Huron Tractor Research Plot - Part 5 Harvest Results

Transcription

1 Huron Tractor Research Plot - Part 5 Harvest Results The Huron Tractor Demo Plot was harvested on October 29 th. The plot as a whole performed very well, averaging bu/ac dry at 15% moisture; the field averaged 20.1% moisture when harvested and dockage averaged 0.5% at the Scale. A Yield map can be visualized in Operations Centre as show in Figure 1. The data was cropped to remove headlands from the field to enable a less biased analysis (Figure 2). Means of the various treatments were generated using SMS Advanced software. Treatment Yield means were compared using ANOVA analysis, and post-hoc t-tests to determine statistical significance. Figure 1: Yield Map of Corn Crop Harvested on October 29, 2016

2 Figure 2: Yield Map Cropped for analysis Tillage: The fundamental demonstration within this plot was tillage. Three treatments were compared: Striptillage, vertical tillage, and disc ripping. Strip-tillage was done in fall of 2015 (post-wheat) using the Southwest Ag Group s Soil Warrior. The unit was set for fall and run with the rolling baskets in the up position; no fertilizer was placed in the strip. This strip was freshened in the spring (post-broadcast fertilizer) using a Dawn Pluribus implement. The vertical tillage was done using a Landoll VT. Two passes were done, one in the fall and one in the spring. The disc ripping was done using a John Deere 2720 (12 6 ) implement in the fall of 2015 (post-wheat). The treatment was then cultivated twice in the spring for seed bed preparation. There was statistically significant differences in yield between tillage treatments. Both vertical tillage and strip-tillage were significantly higher yielding than disc ripped tillage. Strip-tillage and vertical tillage did not significantly differ from one another. It is interpreted that he disc ripping allowed a greater amount of moisture to escape the soil (in a particularly dry year), whereas the less aggressive tillage left more moisture in the soil in spring and throughout the season.

3 Yield (bu/ac) Yield (bu/ac) Table 1: Summary of average yield by tillage treatment. Vertical and strip tillage yielded significantly more than disc ripping (p<0.05) Tillage Yield (bu/ac) % Moisture Vertical Tillage a Strip-Tillage.2 a Disc Ripping b Tillage Comparison Disc Ripped Strip Till Average Verticall Tilled Starter Fertilizer: Starter fertilizer trials were incorporated into each tillage treatment. Within each tillage treatment starter fertilizer treatments were replicated 6 times (except for Strip Till 0lb/ac treatment, only 2 replications). The starter fertilizer treatment was a blend of 20% Ammonium sulphate, 40% Monammonium phosphate, and 40% potash. A simple analysis to evaluate starter fertilizer effects across all treatments was completed. Across all treatments, the 150lb/ac and 250lb/ac starter fertilizer treatments yielded significantly higher than the 0 lb/ac treatment. The 150lb/ac and 250lb/ac treatments did not differ significantly from each other. Table 2: Summary of average yield by starter fertilizer treatment. 250 lb/ac and 150 lb/ac yielded significantly more than 0 lb/ac (p<0.05) Starter Yield (bu/ac) % Moisture Fertilizer 0 lb/ac a lb/ac.65 b lb/ac b Starter Fertilizer Comparison 0lb/ac 150 lb/ac 250 lb/ac 215 Average Side-dress Nitrogen: Side-dress nitrogen fertilizer trials were also integrated within the tillage and starter fertilizer trials. Within each starter fertilizer treatment 3 rates of side-dress applications were replicated twice (0, 8, 17gal/ac). Three treatments were used: 0 gal/ac (0 lb N/ac), 8 gal/ac (25lb N/ac), and 17 gal/ac (50 lbn/ac). The 0 gal/ac treatments yielded significantly less than the 8 gal, and 17 gal treatments. The two side-dress treatments did not significantly differ from one another.

4 Yield (bu/ac) Yield (bu/ac) Table 3: Summary of average yield by side-dress fertilizer treatment. 17 gal/ac and 8 gal/ac yielded significantly more than 0 gal/ac (p<0.05) Side-dress Yield (bu/ac) % Moisture Fertilizer 0 gal/ac.55 a gal/ac b gal/ac b Side-dress Nitrogen Comparison 17gal/ac 8gal/ac 0gal/ac Mean Fungicide: The demonstration plot also evaluated the use of fungicide and its effects across all treatments. Interestingly, a negative response was seen due to fungicide application (part of this effect could have been some tramping due to an attempt to establish rye cover crop). The fungicide treatment yielded almost 7 bu/ac less. Table 4: Summary of average yield by fungicide treatment. 0 gal/ac treatment yielded significantly more than 20 gal/ac (p<0.05) Fungicide Yield (bu/ac) % Moisture 0 gal/ac.38 a gal/ac b Fungicide Comparison 235 No Fungicide Fungicide 225 Mean Tillage and Starter Fertilizer: With the statistical interpretations an attempt was made to evaluate multi-variable interactions. In this instance the research question was: How did starter fertilizer impact crop yields under varying tillage practices? Simply, starter fertilizer had no statistically significant effect on yield under vertical tillage management, however, did show a response when disc ripping and strip-tilling. Under both disc ripping and strip tillage the 150lb/ac, and 250lb/ac starter fertilizer treatments produced higher yielding corn. However, under both tillage systems there was no response to increasing the starter fertilizer treatment from 150lb to 250lb per acre.

5 Yield (bu/ac) Tillage Starter Fertilizer Yield (bu/ac) % Moisture Disc Ripped a Disc Ripped b Disc Ripped b Strip Till a Strip Till b Strip Till b Vertical Till 0.02 a Vertical Till a Vertical Till a Tillage Vs. Starter Fertilizer Comparison 190 Disc Ripped Strip Till Verticall Tilled 0 lb/ac 150 lb/ac 250 lb/ac Tillage, Starter Fertilizer and Side-dress Fertilizer: In this instance the research question was: How did side-dress nitrogen applications impact crop yields under varying tillage practice, and increased starter fertilizer rates? Simply, side-dress nitrogen fertilizer had no statistically significant effect on yield under vertical tillage or strip tillage management regardless of the starter fertilizer rates. However, a response was shown when disc ripping. When 0lb/ac starter was applied a significant yield response was determined from an additional 17 gal/ac of 28% (50lbN). When 150lb/ac starter was applied a significant yield response was seen for both 8 gal/ac (25lb) and 17 gal/ac (50lb) side dress applications of 28%.

6 Tillage Starter Fertilizer (lb/ac) Side-dress Fertilizer (gal/ac) Yield (bu/ac) % Moisture Disc Ripped Disc Ripped Disc Ripped Disc Ripped Disc Ripped Disc Ripped Disc Ripped Disc Ripped Disc Ripped Strip Till Strip Till Strip Till Strip Till Strip Till Strip Till Strip Till Strip Till Strip Till Vertical Till Vertical Till Vertical Till Vertical Till Vertical Till Vertical Till Vertical Till Vertical Till Vertical Till

7 Yield (bu/ac) Yield (bu/ac) Yield (bu/ac) Disc Ripped Tillage - Comparing Starter & Sidedress Fertilizer Treatments gal/ac 8 gal/ac 17 gal/ac Strip Tillage - Comparing Starter & Sidedress Fertilizer Treatments gal/ac 8 gal/ac 17 gal/ac Vertical Tillage - Comparing Starter & Sidedress Fertilizer Treatments gal/ac 8 gal/ac 17 gal/ac

8 Tillage, Starter Fertilizer and Side-dress Fertilizer and Fungicide: In this instance the research question was: How did fungicide applications impact crop yields under varying tillage practices, increased starter fertilizer rates, and increased side-dress nitrogen rates? Table 5: Fungicide treatment interaction with tillage, starter fertilizer and side-dress nitrogen fertilizer treatments. Yields are colour coded as Green=Above Field Average, Red=Below Field Average Tillage Dry Starter (lb/ac) 28% Side-dress (gal/ac) Fungicide (gal/ac) Avg. Yield (bu/ac) Moisture (%) Disc Ripped Disc Ripped Disc Ripped Disc Ripped Disc Ripped Disc Ripped Disc Ripped Disc Ripped Disc Ripped Disc Ripped Disc Ripped Disc Ripped Disc Ripped Disc Ripped Disc Ripped Disc Ripped Disc Ripped Disc Ripped Strip Till Strip Till Strip Till Strip Till Strip Till Strip Till Strip Till Strip Till Strip Till Strip Till Strip Till Strip Till Strip Till

9 Strip Till Vertical Tilled Vertical Tilled Vertical Tilled Vertical Tilled Vertical Tilled Vertical Tilled Vertical Tilled Vertical Tilled Vertical Tilled Vertical Tilled Vertical Tilled Vertical Tilled Vertical Tilled Vertical Tilled Vertical Tilled Vertical Tilled Vertical Tilled Vertical Tilled

10 Yield (bu/ac) Yield bu/ac) Yield (bu/ac) Disc Ripped Tillage No Fungicide Fungicide Strip Tillage Strip Till-0-0 Strip Till Strip Till Strip Till Strip Till Strip Till Strip Till No Fungicide Fungicide Vertical Tillage No Fungicide Fungicide

11 Future Demo Work: Thank you for your interest in our Demo Plot and stay tuned for updates for next year. The plot was harvested using a chopping and non-chopping corn head. The three tillage treatments will be continued next year, and a no-till treatment will be added as well. Soybeans or white beans will be planted in various row width configurations (30, 15, and 30 twin rows). Figure 3: Chopped vs Non-chopped Treatment

12 Figure 4: Non-chopped treatment residue cover post-harvest

13 Figure 5: Chopped residue cover post-harvest

14 Figure 6: Chopped vs Non-chopped Treatment Post-harvest

15 Figure 7: Chopped Residue - More surface area and smaller stalk pieces

16 Figure 8: Non-chopped residue less surface area, and longer stalk pieces.

17 Figure 9: Strip tillage surface in Non-chopped residue Thank You: We are always looking for feedback on what we are doing at Huron Tractor. If you would like to have further discussion surrounding these results please feel free to contact us! Also, if you are interested in implementing a field trial on your farm using John Deere Precision Technology we would be pleased to be involved and support your efforts. Danny Jefferies, CCA Jeff Stephens Integrated Solutions Data & Agronomy Support Consultant Product Specialist / Customer Support / Integrated Solutions Consultant djefferies@hurontractor.com jstephens@hurontractor.com