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 increase in the area under soybean and other legume crops in Europe is one of the assumptions of the European Soya Declaration. A study was undertaken to evaluate the influence of cropping system and tillage system on yield, some quality characteristics of soybean seeds and economic evaluation. Therefore, this paper is of interdisciplinary nature. On average over a four-year study period, the soybean seed yield was significantly higher in monoculture compared to the yield obtained in crop rotation. A decreasing trend in yield of monocultured soybean was only observed in the 4th year of the experiment. Seeds grown in monoculture were characterized by a significantly higher percentage protein content and a lower fat content compared to obtained in crop rotation. Plough tillage affected more beneficially soybean yield. Under no-tillage conditions, soybean seeds were shown to have a higher percentage protein content and a lower fat content. The average income per ha of soybean grown under plough tillage system was higher by EUR 64.6 than that under no-tillage. In comparing production profitability depending on the cropping system, it can be noted that it was more beneficial to grow soybean in monoculture. In monoculture, both plough tillage and no-tillage generated a higher income per ha than in the case of soybean grown in crop rotation.

An exact experiment, established in a system of randomized blocks, was aimed at determining the effect of crop rotation and 29-year cereal monoculture on the yield and quality of winter wheat grain as well as on straw yield, crop infestation with weeds, contents of organic C and total N in the soil, and the number of earthworms in the soil. Winter wheat was sown in two systems of crop succession: (1) in crop rotation (CR), and (2) in a cereal monoculture (CM). Winter wheat cultivation in the CM system resulted in a decrease of grain yield by 32%, compared to the CR system. Its grain yield reduction in the CM system was due to a lower number of spikes m⁻², lower 1000 grain weight, shorter spikes, and lower grain weight per spike, than in the CR system. Wheat grain from the CM system was characterized by a lower content of wet gluten, lesser grain uniformity and grain volume weight, and contained more total ash than the grain from the CR system. The number and air-dry weight of weeds were higher in the CM than in the CR system by 57.1% and 75%, respectively. Differences were also demonstrated in the species composition of weeds. The soil samples collected from the CM plot contained less organic C and total N than the samples derived from the CR system. Soil samples from the CM system had also a lower number of earthworms compared to the CR soil samples.

This study aimed to evaluate the yield and quality of winter wheat grain and soil properties in three tillage systems (TS): (1) Conventional (CT), (2) reduced (RT), and (3) no-tillage (NT). In the CT system, shallow ploughing (at a depth of 10–12 cm from soil surface) and pre-sow ploughing (at a depth of 18–22 cm from soil surface) were performed after the harvest of the previous crop (peas). In the RT system, the shallow ploughing was replaced by field cultivation, whereas pre-sow ploughing was by a tillage unit. In the NT system, a herbicide treatment with glyphosate (4 L ha⁻¹) replaced the ploughing measures, whereas a tillage unit including a cultivator, a string roller, and a harrow was used before wheat sowing. Higher wheat yields were recorded in CT than in NT (by 4.3%) and in 2016 compared to 2015 (by 23.4%). The tillage system differentiated spike number m⁻², whereas study years affected spike number m⁻², grain weight per spike, and 1000 grain weight. Study years also influenced all quality traits of the grain, whereas tillage systems—only grain uniformity and ash content of the grain. A less uniform grain with a higher ash content was produced in NT than in CT and RT systems. Organic C content in the soil was higher in NT than in CT and RT systems. In turn, total nitrogen and phosphorus contents were higher in the soil from NT and RT than CT, whereas potassium and magnesium contents—in RT and NT compared to the CT system.

This experiment aimed at evaluating the yield and weed infestation of winter durum wheat grown in a multi-year cereal monoculture (CM) and crop rotation (CR) as well as in three tillage systems: (1) conventional tillage—CT, (2) reduced tillage—RT, and (3) no-tillage—NT. Shallow ploughing and pre-sowing ploughing were performed in the CT system; a cultivator and a cultivating set were used in the RT system, whereas glyphosate and a cultivating set were applied in the NT system. Grain yield was lower in CM than in CR (1.43 t ha⁻¹ vs. 3.91 t ha⁻¹) as well as in NT than in RT and CT systems. Grain yield and its components were determined to a greater extent by cropping systems (CS) than by tillage systems (TS). The number and air-dry weight of weeds per m² were higher in CM than in CR, and also in RT than in NT and CT, and were found to be more affected by TS than by CS. At the tillering stage of wheat, more weed species occurred in CM than in CR, whereas at the stage of waxy maturity of wheat—in CR than in CM. Likewise, a higher number of weed species was identified in RT than in CT and NT systems.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of tillage system and previously cultivated crop on the chemical properties and enzyme activity of soil. The first-order experimental factor was the tillage system, i.e., (1) conventional tillage (CT) and (2) reduced tillage (RT), whereas the second-order experimental factor was the previously cultivated crop, i.e., a) pea and b) durum wheat. Samples of soil were analyzed for the contents of organic C, total N, available forms of P, K, and Mg, as well as soil pH, total sorption capacity, and activity of soil enzymes (dehydrogenases, phosphatases, ureases, and proteases). The study demonstrated that the contents of organic C, total N, and available forms of K and Mg as well as soil pH were higher in soil subjected to RT than in that subjected to CT. In plots after pea cultivation, higher values were determined for the contents of total N and Mg, whereas in plots after durum wheat cultivation, the contents of organic C, P, and K and the soil pH were higher. Higher activities of dehydrogenases and phosphatases in soil were noted in soils subjected to the CT system than in those subjected to the RT system, whereas the activities of ureases and proteases were higher in soils subjected to RT. In addition, higher activities of dehydrogenases, phosphatases, and proteases were determined in the soil after pea cultivation than after durum wheat cultivation, whereas a higher activity of ureases was found in the soil after durum wheat cultivation. The C/N ratio was more beneficial after CT than after RT, as well as in the soil from plots after pea cultivation than after durum wheat cultivation.