Water use by winter wheat as affected by soil management

Abstract

SummaryIn each of the years from September 1977 to July 1982 winter wheat was grown on one or more of three clay soil sites (clay content 35–55%) in Oxfordshire where the climate is close to the average for the area of England growing winter cereals.The effects on crop water use of different soil management practices, including ploughing, direct drilling and subsoil drainage, are compared. Cultivation treatment had little effect on the maximum depth of water extraction, which on average in these clay soils was 1·54 m below the soil surface. Maximum soil water deficit was also little affected by cultivation; the maximum recorded value was 186±7·6 mm. Subsoil drainage increased the maximum depth of water extraction by approximately 15 cm and the maximum soil water deficit by about 17 mm.Generally soil management had little effect on either total water use by the crop which was found to be close to the potential evaporation estimated by the method of Penman, or water use efficiency which for these crops was about 52 kg/ha par mm water used.Results are discussed in relation to limitations to potential yield.

Soil water under conventional and alternative cropping systems in cryoboreal subhumid central Alberta

“…Stubble management had no effect on either evapotranspiration (ET) or WUE of soybean. Goss et al (1984) O'sullivan (1995) observed that in a humid environment on land cropped to spring bjrrley most changes in soil water occurred in the top 0.4 m. The rate of soil drying was greater when the land was plowed prior to seeding than when seeding was by direct drilling; however, the greater water uptake from topsoil by spring barley grown on the plowed treatment, did not increase yields. In a subhumid environment, Maul6 and Chanasyk (1987) (Fig.…”

The role of lysimeters in the development of our understanding of soil water and nutrient dynamics in ecosystems

“…Some 66% of the precipitation was intercepted by the mole and pipe‐drain system in the same period (Table 1). In the spring and summer, a greater volume of water was extracted by wheat crops from lysimeters where the mole drains removed water from the top 0.5 m during the autumn and winter months (Goss et al. , 1984).…”

“…The reciprocal of this relationship is the transpiration ratio, and for this forage corn crop it is 112 L H 2 O/kg dry matter. On the field scale lysimeters of Letcombe Laboratory, Goss et al. (1984) reported water use efficiencies for winter wheat of 0.0052 kg/L H 2 O.…”

The effect of drought on the root growth of winter wheat and on its water uptake from a deep loam

“…The importance of drought in limiting the yield of winter wheat in the UK was actively debated in the late 1970s when the Agricultural Research Council started the 4-Institute Yield Variation Programme. This led to a review of the results of earlier irrigation experiments by Gales (1 983), new measurements of water use by irrigated (Prew et af., 1983(Prew et af., , 1985 and unirrigated crops (Goss et al, 1984) and the testing of drought-resistant varieties (Innes 8i Blackwell, 1983). Other activities included the measurement of the growth of *Rothamsted Experimental Station, Harpenden, Hem, AL5 2JQ.…”