Impact of direct drilling and conventional tillage on seasonal changes of soil water content in Chromic Haploxerert (south-west Spain)

A continuous monitoring of spatial and temporal variability of soil water content was studied under two soil management systems: direct drilling (DD) and conventional tillage (CT), during four consecutive seasons. The soil water content was read at different soil depths using multisensor capacitance probes in each soil-management treatment. During the first season (2003–2004), soil water content dynamics for both treatments were similar during the rainy season, although the DD plot was able to retain more water in the soil profile, and during the maximum evapotranspirative period faster soil water depletion took place in the CT plot. The 2004–2005 season registered a high evapotranspiration rate (1741 mm) with low rainfall (228 mm), promoting a low soil water recharge for both treatments. The 2005–2006 season registered an increase in rainfall, promoting a greater recovery of the soil water reserve in DD than CC plot. Finally, during the 2006–2007 season with an evapotranspiration rate ET₀ and rainfall of 1504 and 560 mm, respectively, DD retained more soil water content, mainly in the deeper zones, with progressive soil water depletion during the maximum evapotranspirative period in comparison to CT. Thus, DD was demonstrated to be a promising soil management technique for improving the soil water content.