Note on effects of soil surface crust on the grain yield of sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) in the Sahel |
| |
| Institution: | 1. School of Engineering, Edith Cowan University, 270 Joondalup Drive, Joondalup, Perth, WA 6027, Australia;2. Department of Civil Engineering, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, Jiangsu, China;3. School of Mechanics and Civil Engineering, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou 221116, China;4. State Key Laboratory for Geomechanics and Deep Underground Engineering, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou 221116, China |
| |
| Abstract: | The prominent effects of a soil surface crust on crop production, impedance to seedling emergence and reduced infiltration rate, were examined using a quantitative land evaluation model under the Sahelian environmental and soil conditions of north-central Burkina Faso. The model integrated data from climate, soil and crop for quantifying potential grain yield of sorghum (Sorghum bicolor), grown on a sandy loam soil for 14 production years (1977–1990). Crust development was induced using `simulated rainfall' with an intensity of 75 mm h−1 from a 2 m height. Results revealed that seeding sorghum in small holes without sufficiently breaking the surface crust depressed grain yield. Observed and potential yield correlated closely over a 7-year period (r = 0.79, p < = 0.05). Substantial yield gap was found between estimated potential yield (crust broken scenario set to 75% of the predicted yield) and observed, indicating however, the possibility of significantly improving yield by using appropriate tillage to break the crust before seeding. |
| |
| Keywords: | |
| 本文献已被 ScienceDirect 等数据库收录！ |
|
