Cover crop water use and corn silage production in -semi-arid irrigated conditions

Paye, Wooiklee S.; Ghimire, Rajan; Acharya, Pramod; Nilahyane, Abdelaziz; Mesbah, Abdel O.; Marsalis, Mark A.

doi:10.1016/j.agwat.2021.107275

Cited by 19 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…‡ Mean values (± standard error) followed by different lowercase letters in a column indicate significant differences among cover crop treatments and study years ( p ≤ 0.05, LSD test) of treatments. β The corn and sorghum yield data were adapted from Paye et al 40 , 41 , respectively.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Forage yield was lower under NCC than cover crop treatments. However, higher inorganic N availability in NCC than cover crop treatments improved forage quality, as shown by higher crude protein content 40 . Cover crops efficiently utilized N from fertilizer input and their residue mineralization than NCC, leading to no difference in net GHG emissions at the system scale.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 95%

“…The N cycling was improved with cover cropping because N 2 O-N emissions from the NCC treatment were similar to GBL and GB in the corn phase and similar to GB and GL in the sorghum phase of the rotation despite a higher inorganic N under NCC. Nitrogen utilized by cover crops might have been recycled back during cash crop growth and contributed to better nutrient cycling than NCC, leading to higher crop yield in cover crop plots 40 , 41 . High inorganic N in NCC treatment did not support high forage yield because soil inorganic N content remained similar among treatments at harvest.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In contrast, cover crops increased forage yield by 13–30% over NCC. A higher yield in cover crops than NCC could be attributed to better nutrient cycling and water conservation 27 , 40 . Similar yield-scaled emissions among treatments were due to relatively low cash crop yield in NCC compared to cover crops, suggesting a positive relationship between GHG emissions and crop yield.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…They were determined based on individual seed size and germination potential to maintain a comparable plant population for each species combination. All the cover crops were terminated using a mixture of herbicides, as described in Paye et al 40 , and the residues were left on the ground.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Net greenhouse gas balance with cover crops in semi-arid irrigated cropping systems

Acharya

Ghimire

Paye

et al. 2022

Sci Rep

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Climate smart agriculture has been emphasized for mitigating anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, yet the mitigation potential of individual management practices remain largely unexplored in semi-arid cropping systems. This study evaluated the effects of different winter cover crop mixtures on CO2 and N2O emissions, net GHG balance (GHGnet), greenhouse gas intensity (GHGI), yield-scaled GHG emissions, and soil properties in irrigated forage corn (Zea mays L.) and sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L. Moench) rotations. Four cover crop treatments: (1) grasses, brassicas, and legumes mixture (GBL), (2) grasses and brassicas mixture (GB), (3) grasses and legumes mixture (GL), and (4) a no-cover crop (NCC) control, each replicated four times under corn and sorghum phase of the rotations, were tested in the semi-arid Southern Great Plains of USA. Results showed 5–10 times higher soil respiration with cover crop mixtures than NCC during the cover crop phase and no difference during the cash crop phase. The average N2O-N emission in NCC was 44% lower than GL and 77% lower than GBL in corn and sorghum rotations. Cash crop yield was 13–30% greater in cover crop treatments than NCC, but treatment effects were not observed for GHGnet, yield-scaled emissions, and GHGI. Integrating cover crops could be a climate smart strategy for forage production in irrigated semi-arid agroecosystems.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 95%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Net greenhouse gas balance with cover crops in semi-arid irrigated cropping systems

Acharya

Ghimire

Paye

et al. 2022

Sci Rep

Self Cite

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Cover crop forage potential and subsequent sorghum silage yield and nutritive value

et al. 2023

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Achieving high forage production—quantity and quality—could be challenging, specifically in water‐limited areas. Intensifying cropping systems with cover crops can provide agronomic and ecosystem service benefits. However, the impacts of cover crops on forage production have not been well studied. This study evaluated the effects of cover crops (grasses + brassicas + legumes [GBL], grasses + brassicas [GB], grasses + legumes [GL], and no cover crop [NCC] control) on sorghum silage [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] yield and nutritive value over 3 years in a semiarid irrigated condition. Cover crops produced 2.1–6.0 Mg ha−1 of annual average harvestable biomass with similar forage nutritive value among treatments. In 2018–2019, sorghum silage yield was 38%–43% greater with all cover crops than with NCC. However, in 2019–2020, only GB had a 23% greater sorghum silage yield than NCC. The neutral detergent fiber content in sorghum silage was 4.8%–5.1% greater with all cover crops, and crude protein was 3%–8% lower with GL and GBL compared to NCC. Therefore, total digestible nutrients, relative forage quality, and milk production potential of sorghum silage were 5%–8%, 11%–19%, and 8%–16% greater, respectively, with NCC than with cover crops. This study demonstrates that replacing fallow with winter cover crops in irrigated silage production systems could provide good quality forage from cover crops without a decrease in subsequent sorghum silage yield. Sorghum silage quality slightly decreased with cover cropping. Nevertheless, cover crop integrated systems could be an alternative for farmers facing declining water availability for irrigated crop production.

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Soil profile carbon, nitrogen, and crop yields affected by cover crops in semiarid regions

Acharya

Ghimire

Cho

et al. 2022

Nutr Cycl Agroecosyst

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Cover crop water use and corn silage production in -semi-arid irrigated conditions

Cited by 19 publications

References 23 publications

Net greenhouse gas balance with cover crops in semi-arid irrigated cropping systems

Net greenhouse gas balance with cover crops in semi-arid irrigated cropping systems

Cover crop forage potential and subsequent sorghum silage yield and nutritive value

Soil profile carbon, nitrogen, and crop yields affected by cover crops in semiarid regions

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