In recent years, there has been an increasing interest around agricultural science and practice in conservation tillage systems that are compatible with sustainable agriculture. The aim of this study was to assess the qualitative and quantitative changes in weed flora and soil seed bank under reduced tillage and no-till (direct sowing) in comparison with traditional ploughing. In the crop rotation: pea/rape—winter wheat—winter wheat the number and dry weight of weeds increased with the simplification of tillage. The seed bank was the largest under direct sowing and about three times smaller in traditional ploughing. Under direct sowing, most weed seeds were accumulated in the top soil layer 0–5 cm, while in the ploughing system most weed seeds occurred in deeper layers: 5–10 and 10–20 cm. In the reduced and no-till systems, a greater percentage of perennial and invasive species, such as Conyza canadensis L., was observed. The results show that it is possible to maintain weed infestation in the no-till system at a level that does not significantly affect winter wheat yield and does not pose a threat of perennial and invasive weeds when effective herbicide protection is applied.

An experiment, conducted over the period 2008–2010, evaluated the effect of tillage system on the occurrence and species composition of anthropophytes in winter wheat, maize and spring wheat. Regardless of crop plant and tillage system, anthropophytes (73.9%), represented by archaeophytes and kenophytes, were the main component of the flora in the crops studied, whereas apophytes accounted for the remaining 26.1%. Most archaeophytes (13 species) were found in the spring wheat crop under no-tillage, while their lowest number (6 species) occurred in the spring wheat crop under conventional tillage. The only kenophyte, Conyza canadensis, was found to occur in the spring wheat and maize crops in the no-tillage system. The following taxa were dominant species among archeophytes: Geranium pusillum, Anthemis arvensis, and Viola arvensis (regardless of tillage system and crop plant), Anthemis arvensis (in spring wheat – conventional tillage), Echinochloa crus-galli and Setaria glauca (in maize – reduced tillage and no-tillage), Chenopodium album (in maize – no-tillage) as well as Apera spica-venti, Anthemis arvensis and Papaver rhoeas (in winter wheat – no-tillage).

Straw, particularly cereal straw, is a valuable by-product of crop production, which can be used for various purposes, e.g. as livestock feed and bedding or for making fuels, however it should primarily be retained on farmland in order to prevent soil organic matter (SOM) losses and thus to maintain or improve soil quality. The aim of this study was to analyze effects of the frequency of crop residues (straw) incorporation into the soil on the content of soil organic matter and on crop yields. There were the following experimental treatments: SR – straw of all crop in the rotation removed, S1 – straw of one crop per rotation incorporated, S2 – straw of two crops in the rotation incorporated, and S3 – straw of three crops incorporated into the soil (loamy sand). After 21 years of crop rotation with straw removal (SR) the SOM level in the soil slightly decreased to 14.4 g∙kg –1 soil DM, compared to that in 1997 (14.6 g∙kg –1). However, when straw of one crop (rape) per rotation was incorporated (S1) the content of SOM increased to 15.0 g∙kg -1 soil DM, and to 15.6 and 16.0 g∙kg –1 in S2 and S3 treatments respectively. Straw retention had also a beneficial effect on the content of labile fractions of SOM (hot water extractable C and N). Grain yields and yield components of wheat and triticale, and seed yields of rape in the SR treatment were not significantly different from those obtained in S1, S2 and S3 treatments.

Open Access Agricultural Journals published by Institute of Agricultural Economics and Information

Straw is a valuable by-product of crop production which can be used for various purposes (livestock feed and bedding, bioenergy). However, it should primarily be retained on farmlands to prevent soil organic matter (SOM) losses. Straw retained on the field is usually incorporated into the soil when conventional (with ploughing) and reduced tillage systems are used or left on the soil surface (mulching) when a no-tillage system is practiced. The aim of this study was to determine how different straw management practices (straw removal, straw incorporation and straw mulching) affected the incidence of Cephalosporium gramineum on two winter wheat cultivars, the grain yield of these cultivars and selected soil properties based on a long-term micro-plot experiment. Cephalosporium stripe disease was absent or occurred at very low levels (0-2.4%) when straw was removed or incorporated every second year. The disease was most severe, 24-33% tillers infected, in the SM(N) treatment with yearly straw mulching and cv. Bogatka was more tolerant to C. gramineum infection than cv. Bamberka. Importantly, yearly straw incorporation into the soil in contrast to straw mulching resulted in low disease levels (5-8% tillers infected) in both cultivars. Only in the case of cv. Bamberka was the grain yield significantly reduced in the SM(N) treatment compared to other treatments. The soil in this experiment contained the lowest level of soil SOM, which amounted to 21.0 g • kg-1 soil dry matter (DM), when each year wheat straw was removed (SR). Straw incorporation every second year resulted in 24.2 g of SOM • kg-1 soil and the largest amounts of SOM (26.0-26.1 g • kg-1 soil) were found with yearly straw incorporation into the soil. Yearly straw mulching was inferior in this respect and the soil in this treatment contained 23.8 g of SOM • kg-1 soil DM.