Sod-based Rotation (Bahia) Impact on Cropping Systems. David Wright

Transcription

1 Sod-based Rotation (Bahia) Impact on Cropping Systems David Wright

2 Sod-based Peanut-Cotton Rotation Sod System: (CBBP) Conventional System: (PCCP) oat/rye Bahia oats Peanut oats Cotton Bahia oat/rye oat/rye Cotton oats Cotton Peanut Strip till was used in each year with best management practices. The sod based rotation rotates perennial grass through row crop land.

3 Agron. J : Started with native grasses Magruder Plots, Stillwater, OK

4 Why the Sod Based Rotation? Environmental Benefits Year round utilization of the land which utilizes nutrients vs. (most crops grown from May-October and nutrients are used or leached after the crop) Greater water infiltration and enhanced plant growth (roots and top) Increased soil organic matter Cattle recycle nutrients and result in less nitrates being leached through the soil profile (as much as 70-90% is recycled) as well as P, K, Ca, Mg Enhanced soil physical and chemical properties Enhanced soil flora and fauna More soil cover for temperature moderation and less erosion and nutrient movement into streams and rivers Enhanced yields and quality of crops and 2-7 times more profit for land owners making the system economically viable

5 Why The Sod Based Rotation? Water, nutrients and low or no pests key to production Enhanced soil moisture through higher infiltration and greater rooting of following crops following bahia root channels Increased soil OM resulting in better soil structure and nutrient and moisture retention (.1%/yr) Reduced nematodes, diseases, etc. Increased crop yield and quality with 25-50% higher yields on peanut, cotton and winter grazing Risk management- having only half as much of the farm in cash crops (1000 acre farm would have 500 acres of crops vs in row crops resulting in $250,000 less input for the year) 2-7 fold increase in net farm income 25% of FL and GA row crop farmers have cattle and are the ones that should look at it first

6 Large acreages cannot be planted and harvested timely and having half the farm in a perennial grass helps in timeliness. Cattle can add year round utilization of the land and income with good conditions for winter grazing in most years (low pests and good moisture and temperature) Field work

7 This system is intensive and a farmer can often make as much profit on a 400 acre sod/row crop/livestock farm as on acres of row crops. Conservation agriculture= labor, fuel, soil, moisture, equipment savings. This is what most conservation groups across the country strive for. Our goal was to develop a farm system that a young farmer could start on 250 acres and make a living with a small investment, and do it in an environmentally friendly way. Sod based rotation= same advantages of conservation agriculture plus, more OM, higher moisture retention, more nutrient recycling and less applied nutrients, higher yields, higher quality crops, lower pest pressure and 2-7 times more profit especially if animals are part of the system.

8 Sod-based Peanut-Cotton Rotation Sod System: (B1-B2-P-C) Bahia Yr. 1 Cotton Oat/rye 90 cow/calf pairs 160 acre sod based system with variable rate center pivot Bahia Yr. 2 Oat/rye Oat/rye Peanut Strip till is used for summer crops with best management practices

9 Tri-state project (GA, FL, AL) Non irrigated Irrigated Sodbased Replicated small trials with and without irrigation Conventional Rotation comparisons CCP vs BBPC

10 Data Collected from Rotation Studies Nitrogen uptake Water infiltration Soil moisture Soil compaction Earthworm populations Plant growth measurements (root, LAI, leaf water potential, etc.) Crop yield and quality Bulk density Soil nitrate Organic matter content Disease Economics of system Cattle impact on soil Soil respiration Microbial organic matter, etc.

11 CER (g CO 2 m -2 ) Effect of Tillage Tool on Cumulative Carbon Dioxide Loss after 24 hours Plow MP RM NT SS MK L128 Conservation tillage y = x R 2 = Cross Sectional Area Loosened Soil (cm 2 )

12 -Goal Rotate bahiagrass through row crop land to gain benefits in yield, quality, pest control and economics. About 25% of Florida row crop farmers have cattle and are the ones who should try this first. They know cattle and row crops but pastures are in certain fields from row crops and they do not overlap.

13 Conservation agriculture has stopped most wind and water erosion but has not always increased yields

14 % SOM % SOM in SOD BASED ROTATION Bahia has 20,000 lbs root mass per acre vs. 3-4,000 lbs for winter annuals Year

15 Soil Organic Matter (OM) vs. Soil Moisture at 32 DAP Soil Moisture (%) Y = 1.63X+2.77 r 2 = Soil OM (%)

16 Bahia killed in fall and planted to oat/rye Planting bahiagrass into winter grazing in January March (early planting for bahia is key). Ryegrass does not fit well due to competition or alleopathy. 1 yr. old bahia

17 Yield of small grain forage has been shown to be about 30% higher after crops in the bahia rotation than in standard cotton/peanut rotations for 3 years.

18 Hay is harvested from oat/rye where overseeded into killed bahiagrass prior to planting peanut and fed back into the system. No bahia hay is baled since small grain hay quality is higher.

19 Non irrigated Irrigated Irr. Vs. Non Irr. in sod based and conventional rotations

20 July 8, N 60 lbs N/A on 6/8/09 PCCP More N uptake due to higher SOM and soil moisture content as well as deeper roots 0 N 60 lbs N/A on 6/8/09 BBPC

21 Area (cm2) Total Root Area for Cotton Rotations Bahia Conv 1 Conv 2 Rotation

22 Soil nitrates at 2 ft depth in cotton From suction cup lysimeters Little N left at end of the season due to higher uptake

23 Ct-P-Ct-P S-Ct-Ct-P Oat cover crop Oat cover crop F-F-Ct-P O-O-Ct-P Fescue Orchardgrass VT in 2006

24 lbs/acre Virginia Tech at Tidewater REC 2006 YIELD!!! Lint Yield % higher yield Ct-Ct-Ct Ct-C-Ct Ct-P-Ct F-F-Ct O-O-Ct S-Ct-Ct Treatment

25 Cotton yield in three rotations in Cotton In Bahia rotation 1 st year cotton BBPC PCC PCC nd year cotton 1350 kg/ha

26 Cotton Leaf Water Potential (2007) Leaf wter potential (MPa) Sod Cotton Conv. Cotton 1 Conv. Cotton 2 Irrigated Cotton Leaf wter potential (MPa) Leaf wter potential (MPa) Days after planting Non-irrigated Cotton Sod Cotton Conv. Cotton 1 Conv. Cotton 2 Irrigated Cotton Leaf wter potential (MPa) Days after planti

27 Peanut Leaf Water Potential in 2007 Leaf water potential (MPa) (0.53) (0.41) (0.13) Sod (Irrigated) (Non-irrigated) Conv. (Irrigated) (Non-irrigated) Days after planting (0.73) (0.12) Sod-based peanuts had less water stress than the conventional peanuts most of the season under both irrigated and non-irrigated conditions.

28 Nematodes/100 cm 3 soil from CBBP PCCP 50 0 Reniform RKN

29 Percent peanut yield averaged over 8 years, Quincy sod Conv. sod Conv. 50 CBBP Use irrigation at key times, planting, digging, etc. PCCP Irrigated Non irrigated

30 Ab Ab Cumulative N (kg/ha) Days after Planting S.C (0N) S.C (95N) C.C1 (0N) C.C1 (95N) C.C2 (0N) C.C2 (95N) Days after Planting 2007 Cumulative N (kg/ha) Days after Planting S.C (0N) S.C (95N) C.C1 (0N) C.C1 (95N) C.C2 (0N) C.C2 (95N) Days after Planting 2008 Plant N uptake during the growing season as affected by cropping system and N rate

31 Lint Yield (kg ha -1 ) a b b b b c N 95 N 0 N 95 N kg N ha kg N ha Lint Yield (kg ha -1 ) 1000 a ab cd bc e de S.Cotton C.Cotton1 C.Cotton2 Crop Rotation 0 S.Cotton C.Cotton1 C.Cotton2 Crop Rotation Cover crops without cattle in both systems

32 Depth (in) Soil cation exchange capacity (CEC) in sod-based rotation after Bahia- Peanut and winter grazing before Cotton 2009, Marianna 0 CEC (meq 100 g -1 ) Non-Irrigated Non-Grazed Non-Irrigated Grazed Irrigated Non-Grazed Irrigated Grazed

33 Depth (cm) Nitrate-N in soil profile of sod-based rotation after Bahia- Peanut and winter grazing before Cotton 2009, Marianna 0 Nitrate-N (lb/ac) Cattle recycling N Non-Irrigated Un-Grazed Irrigated Un-Grazed Non-Irrigated Grazed Irrigated Grazed

34 Depth (in) Phosphorus (P) in soil profile of sod-based rotation after Bahia- Peanut and winter grazing before Cotton 2009, Marianna 0 P (lb/ac) Non-Irrigated Non-Grazed Irrigated Non-Grazed Non-Irrigated Grazed Irrigated Grazed

35 Depth (in) Potassium (K) in soil profile of sod-based rotation after Bahia- Peanut and winter grazing before Cotton 2009, Marianna 0 K (lb/ac) Non-Irrigated Non-Grazed Irrigated Non-Grazed Non-Irrigated Grazed Irrigated Grazed

36 Lint Yield (lbs./a) Cotton Yield Response to Irrigation and Grazing (2008 Marianna) In bahia rotation a ab bc c 0 Irr Non-irr Irr Non-irr Grazed Non Grazed

37 Cattle-bahia no-cattle bahia cover crops only 2000 lbs/a Cotton Yield 1000lbs/A Sod Conservation tillage conventional till

38 YEAR 1 FIELD CROP YIELD UNITS ACRES COSTS REVENUE PROFIT 1 BAHIA 1 2 TONS COTTON 900 LBS PEANUT 3700 LBS COTTON 900 LBS TOTAL YEAR 2 FIELD CROP YIELD UNITS ACRES COSTS REVENUE PROFIT 1 CATTLE 81 CALVES BAHIA 1 2 TONS COTTON 900 LBS PEANUT 3700 LBS TOTAL YEAR 3 FIELD CROP YIELD UNITS ACRES COSTS REVENUE PROFIT YEAR 4 1 PEANUT 4400 LBS CATTLE 81 CALVES BAHIA 1 2 TONS COTTON 900 LBS TOTAL FIELD CROP YIELD UNITS ACRES COSTS REVENUE PROFIT 1 COTTON 1250 LBS PEANUT 4400 LBS CATTLE 81 CALVES BAHIA 1 2 TONS TOTAL

39 Bottom line- Make as much profit in one year in the sod based system as in 4 years in a conventional system. A 400 acre farm in the sod based rotation has a profit potential equal to acre traditional row crop farm. Using our model of peanut/cotton cost of about $500/A you would risk $100K in the sod based system and $800K in the traditional system to make the same profit (risk management). Environmental benefits are unequalled with any conservation farming system.

40 This rotation with perennial grass, livestock, annual row crops results in 50-70% less irrigation, less N needed, less N leached, higher yields of winter grazing, peanuts and cotton, and 2-7 times more profit with year round utilization of land, nutrients and water

41 Thank You! Questions? University of Florida, Auburn University, UGA, National Soil Dynamics, National Peanut Laboratory, Virginia Tech, Texas A&M The Nature Conservancy, NRCS, Cotton Inc., NWF Water Mgt. District, SRWMD, Jackson Blue Springs, NESPAL, Flint River WMD, Coca Cola Foundation, and others

42 Comparison of a conventional and a sod based system Conventional system use land days a year vs. year round with crops plus winter grazing which controls weeds after first crop and is intense. Cattle add intensity and year round labor needs. Roots of row crops expand for the first days before the plant goes into reproductive stage of growth vs. continuous growth for perennial grasses which leads to more soil exploration, nutrient and water utilization Nitrogen used on annual crops can be lost after crop maturity if a second crop is not planted vs. being used for 6-9 months by perennial grass or 6 months by a summer crop followed by 6 months for winter grazing Cattle recycle nutrients and if used at stocking rates of one animal per 1-2 acres can prevent leaching of nutrients and can reduce applied N, P, K, and other nutrients substantially Nutrient loss is highest with single annual crops using conventional tillage and is less with cover crops with conservation tillage and cattle, vs. even less with crops following bahiagrass with the least loss where cattle are part of the system perennial/annual crop system