| 1. |
- Håkansson, Inge, et al.
(author)
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Effects of sedbed properties on crop emergence. 4. Inhibitory effect of oxygen deficiency
- 2012
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In: Acta Agriculturae Scandinavica, Section B - Soil and Plant Science. - : Informa UK Limited. - 0906-4710 .- 1651-1913. ; 62, s. 166-171
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- For studies of the effects of seedbed properties on crop emergence, experiments were carried out in shallow plastic boxes. In some experiments, it was examined whether rainfall after sowing could cause oxygen deficiency in the seedbed sufficiently severe to hamper emergence. Crops studied were barley (Hordeum vulgare L.), wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), oilseed rape (Brassica napus var. oleifera, L., Metzg.) and pea (Pisum sativum L.). For harmful oxygen deficiency to develop it appeared that rainfall would need to cause structural collapse of the surface layer followed by continuously wet weather accompanied by slow drainage and high oxygen consumption in the soil; in the experiments the latter was achieved by large amounts of easily decomposable organic matter. It was concluded that such conditions are rare in the field. Therefore, unless rainfall after sowing generates surface water for an extended period, the poor crop emergence often observed after such rainfall is nearly always caused not by oxygen deficiency, but by surface layer hardening when this layer dries.
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| 2. |
- Håkansson, Inge, et al.
(author)
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Effects of seedbed properties on crop emergence: 1. Temporal effects of temperature and sowing depth in seedbeds with favourable properties
- 2011
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In: Acta Agriculturae Scandinavica, Section B - Soil and Plant Science. - : Informa UK Limited. - 0906-4710 .- 1651-1913. ; 61, s. 458-468
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Rapid and uniform crop establishment is a prerequisite for efficient crop production and minimal environmental impact. Experiments were carried out in shallow plastic boxes placed directly on the ground in the field for studies of the effects of seedbed properties on emergence of various crops. This paper presents an analysis of the time required for germination and emergence under near-optimal seedbed conditions. The crops studied were barley, oats, wheat, pea, rape seed, white mustard, sugar beet, red clover and timothy. The time required for germination generally increased with size of the seeds, presumably because larger seeds needed more water to initiate germination. This applied both when comparing different crops and different seed sizes of the same crop. However, considerable differences occurred between seed lots of the same crop and there were greater differences between seed lots of the same crop than between the three small grain crops studied. Growth rate of the seedlings generally increased with seed size, presumably because of increased energy content in the seed. Consequently, the most rapid emergence was obtained from small seeds at shallow sowing and from large seeds at deep sowing. The crops studied had a minimum temperature for germination and seedling growth close to 0 degrees C. Under optimal seedbed conditions, thermal time required for 50% germination of barley was typically about 65 degrees C days over this base temperature and for seedling growth about 6 degrees C days cm(-1). From 4 cm sowing depth, about 80 degrees C days were required for emergence but with considerable variations between seed lots. For rape seed or white mustard about 40 degrees C days were required for germination and about 8 degrees C days cm(-1) for the seedling growth.
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| 3. |
- Håkansson, Inge, et al.
(author)
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Effects of seedbed properties on crop emergence. 5. Effects of aggregate size, sowing depth and simulated rainfall after sowing on harmful surface-layer hardening
- 2012
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In: Acta Agriculturae Scandinavica, Section B - Soil and Plant Science. - : Informa UK Limited. - 0906-4710 .- 1651-1913. ; 62, s. 362-373
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Rapid, uniform crop establishment is a precondition for efficient crop production. In order to develop guidelines for seedbed preparation and sowing, extensive experiments were carried out in plastic boxes placed in the field directly on the ground for studies of the effects of seedbed properties on crop emergence. This paper deals with the effects on emergence of cereals caused by surface-layer hardening, induced by simulated rainfall (irrigation) after sowing followed by dry weather. The experimental crop was spring barley (Hordeum vulgare L.). Soils for the experiments (Eutric Cambisols, silt loam or clay loam in most cases) were collected from the surface layer of farm fields in various parts of Sweden. On soils with high silt content, irrigation after sowing often caused slumping and subsequent hardening of the whole seedbed. On clay soils, usually only a shallow surface crust formed. The earliest irrigation had the most negative effects on crop emergence. On a silt loam soil with unstable structure, irrigation with only 5 mm reduced emergence to under 20%. Later or heavier irrigation was often less negative, as it allowed the plants to emerge before the surface layer dried and hardened. Deep sowing greatly increased the negative effects on emergence, whereas soil aggregate size usually had negligible effects. It was concluded that when sowing in practice, seedbed preparation and sowing depth should be chosen to promote the fastest possible emergence. Sowing immediately before rain should be avoided, as should shallow sowing that requires rain for the seed to germinate.
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| 4. |
- Håkansson, Inge, et al.
(author)
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Effects of seedbed properties on crop emergence. 6. Requirements of crops with small seeds
- 2013
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In: Acta Agriculturae Scandinavica, Section B - Soil and Plant Science. - : Informa UK Limited. - 0906-4710 .- 1651-1913. ; 63, s. 554-563
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The effects of seedbed properties on emergence of various crops were studied in a series of experiments. Results for crops with seeds weighing <7 mg are reported here. The experiments were carried out in shallow plastic boxes placed directly on the ground in the field. Small seeds require shallow sowing, which is a great disadvantage in the event of dry weather after sowing, particularly on clay and clay loam soils, where the upper 3-cm soil layer quickly dries to wilting point. Nevertheless, good emergence of crops with seeds weighing 2-7 mg (white mustard, Sinapis alba L., oilseed rape, Brassica rapa L., Metzg., sugar beet, Beta vulgaris L. and red clover, Trifolium pratense L.) was often obtained when the seed was placed at about 3-cm depth directly on a firm basal layer with >6% plant-available water and covered by soil dominated by aggregates <5 mm. Cruciferous crops germinated most rapidly, which facilitated emergence from shallow depth. Sowing could be slightly shallower in coarse-textured than in fine-textured soils, since the former soils dry less rapidly to below wilting point. For timothy (Phleum pratense L.) with seeds weighing about 0.5 mg and requiring a sowing depth <2.5 cm, it was impossible to design a seedbed that eliminated the risk of poor emergence in dry weather. Firming of the seedbed after sowing favoured emergence only in initially dry seedbeds. The risk of poor emergence because of surface layer hardening was minimised by placing seeds at a depth and in seedbed conditions that promoted the fastest possible emergence.
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