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Highlights: [•] The response of different crops to compaction were compared in totally 40 experiments. [•] For barley and wheat, moderate compaction increased yield compared with no traffic. [•] In general, dicots were more sensitive to compaction than monocots. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Rapid, uniform crop establishment is a precondition for efficient crop production. In order to develop guidelines for seedbed preparation and sowing, extensive experiments were carried out in plastic boxes placed in the field directly on the ground for studies of the effects of seedbed properties on crop emergence. This paper deals with the effects on emergence of cereals caused by surface-layer hardening, induced by simulated rainfall (irrigation) after sowing followed by dry weather. The experimental crop was spring barley (Hordeum vulgare L.). Soils for the experiments (Eutric Cambisols, silt loam or clay loam in most cases) were collected from the surface layer of farm fields in various parts of Sweden. On soils with high silt content, irrigation after sowing often caused slumping and subsequent hardening of the whole seedbed. On clay soils, usually only a shallow surface crust formed. The earliest irrigation had the most negative effects on crop emergence. On a silt loam soil with unstable structure, irrigation with only 5 mm reduced emergence to under 20%. Later or heavier irrigation was often less negative, as it allowed the plants to emerge before the surface layer dried and hardened. Deep sowing greatly increased the negative effects on emergence, whereas soil aggregate size usually had negligible effects. It was concluded that when sowing in practice, seedbed preparation and sowing depth should be chosen to promote the fastest possible emergence. Sowing immediately before rain should be avoided, as should shallow sowing that requires rain for the seed to germinate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For studies of the effects of seedbed properties on crop emergence, experiments were carried out in shallow plastic boxes. In some experiments, it was examined whether rainfall after sowing could cause oxygen deficiency in the seedbed sufficiently severe to hamper emergence. Crops studied were barley (Hordeum vulgare L.), wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), oilseed rape (Brassica napus var. oleifera, L., Metzg.) and pea (Pisum sativum L.). For harmful oxygen deficiency to develop it appeared that rainfall would need to cause structural collapse of the surface layer followed by continuously wet weather accompanied by slow drainage and high oxygen consumption in the soil; in the experiments the latter was achieved by large amounts of easily decomposable organic matter. It was concluded that such conditions are rare in the field. Therefore, unless rainfall after sowing generates surface water for an extended period, the poor crop emergence often observed after such rainfall is nearly always caused not by oxygen deficiency, but by surface layer hardening when this layer dries. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Rapid and uniform crop establishment is a prerequisite for efficient crop production and minimal environmental impact. Extensive experiments were carried out in shallow plastic boxes placed in the field directly on the ground for studies of the effects of seedbed properties on emergence of small-grain cereal crops in a cool, temperate climate. This paper presents studies of the seedbed as a protective layer against evaporation and the requirements for good emergence under dry weather conditions. Without rainfall after sowing, nearly complete emergence of barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) was obtained, when rapidly germinating seed was placed on a moderately compacted basal layer containing at least 5% (w/w) plant-available water and covered by a 4 cm deep surface layer consisting of aggregates < 5 mm. This applied even when initial water content in the surface layer was below the wilting point and potential evaporation was high. If the soil at 4 cm depth is drier or if a sufficiently fine seedbed cannot be obtained, then seedbed and sowing depth should be somewhat greater, and if the soil is wetter, then the depth may be smaller. There were only small differences in emergence between surface layers consisting of aggregates < 2 mm, 2-4 mm or 2-5 mm, or dominated by these aggregate fractions, but when the surface layer consisted of coarser aggregates, emergence was usually much lower. Determinations of water losses from the soil during the experimental period showed that the differences in emergence were caused by differences in efficiency of the seedbed to control evaporation. The results indicate that, in an initially wet soil, it is always possible to find a time and method for seedbed preparation and sowing that lead to good emergence of small-grain cereal crops, even with a lengthy period without rainfall after sowing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rapid and uniform crop establishment is a prerequisite for efficient crop production and minimal environmental impact. Experiments were carried out in shallow plastic boxes placed directly on the ground in the field for studies of the effects of seedbed properties on emergence of various crops. This paper presents an analysis of the time required for germination and emergence under near-optimal seedbed conditions. The crops studied were barley, oats, wheat, pea, rape seed, white mustard, sugar beet, red clover and timothy. The time required for germination generally increased with size of the seeds, presumably because larger seeds needed more water to initiate germination. This applied both when comparing different crops and different seed sizes of the same crop. However, considerable differences occurred between seed lots of the same crop and there were greater differences between seed lots of the same crop than between the three small grain crops studied. Growth rate of the seedlings generally increased with seed size, presumably because of increased energy content in the seed. Consequently, the most rapid emergence was obtained from small seeds at shallow sowing and from large seeds at deep sowing. The crops studied had a minimum temperature for germination and seedling growth close to 0 °C. Under optimal seedbed conditions, thermal time required for 50% germination of barley was typically about 65 °C days over this base temperature and for seedling growth about 6 °C days cm-1. From 4 cm sowing depth, about 80 °C days were required for emergence but with considerable variations between seed lots. For rape seed or white mustard about 40 °C days were required for germination and about 8 °C days cm-1 for the seedling growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studies the effect of soil compaction on nutrient uptake and growth of barley. Decrease in biomass production and nutrient uptake in low and high bulk densities; Reasons for reduced biomass and nutrient uptake in compacted and loose soils; Yield increase owing to recompaction in the field.