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Research offers insights on how to adapt to future climate changes by adjusting specific management practices.

July 30, 2019

2 Min Read
young corn plants with drops of rain on them
WEATHER VARIABILITY: Precipitation trends in the coming decades are expected to become more variable as the climate changes. Tyler Harris

By Charles Shapiro

From droughts to flooding, extreme hydrological phenomena are the costliest hazards in rain-fed agriculture in Nebraska and around the world.

Precipitation trends in the coming decades are expected to become more variable as the climate changes, making these rain-fed production systems potentially more vulnerable to large hydrological fluctuations.

A recent article published in the Soil and Tillage Research Journal explores how a long-term tillage study in northeast Nebraska can offer insights on how to successfully adapt to future climate changes by adjusting specific management practices.

The article, "What do meteorological indices tell us about a long-term tillage study?" written by Ankit Shekhar of the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur and Charles Shapiro, emeritus University of Nebraska-Lincoln professor and soil scientist, examines water and climate conditions and crop responses to various management changes.

The researchers used two meteorological drought indices, the Standardized Precipitation Index and the Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index, to determine if either helps differentiate the tillage, nitrogen and rotation treatments across the indices' ranges, and in making management decisions.

Among the findings are:

• A corn-soybean rotation under normal and wet conditions increased corn yields 28% and 17% compared with a corn-corn sequence. However, under extreme and prolonged drought conditions (more than a year), corn yield was 17% greater in continuous corn compared with a corn-soybean rotation.

• If future seasonal climatic conditions are wetter, nitrogen rates may need to be increased.

• Under dry conditions for both a corn-corn and corn-soybean rotation, no-till had 10% and 24% greater yield than disk and plowing, respectively. However, under wet conditions, corn yield under disk or plow was 3% greater than under no-till.

Shapiro is a professor emeritus at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

Source: UNL CropWatch, which is solely responsible for the information provided and is wholly owned by the source. Informa Business Media and all its subsidiaries are not responsible for any of the content contained in this information asset.

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