Potential of Cover Crop Use and Termination with a Roller-Crimper in a Strip-Till Silage Maize (<i>Zea mays</i> L.) Production System in the Central Valley of California
The potential of terminating cover crops with a roller-crimper is of increasing interest. A two-year (2020/21 and 2021/22) study was conducted in Fresno, CA, USA. Five cover crop treatments (rye (<i>Secale cereale</i> L.) alone, ultra-high diversity mix, multiplex cover crop mix, fava be...
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| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Agronomy |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/15/1/132 |
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| Summary: | The potential of terminating cover crops with a roller-crimper is of increasing interest. A two-year (2020/21 and 2021/22) study was conducted in Fresno, CA, USA. Five cover crop treatments (rye (<i>Secale cereale</i> L.) alone, ultra-high diversity mix, multiplex cover crop mix, fava bean (<i>Vicia faba</i> L.) + phacelia (<i>Phacelia tanacetifolia</i> Benth.), and rye + field pea (<i>Pisum sativum</i> L.) + purple vetch (<i>Vicia americana</i> Muhl. Ex Willd.)) were planted in November, roller-crimped in April, and silage maize (<i>Zea mays</i> L.) was strip-till planted in the residue in May. Cover crop kill, soil cover by residue, weed cover, amount of organic residue, and silage maize yield were recorded. The roller-crimper resulted in 95 to 100% kill of the cover crops. Soil cover at maize canopy closure (mid-July) was approximately 90% in the rye plots while it was 30 to 70% in the other treatments. The fava bean + phacelia cover crop disintegrated the most rapidly. Weed cover was <5% in all the treatments until maize canopy closure. The cover crops added 6.7 to 14 MT ha<sup>−1</sup> of residue. Maize silage yield was similar across the treatments. Therefore, in this study, cover crops were successfully terminated by the roller-crimper, allowing successful strip-till establishment and production of silage maize. |
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| ISSN: | 2073-4395 |