Eastern crop conference jan 18, 2016

Evaluation of a One-Pass, Full NPK Spring

Strip-Till System

Ben Rosser OMAFRA Corn Industry Program Lead

http://www.google.ca/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwjtqIzskMHJAhUQpIMKHYm7BmcQjRwIBw&url=http://www.uoguelph.ca/omafra_partnership/ktt/en/johnbarta/List-of-Contributors.asp?hdnContent=&psig=AFQjCNELokJbWDw-u-iFpflnBN21eF49nQ&ust=1449281603468813

Shift Away from Full Tillage

http://www.google.ca/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwj8zNPI4NnJAhVr44MKHXK0BX8QjRwIBw&url=http://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/IPM/english/soil-diagnostics/erosion.html&bvm=bv.109910813,d.amc&psig=AFQjCNHt8BKIUQaMoZBeF6jxP31s9t9lSw&ust=1450127437642018

Shift Away from Full Tillage

Conventional No-Till

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Tillage Compromise?

- Tillage benefit in corn rows? - No-till/residue cover between rows

Source: T.J. Vyn, 1997, University of Guelph

Trans-Till

Ontario Strip-Till Research


Tillage following wheat, straw baled, 1994-1997


29.8 25.6

23.3

0

40

Soil Moisture

Soil

Moi

stur

e (%

)

No-TillFall Strip-TillFall Moldboard


149 135

159 147

0

50

100

150

200

Fine-Textured Soil Medium Texture Soil

Yiel

d (b

u/ac

)

No-Till

Fall Strip-Till

Fall Moldboard




149 135

159 139

159 147

0

50

100

150

200

Fine-Textured Soil Medium Texture Soil

Yiel

d (b

u/ac

)

No-Till

Fall Strip-Till

Fall Moldboard



Limited Uptake of Strip-Till

Downfalls: Nitrogen – must become side-dresser? GPS Guidance – ideal to ensure rows stay on the strips P and K Management – incorporate all in strips?

John Deere

Integrate Technologies to

Improve Adoption?

John Deere

J and J Bagging

Integrate Technologies to

Improve Adoption? “One-Pass Spring Strip-Till”

John Deere

J and J Bagging

=? Spring Strip Tillage

Autoguidance

All NPK

Research Questions: 1. P&K Place- ST vs. Planter? 2. Safety ESN vs. Urea? 3. Safety ESN Strip vs. SD? 4. NT vs. ST?




Strip Tiller Setup

Strip Tiller Setup

Dawn Pluribus Coulter Strip Tiller

Strip Tiller Setup


Yetter Caddy + Gandy Orbit-Air

Strip Tiller Setup



RTK Autoguidance

Strip Tiller Setup



RTK Autoguidance Active Implement Guidance

Field Characteristics

- After soybeans, some wheat stubble - Medium textured soils (sandy loam to silt

loam) - Moderately to low responsive soils to P and K

Treatments

Tillage Fertilizer Blend/Placement Fertilizer Rate Sidedress N (lb-N/ac)

Total N-P-K (lb/ac)

Strip Till "Low N Blend" via Planter 19-19-19 @ 160 lb/ac 105 135-30-30 Strip Till "Low N Blend" via Strip Tiller 19-19-19 @ 160 lb/ac 105 135-30-30

* ESN blend is 50% ESN and 50% Urea

Treatments


Total N-P-K (lb/ac)


Strip Till "ESN Blend" via Strip Tiller 34-8-8 @ 397 lb/ac 0 135-30-30 Strip Till "Urea Blend" via Strip Tiller 35-8-8 @ 390 lb/ac 0 135-30-30


Treatments


Total N-P-K (lb/ac)





Treatments


Total N-P-K (lb/ac)




No Till "Low N Blend" via Planter 19-19-19 @ 160 lb/ac 105 135-30-30 Cultivated "Low N Blend" via Planter 19-19-19 @ 160 lb/ac 105 135-30-30


Starter Fertilizer Placement: Planter vs. Strip Tiller

Both Treatments Spring Strip-Till, N applied at Sidedress

Year Location ST Planter Response Stat. (5%)

-------- Yield (bu/ac) -------- 2014 Bornholm 149 158 +9 NS 2015 Bornholm 159 153 -6 NS 2015 Elora 180 178 -2 NS 2015 Belwood 173 174 +1 NS 2015 Woodstock 223 224 +1 NS 2015 Paris 113 123 +10 NS

*Soil test P and K ranged from MR to LR

Safety: ESN vs. Urea

Both Treatments Spring Strip-Till, 50% ESN Blend or All Urea Blend in Strip

Year Location N Rate Urea ESN Response Stat. (5%)

lb-N/ac -------- Yield (bu/ac) -------- 2014 Bornholm 135 140 159 +19 NS 2014 Paris 135 178 183 +5 NS 2014 Bornholm 160 133 150 +17 NS

Safety: ESN in Strip vs. Sidedress

Both Treatments Spring Strip-Till, 50% ESN Blend In Strip or Sidedress UAN

Year Location N Rate SD ESN Response Stat. (5%)

lb-N/ac -------- Yield (bu/ac) -------- 2014 Bornholm 135 149 159 +10 NS 2014 Paris 135 186 183 -3 NS 2014 Bornholm 160 154 154 0 NS

2015 STORY COMING UP…

Tillage: Strip Till vs. No-Till

Starter Fertilizer Always on Planter, Sidedress UAN

Year Location NT ST Response Stat. (5%)

-------- Yield (bu/ac) -------- 2014 Bornholm 159 158 -1 NS 2014 Woodstock 192 192 0 NS 2014 Paris 182 186 +4 NS 2015 Elora 176 178 +2 NS 2015 Bornholm 158 153 -5 NS 2015 Woodstock 221 224 +3 NS 2015 Paris1 110 123 +13 NS

*Soils ranged from silt loam to sandy loam 1 – location suffered from drought stress, high variability

Paris: ESN Treatment (50% ESN, 50% Urea)

135 lb-N, 30 lb-P, 30 lb-K


135 lb-N, 30 lb-P, 30 lb-K


135 lb-N, 30 lb-P, 30 lb-K

Woodstock: ESN Treatment (50% ESN, 50% Urea)

160 lb-N, 40 lb-P, 40 lb-K

2015 2014

2015 2014

Banding Tube

One-Pass Strip Till Plant Populations: Good Rows at Elora

31 32

30 30 30 30

0

30

19-19-19 @160 lb/ac

2X2

19-19-19 @160 lb/ac ST

ESN blend@ 397 lb/ac

ST

Urea Blend@ 390 lb/ac

ST

ESN Blend@ 470 lb/ac

ST


ST

Plan

t Pop

ulat

ion

('000

/ac

One-Pass Strip Till Plant Populations: Good & Bad Rows at Elora

31 32

30 30 30 30 30

16

25

16

0

30

19-19-19 @160 lb/ac

2X2

19-19-19 @160 lb/ac ST


ST


ST


ST


ST

Plan

t Pop

ulat

ion

('000

/ac

One-Pass Strip Till Yields: Good Rows at Elora

180 180 173 179 186

0

50

100

150

200

19-19-19 @160 lb/ac

ST


ST


ST


ST


ST

Yiel

d (b

u/ac

)

One-Pass Strip Till Yields: Good & Bad Rows at Elora

180 180 173 179 186

146

114

134 132

0

50

100

150

200

19-19-19 @160 lb/ac

ST


ST


ST


ST


ST

Yiel

d (b

u/ac

)


180 180 173 179 186

146

114

134 132

0

50

100

150

200

19-19-19 @160 lb/ac

ST


ST


ST


ST


ST

Yiel

d (b

u/ac

)

-34 -45


180 180 173 179 186

146

114

134 132

0

50

100

150

200

19-19-19 @160 lb/ac

ST


ST


ST


ST


ST

Yiel

d (b

u/ac

)

-34 -45

-58 -53

One-Pass Strip Till Challenges: - Fertilizer injury - Red clover in spring

One-Pass Strip Till Challenges: - Fertilizer injury in 2015 - Red clover in spring

Questions: - How do you make fertilizer safer?

- Placement? (“band” vs. mixing) - Increase ESN%? - Dry year effect?

Contour Strip Tillage

- Till/plant perpendicular to slope - Rows act like mini dams to water flow

“Contour farming can reduce soil erosion by as much as 50% relative to up/down hill farming” USDA NRCS

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Elevation Survey


Contour Elevation Map

Elevation Survey


Contour Elevation Map

Elevation Survey Contour “Prescription”


“Curve AB Line” Contour

“Prescription”

Contour Strip Tillage ProTrakker Active Hitch



Implement Beacon


Contour Strip Tillage Challenges: - Ground conditions on knolls - Tight turns - Repeatability of operations

Contour Strip Tillage Challenges: - Ground conditions on knolls - Tight turns - Repeatability of operations

Contour Strip Tillage Challenges: - Ground conditions on knolls - Tight turns - Repeatability between

operations

Contour Strip Tillage Challenges: - Ground conditions on knolls - Tight turns - Repeatability between

operations - Field slope complexity

Thanks

Ontario Farm Innovation Program

Research project supported by:

http://www.gfo.ca/

http://www.adaptcouncil.org/index.php

Food

Eastern crop conference jan 18, 2016