Comparison of Reduced Tillage Cropping Systems

for Onions

Mulched No-Till vs. Cover Cropped Ridge Till

Fall

Oats Growing on Ridges

Following Spring

Mulch of Winterkilled Oats on Ridges

Mulch No-Till

• Slit made in soil for hand planting onions

• Ridge-Till top removed

• Lightly tilled

Cover Crop Ridge-Till

• Hand planted onions Stuttgart cooking onions

Mulch No-Till

• Mulch of wheat straw in valleys for moisture and erosion control

C.C. Ridge-Till

• 2 cultivations• Single seed hairy vetch as living mulch for erosion control

Mulch No-Till

Cover Crop Ridge-Till

MoistureCrop Value – Partial Crop Production Cost

Yield Soil Quality

Soil Temperature

Inputs

Ridge-Tillage with Vetch vs. No-till Ridges with Straw Mulch

0

20

40

60

80

100

23-May 2-Jun 12-Jun 22-Jun 2-Jul 12-Jul 22-Jul 1-Aug0

1

2

3

4

5

Soil Moisture

No-Till

Ridge-Till

Rainfall

Soil Water Potential

Date

Rainfall (in)

Moisture: Scale

• No Irrigation, => more moisture better• 0 = 0• 100 = 100• Results: No till with

mulchCC. Ridge

till

Average Moisture Reading 89 66

MoistureCrop Value – Partial Crop Production Cost

Yield Soil Quality

Soil Temperature

Inputs

Ridge-Tillage with Vetch vs. No-till Ridges with Straw Mulch

Soil TemperatureMaximum Soil Temperatures under Cropping Systems

40

45

5055

60

65

70

7580

85

90

4/16

4/23

4/30 5/

75/

145/

215/

28 6/4

6/11

6/18

6/25 7/

27/

9

Date (2004)

Tem

per

atu

re (

F)

Onions: No-till

Onions: Ridge-till

Soil Temperature: Scale and Results

• No significant difference between treatments• Ideal temperature for onions:

– 55o – 75o F during growth

• In dry/hot year, no-till would conserve more moisture and stable temperature

• Both treatments scaled:

100 for moderate & = temperatures

MoistureCrop Value – Partial Crop Production Cost

Yield Soil Quality

Soil Temperature

Inputs

Ridge-Tillage with Vetch vs. No-till Ridges with Straw Mulch

Soil Quality

No Till + MulchAverage

Ridge Till + vetchAverage

12 worms/ft3 12 worms/ft3Earthworm Count

Infiltration

Nutrient Levels

41.4 in/hr 40.3 in/hr

P Below optimum All optimum

Soil Quality Discussion and Scale• Slightly lower P2O5 in mulched no-till:

• Possibly due to leaching of nutrients through constant saturation and high infiltration rate

• Experiential double-cropping with brassicas after onion harvest supports lab finding of less than optimum P

• Earthworm results: • Optimum soil health indication = 25/ft3

• Varies with: time of day, soil moisture levels• This sample: 4 pm, hot day => still high

Mulched No-Till C.C. Ridge Till

Scale approximations: 75 85 (out of 100)

MoistureCrop Value – Partial Crop Production Cost

Yield Soil Quality

Soil Temperature

Inputs

Ridge-Tillage with Vetch vs. No-till Ridges with Straw Mulch

Differing Field Labor & Input Costs* (per 300 ft. row) Mulched Cover Crop +

Labor ($10/hr) No-till Ridge-tillSeedbed Preparation 3 min 6 minCultivation ----- 8 minMulching 1 hr 30 min -----Interseeding and ----- 5 min

Vine TrimmingHand-weeding 1 hr 45 min 35 minMaterialsMulch $9.00 -----Vetch Seed ----- $0.30

Total: $42.00 $9.30

* Does not include onion seed, harvesting, processing, & marketing

Differing Field Labor & Inputs: Scale

• 100 = $0 input

• 0 = $100

• Results:

Mulch No till CC. Ridge till

Input: $42.00 $9.30

Scale: 58 91

MoistureCrop Value – Partial Crop Production Cost

Yield Soil Quality

Soil Temperature

Inputs

Ridge-Tillage with Vetch vs. No-till Ridges with Straw Mulch

Yield & Quality

Yield Sample

Mulch No-Till C.C. Ridge Till

Total # 74 74

Rotten # 8 17

Good # 66 55

Yield lbs 39.5 31.75

Avg lbs per bulb 0.6 0.59

# Crates per Row 7.5 5.75

Yield: Scale

• 100 = 8 crates (= ~10 ton/acre)• 0 = 0 crates• Results:

7294Scale

5.757.5Crates

CC. Ridge till No till with

mulch

Yield difference primarily due to lower incidence of Fusarium Bottom Rot in no-till onions.

This was also observed in no-till onions in other fields.

MoistureCrop Value – Partial Crop Production Cost

Yield Soil Quality

Soil Temperature

Inputs

Ridge-Tillage with Vetch vs. No-till Ridges with Straw Mulch

Profit Margin= (Crop Value – Cost of differing inputs & field work)*

Straw Mulched No-Till:

$ 240** - $ 42 = $ 192/row

* Does not include onion seed, harvesting, processing, & marketing

Cover Crop Ridge-Till:

$ 184** - $ 9 = $ 175/row

Scale: 75 Scale: 68100 = $256** ($12,800/acre) 100 = $256** ($12,800/acre)

** $32.00/crate, assumes $0.80/lb. and 20% loss due to shrinkage and disease

MoistureCrop Value – Partial Crop Production Cost

Yield Soil Quality

Soil Temperature

Inputs

Ridge-Tillage with Vetch vs. No-till Ridges with Straw Mulch

MoistureCrop Value – Partial Crop Production Cost

Yield Soil Quality

Soil Temperature

Inputs

Ridge-Tillage with Vetch vs. No-till Ridges with Straw Mulch

• Soil moisture– Mulched no-till preserves more moisture during low rainfall, high

temperatures, and crop bulbing-up, which could affect yields.– Mulched no-till also provided more disease suppression in wet

weather– Caused more leaching of nutrients

• Soil moisture & temperature were similar in 2003• No-till yields and Ridge-till yields were same in 2003• Graphical Representation:

– Does not show definitive “better” growing technique– Grower’s perspective: ridge-till requires less labor during busy

season, but no-till promises more dependable yield and crop quality

Summary of Results