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Where Is Your Soil Water? Crop Yield Has the Answer
July 02, 2008Crop yield is highly dependent on soil plant-available water, the portion of soil water that can be taken up by plant roots. Quantitative determination of the maximum amount of plant-available water in soil using traditional methods on soil samples remains challenging, especially at the scale of an entire field. However, a map of plant-available water capacity for a field would be instrumental in yield potential assessment and site-specific soil and water management, making the search for improved methods of soil plant-available water quantification an important step towards improved crop productivity and management.
One of the alternative methods designed to rapidly and economically estimate plant-available water capacity for a field is the Simple Inverse Yield Model (SIYM). The SIYM first simulates crop yield using a water-budgeting algorithm and growing season weather conditions such as radiation, temperature, and rainfall. As such, yield values can be simulated for a range of levels of soil plant-available water. In the following model step, plant-available water values can subsequently be obtained by matching measured crop yield with the closest simulated yield on a yield map.
A group of researchers at the University of Missouri and the USDA-ARS (Cropping Systems and Water Quality Research Unit) investigated the applicability and performance of the SIYM for poorly-drained claypan soils in Central Missouri, and compared them to well-drained soils where the model was first developed and tested. For the study, a total of nine corn yield maps were generated using data collected from two fields in Central Missouri during 1993 to 2005. Soil samples were taken to determine plant-available water capacity using traditional laboratory methods. This research was published in the May-June issue of Agronomy Journal.
Results showed that measured plant-available water capacity correlated with corn yield better in dry years than in normal or wet years. Agreement between measured plant-available water and SIYM estimates was weaker in the claypan soils than well-drained soils, especially at locations where the claypan layer was shallow or exposed at the surface. At these locations, plants cannot utilize all the plant-available water in the soil, due to slow water transport in clay-rich soils. As a result, yields simulated by SIYM tended to be higher than measured yields, and thus SIYM-estimated plant available water capacity tended to be lower than measured plant-available water capacity.
The lead author, Pingping Jiang, stated "Compared to the measured plant-available water using traditional methods, the SIYM estimates may be more useful in assessing soil productivity and making site-specific management decisions. SIYM is based on actual yield measurements, and less strongly on conventional soil measurement techniques, which do not take crop-soil-water interactions into account."
This research was a part of continuing research at the USDA-ARS Cropping Systems and Water Quality Research Unit to assess field variability for site-specific management.
The American Society of Agronomy (ASA)
Results showed that measured plant-available water capacity correlated with corn yield better in dry years than in normal or wet years. Agreement between measured plant-available water and SIYM estimates was weaker in the claypan soils than well-drained soils, especially at locations where the claypan layer was shallow or exposed at the surface. At these locations, plants cannot utilize all the plant-available water in the soil, due to slow water transport in clay-rich soils. As a result, yields simulated by SIYM tended to be higher than measured yields, and thus SIYM-estimated plant available water capacity tended to be lower than measured plant-available water capacity.
The lead author, Pingping Jiang, stated "Compared to the measured plant-available water using traditional methods, the SIYM estimates may be more useful in assessing soil productivity and making site-specific management decisions. SIYM is based on actual yield measurements, and less strongly on conventional soil measurement techniques, which do not take crop-soil-water interactions into account."
This research was a part of continuing research at the USDA-ARS Cropping Systems and Water Quality Research Unit to assess field variability for site-specific management.
The American Society of Agronomy (ASA)
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The Physiology of Crop Yield by Robert K. M. Hay (Author), John R. Porter (Author) First published in 1989, Physiology of Crop Yield was the first student textbook to digest and assimilate the many advances in crop physiology, within a framework of resource capture and use. Retaining the central core of the first edition, this long-awaited second edition draws on recent developments in areas such as phenology, canopy dynamics and crop modelling, and the concepts of sustainable crop production. A broad perspective is developed, from the gene through the plant and crop to the ecosystem, covering:
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Mathematical Models of Crop Growth and Yield (Books in Soils, Plants, and the Environment, 91) by Allen R. Overman (Author), Richard V. Scholtz III (Author) Insightful reference/text describes the application of viable mathematical models in data analysis to increase crop growth and yields, highlighting effective, analytical functions that have been found useful for the comparison of alternative management techniques to maximize water and nutrient resources. |
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Chi Liquid Organic Foliar 1 Qt by General Hydroponics |
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Working with Dynamic Crop Models: Evaluation, Analysis, Parameterization, and Applications by Daniel Wallach (Editor), David Makowski (Editor), James W. Jones (Editor) Many different mathematical and statistical methods are essential in crop modeling. They are necessary in the development, analysis and application of crop models. Up to now, however, there has been no single source where crop modelers could learn about these methods. Furthermore, these methods are often described in other contexts and their application to crop modeling is not always straightforward. This book aims at making a large range of relevant mathematical and statistical methods accessible to crop modelers. Each methodology chapter starts from basic principles and simple applications and builds gradually to state-of-the-art methods. Crop models are used as examples, and practical advice on applying the methods to crop models is given. Working with Dynamic Crop Models... |
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Frontline: Harvest of Fear (A Frontline and Nova Special) (PBS) Also With: PBS and NOVA (Primary Contributor) VHS are genetically modified foods a vital scientific breakthrough or are they "frankenfoods" that will ruin health.. Frontline investigates | |
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Principles of Crop Production: Theory, Techniques, and Technology (2nd Edition) by George Acquaah (Author) This book contains the most comprehensive, detailed coverage of crop production issues in the US. It provides the “how and why” things are the way they are, and recognizes the business of crop production. Other coverage includes the latest trends impacting crop production—i.e., sustainable agriculture, organic farming, environmental safety consciousness, and more. For individuals preparing for a future in agriculture and for the Crop Certification exams. |
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Physiology of Crop Production (Crop Science) by N.K. Fageria (Author), V.C. Baligar (Author), Ralph Clark (Author) This single volume explores the theoretical and the practical aspects of crop physiological processes around the world The marked decrease over the past century in the land available for crop production has brought about mounting pressure to increase crop yields, especially in developing nations. Physiology of Crop Production provides cutting-edge research and data for complete coverage of the physiology of crop production, all in one source, right at your fingertips. This valuable reference gives the extensive in-depth information soil and crop professionals need to maximize crop productivity anywhere the world. Leading soil and plant scientists and researchers clearly explain theory, practical applications, and the latest advances in the field. Crop physiology is a vital... |
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Corn Crop Production: Growth, Fertilization and Yield by Arn T. Danforth (Editor) Corn or maize is a crop that originated in Mexico and has spread all over the world as a major food crop. Sustainable production of a corn field crop as grain corn for feed, food and biofuels, as well as sweet corn for fresh market or processing, and as silage for high energy sources, requires scientific management of nutrients along with several other crop management practices such as proper plant population density, timely seeding and harvesting, soil water, weeds and pests control. Corn has become the major item in the diet of many tropical people, the main grain used for animal feed in temperate regions, as well as new stocks for many other purposes including recently used as feedstock for biofuels. Rapid expansion of grain based ethanol production in North America, has already caused... |
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Crop Evolution, Adaptation and Yield by Lloyd T. Evans (Author) In this major work Lloyd Evans provides an integrated view of the domestication, adaptation, and improvement of crop plants, bringing together genetic diversity, plant breeding, physiology, and aspects of agronomy. Considerations of yield and maximum yield provide continuity throughout the book. Evans discusses food, feed, fiber, fuel, and pharmaceutical crops as well as using as examples cereals, grain, legumes, and root crops, both temperate and tropical. He also considers pasture plants, oilseeds, leafy crops, fruit trees, and others. The crucial roles of input innovation and synergism are illustrated along with examples of how diminishing returns to input energy are avoided. The final chapter hazards some guesses about the way in which agriculture may be transformed over the next... |
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Crops And Environmental Change: An Introduction To Effects Of Global Warming, Increasing Atmospheric CO2 And O3 Concentrations, And Soil Salinization On Crop Physiology And Yield by Jeffrey Amthor (Author), Seth Pritchard (Author) Examine important global environmental changes that will affect the future of agriculture! Here is a complete introduction to the influence of global environmental changes on the structure, function, and harvestable yield of major field crops. It gives you an in-depth look at the effects of climate change, air pollution, and soil salinization. The book provides an introduction to the ramifications, both positive and negative, of these ongoing environmental changes for present and future crop production and food supply. Crops and Environmental Change: An Introduction to Effects of Global Warming, Increasing Atmospheric CO2 and O3 Concentrations, and Soil Salinization on Crop Physiology and Yield integrates a discussion of the physiological effects of environmental change with... |
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