Times and methods of black oat management on corn plantability

Abstract

Times and methods of black oat management on corn plantability 1The importance of maintaining straw on the soil surface is a subject widely discussed and proven in the literature. However, the effects of this straw on planting efficiency and quality still lack information. In this sense, both time and method of the black oat management influence the permanence of the straw on the soil and, thus, can interfere in the next crop's germination and plantability of the seed drill. This study aimed to evaluate methods and times of black oat management and their implications on the plantability and development of the corn crop in succession in two harvests. A randomized block design with twelve treatments was used, consisting of the combination of three methods of management (crushed, rolled, and desiccated) and four times of management (0, 10, 20, and 30 days before the corn sowing) of black oat straw, arranged in a 3 x 4 factorial scheme, with four replications. The black oat management carried out 30 days before the corn sowing provides the highest corn emergence rate. Management methods that promote greater fragmentation of straw tend to offer less mechanical impediment to seedling development and result in a greater initial and final plant population.

Plantability and corn productivity: influence of furrow opener mechanisms and oat straw management

“…The lowest means of oat dry matter (DM) (Table 1) obtained with the crushed management (3,582.75 kg ha −1 ) are due to the straw fragmentation after management, associated with factors that affect straw decomposition, such as particle distribution and size, as the more fractioned the material, the larger the surface susceptible to the attack by microorganisms, making degradation faster (Sgarbossa et al, 2022). Also, the knife roller management (4,960.17 kg ha −1 ) led to the sectioning of the plant stem, lodging it and keeping it intact on the soil surface, while chemical desiccation (4,356.17 kg ha −1 ).…”