Effects of conservation tillage on water supply and rainfed maize production in semiarid zones of west-central Mexico
This study analyzes the potential of conservation tillage (CT) for improving maize productivity under a range of soil and rainfall conditions in a semiarid zone of West-Central Mexico, evaluating the consequences of tillage practices on the crop's ability to take up and store water, on evapotra...
| Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | book |
| Status: | Published version |
| Publication Date: | 2001 |
| Country: | México |
| Institution: | Centro Internacional de Mejoramiento de Maíz y Trigo |
| Repository: | Repositorio Institucional de Publicaciones Multimedia del CIMMYT |
| OAI Identifier: | oai:repository.cimmyt.org:10883/544 |
| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/10883/544 |
| Access Level: | Open access |
| Keyword: | AGRICULTURAL SCIENCES AND BIOTECHNOLOGY MAIZE RAIN STATISTICAL METHODS YIELD COMPONENTS ZEA MAYS |
| Summary: | This study analyzes the potential of conservation tillage (CT) for improving maize productivity under a range of soil and rainfall conditions in a semiarid zone of West-Central Mexico, evaluating the consequences of tillage practices on the crop's ability to take up and store water, on evapotranspiration, on crop physiology, and on grain yield, under cropping systems typical of small-scale farmers. Even with low use of crop residue mulching (0.2 kg/m2), CT has considerable potential for adoption in these areas, once technical issues such as supply of appropriate machinery, weed control, and the competing use of the maize residue for forage have been resolved. Even under wetter conditions, CT resulted in acceptable yields which, when considered with its cost savings and long-term benefits to the soil, make it attractive. |
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