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Interpretive Summaries:
2002 - Fertilizing Rice-Based Cropping Systems to Achieve Maximum Yields While Maintaining the Natural Resource Base
2001 - Fertilizing Rice-Based Cropping Systems to Achieve Maximum Yields while Maintaining the Natural Resource Base
2000 - Fertilizing Rice-Based Cropping Systems to Achieve Maximum Yields while Maintaining the Natural Resource Base
Fertilizing Rice-Based Cropping Systems to Achieve Maximum Yields while Maintaining the Natural Resource Base, 2001
A long-term cropping systems study was initiated in 1999 on a silt loam soil near Stuttgart, Arkansas. The field was leveled, and 10 cropping systems (rice, corn, soybean, wheat in different combinations/rotations) were established using conventional tillage practices with four replications. In 2000, the plots within each cropping system were split into conventional tillage and no-tillage treatments. Each tillage treatment was split into two fertilizer treatments: 1) standard recommended fertilizer according to soil tests and 2) an enhanced treatment, consisting of approximately 20 percent more nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K) than the standard.
There were visual differences between the two fertility treatments in 2000, but no significant effects on yield. Grain yields for rice and soybeans declined in 2001, compared to yields in 2000, while those for corn increased. Enhanced soil fertility caused rice yields to increase 6 bu/A and corn yields to increase by 5 bu/A in 2001, but provided no advantage for soybeans. Soil samples collected from each plot in 1999 before the study, and again in 2000, showed large variations in some soil properties because of the land leveling. There were small but inconsistent increases in tissue nutrient levels with the conventional till treatments compared to no-till. Nutrient uptake by rice was slightly increased in the enhanced fertility treatment compared to the standard treatment, but resulted in no yield differences.
This study will provide a basis for evaluating nutrient requirements in different tillage and rotation systems for corn, rice, wheat, and soybeans in Arkansas. AR-20F
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