Yield and energy requirement of durum wheat under no-tillage and conventional tillage in the mediterranean climate

Abstract

A key principle of no-tillage (NT) system is the retention of crop residues on the soil surface to preserve soil water for crop growth. In response to the negative impact of soil degradation processes under conventional tillage (CT) systems that are based on soil tillage, NT systems without tillage practices and with protective cover of crop residue are being developed in many parts of the world. Apart from the positive effects on soil conservation and sustained land productivity, another major impact of NT is decreasing labor costs, generally leading to higher income and a better standard of living for the farmers. However NT is a successful system especially in the South of America, but the impacts of this system in the Mediterranean climate especially in the south of France is less well known; so that this study has been carried out within the scope of a European project. Durum wheat was sown for two years under two tillage treatments i.e. CT and NT. Time requirement and fuel consumption in these two systems were measured. The results show that the crop production is higher in CT system, while work duration and energy requirement is lower in NT system.