual plot. The average of the number of plants counted per 17.5 feet was converted to plants per acre. Yields were collected from one combine round (12 rows). Individual plot weight and moisture was determined using a calibrated AgLeader PF3000 yield monitor in a John Deere 6620 combine. Yields reported in this study have been adjusted to 15% moisture standard.
Table 1. Crop Residue, Population, Moisture, and Yield Means.a
| Crop | Population | Harvest | Grain | ||
| Tillage Treatment | Residue | at V2 | Population | Moisture | Yield |
| (%) | (plants/A) | (plants/A) | (%) | (bu/A) | |
| Fall deep till/spring cultivate | 2.8 d | 27,000 c | 25,500 | 19.5 c | 114.2 a |
| Strip-till | 33.8 b | 27,300 bc | 25,500 | 20.0 b | 101.7 b |
| Fall disk | 24.5 c | 28,500 a | 26,000 | 19.8 bc | 100.0 bc |
| No-till | 42.0 a | 28,100 ab | 25,300 | 20.7 a | 97.8 c |
| LSD (0.05) | 4.5 | 1,000 | NS | 0.3 | 3.5 |
| F-test | 145.1 | 4.7 | <1 | 24.5 | 45.6 |
| a Means followed by the same letter in the same column are not significantly different. | |||||
NS = not significant
This is the second consecutive year for conducting this tillage trial at Farm Focus. Data from this year suggests that there were statistically significant yield differences among the tillage systems compared. Results from this study contradict similar work conducted in 2001 at Farm Focus that suggested no-till having a distinct yield advantage compared to the two conventional tillage applications. Possible reasons for lower yields in the reduced tillage and no-till plots in 2003 include heavier dandelion pressure in the plots with no spring tillage, and soil properties that may have been altered from intensive subsurface irrigation in past years. These soil properties may have had a greater effect in the plots where there was no deep tillage performed. Exact reasons for the lower yields are not known. Early population differences show weak significance among the tillage treatments; however, these population differences disappeared later in the season. This trial will be conducted at Farm Focus again in 2003 in order to obtain three years of data.
The authors express appreciation to Van Wert SWCD and NRCS for technical assistance with this study.
For additional information, contact:
Andy Kleinschmidt or Gary Prill
Ohio State University Extension, Van Wert County
1055 South Washington Street, Van Wert, OH 45891
419-238-1214
kleinschmidt.5@osu.edu or prill.1@osu.edu