Soil structure of a clay loam as affected by long-term tillage and residue management

Soil structure is of great importance for a number of other related properties and agricultural management affects it. Under semiarid climatic conditions, soil water for crop growth is particularly important and water retention characteristics are highly dependent on soil structure. Soil physical properties relevant to infer structure were examined along with some basic parameters in a Greek long-term experiment (Thesustill). The objectives of this study were the impacts of tillage system (conventional, reduced and no-till) and crop residue management (removed or remaining) in a sandy clay loam on the functionality of the pore network. Soil organic carbon content and aggregate stability increased with reduction in soil disturbance and greater inputs of organic material. Dexter-n, representing the amount of organic carbon not complexed with clay, which controls soil physical behaviour, improved with addition of crop residues and even more so with reduction in tillage intensity. No-till had a negative impact on soil bulk density and penetration resistance, water retention was increased between pF 1.5 to 4.2. A major result was that reduced tillage was most beneficial in terms of plant available water, also the pore network and its connectivity improved as indicated by gas diffusion results. No-till had far lower air-filled porosities at comparable matric potentials than tilled soils, but diffusivities were high, suggesting well-connected pipe-like pores. Results were unaffected by textural variability. Reduced tillage overall is the most promising option, the impact of residue management likely needs more time to induce the expectable improvements. © 202

Farm management information systems: Current situation and future perspectives

Farm Management Information Systems (FMIS) in agriculture have evolved from simple farm record-keeping into sophisticated and complex systems to support production management. The purpose of current FMIS is to meet the increased demands to reduce production costs, comply with agricultural standards, and maintain high product quality and safety. This paper presents current advancements in the functionality of academic and commercial FMIS. The study focuses on open-field crop production and centeres on farm managers as the primary users and decision makers. Core system architectures and application domains, adoption and profitability, and FMIS solutions for precision agriculture as the most information-intensive application area were analyzed. Our review of commercial solutions involved the analysis of 141 international software packages, categorized into 11 functions. Cluster analysis was used to group current commercial FMIS as well as examine possible avenues for further development. Academic FMIS involved more sophisticated systems covering compliance to standards applications, automated data capture as well as interoperability between different software packages. Conversely, commercial FMIS applications targeted everyday farm office tasks related to budgeting and finance, such as recordkeeping, machinery management, and documentation, with emerging trends showing new functions related to traceability, quality assurance and sales

CIGR E-Journal Volume 4

Rosana G. Moreira, Editor-in-Chief; Texas A&M UniversityPeer Reviewed Technical Articles: (1) G. Brehme and K.-H. Krause. Compartmental Airflow Simulation in Stables with Natural Ventilation. Vol. IV. January 2002. (2) J.F. Ortega, J.M. Tarjuelo, and J.A. Juan. Evaluation of Irrigation Performance in Localized Irrigation Systems of Semiarid Regions(Castilla-La Mancha, Spain). Vol. IV. February 2002. (3) E.A. Ajav and O.A. Akingbehin. A Study of some Fuel Properties of Local Ethanol Blended with Diesel Fuel. Vol. IV. March 2002. (4) B. Bjerg, K. Svidt, S. Morsing, G. Zhang, and J.O. Johnson. Modelling of a Wall Inlet in Numerical Simulation of Airflow in Livestock Buildings. Vol. IV. March 2002. (5) V. Alchanatis, Y. Kashti, and R. Brikman. A Machine Vision System for Evaluation of Planter Seed Spatial Distribution. Vol. IV. April 2002. (6) O. Slobodzian-Ksenicz, and T. Kuczynski. Effect of Litter Type on Ammonia Emission in Turkey Housing. Vol. IV. May 2002. (7) H.M. Houszka. Thermal Conditions within a Piglet Creep Area with Different Cover Constructions and Different Surface of Cover Materials. Vol. IV. May 2002. (8) R. Tsheko. Discrimination of Plant Species Using Co Occurrence Matrix of Leaves. Vol. IV. May 2002. (9) C.K. Cavalaris and T.A. Gemtos. Evaluation of Four Conservation Tillage Methods in the Sugar Beet Crop. Vol. IV. June 2002. (10) L. Wang, C.B. Parnell and B.W. Shaw. A Study of the Cyclone Fractional Efficiency Curves. Vol. IV. June 2002. (11) H. Takai, K. Nekomoto, P.J. Dahl, E. Okamoto, S. Morita, and S. Hoshiba. Ammonia Contents and Desorption from Dusts Collected in Livestock Buildings. Vol. IV. June 2002. (12) L. Wang, C.B. Parnell and B.W. Shaw. Performance Characteristics of Cyclones in Cotton-Gin Dust Removal. Vol. IV. August 2002. (13) A. Ikeguchi. Ultra Sonic Sprayer Controlling Dust in Experimental Poultry Houses. Vol. IV. October 2002. (14) Y. Nagasaka, K. Taniwaki, R. Otani, and K. Shigeta. An Automated Rice Transplanter with RTKGPS and FOG. Vol. IV. October 2002. (15) Y. Hirai, E. Inoue, K. Mori, and K. Hashiguchi. Analysis of Reaction Forces and Posture of a Bunch of Crop Stalks During Reel Operations of a Combine Harvester. Vol. IV. October 2002. (16) A. Oida and M. Momozu. Simulation of Soil Behavior and Reaction by Machine Part by Means of DEM. Vol. IV. October 2002. (17) A. Oida, H. Shimizu, J. Miyasaka, H. Fujimoto and T. Ibuki. Study on the Performance of a Model Electric Off-Road Vehicle. Vol. IV. October 2002. (18)Y. Kaizu, T. Okamoto and K. Imou. Shape Recognition and Growth Measurement of Micropropagated Sugarcane Shoots. Vol. IV. October 2002. (19)D. Pochi and D. Vannucci. Prediction of Pesticide Distribution on the Ground Based on Boom Sprayer Movements. Vol. IV. December 2002. (20)A. Natsis, G. Papadakis, and I. Pitsilis. Experimental Investigation of the Influence of the Foreploughshare and the Disk Coulter on the Tillage Quality and the Tractor Fuel Consumption. Vol. IV. December 2002. (21)N. Isaac, R. Taylor, S. Staggenborg, M. Schrock, and D. Leikam. Using Cone Index Data to Explain Yield Variation Within a Field. Vol. IV. December 2002. (22)V.Y. Chertkov. Characteristic Crack Dimensions of Saturated Drying Soils: Theory and Applications. Vol. IV. December 2002. (23)E. Morimoto, M. Suguri and M. Umeda. Obstacle Avoidance System for Autonomous Transportation Vehicle based on Image Processing. Vol. IV. December 2002. (24) F. Curto, I. Naas, D. Pereira, D. Salagado, M. Murayama and F. Behrens. Predicting Broiler Breeder?s Behavior Using Electronic Identification. Vol. IV. December 2002. (25) H. Heege and B. Feldhaus. Site Specific Control of Seed-Numbers per Unit Area for Grain Drills. Vol. IV. December 2002... Invited Overview Articles: (1) J. Pawlak, G. Pellizzi and M. Fiala. On the Development of Agricultural Mechanization to Ensure a Long- Term World Food Supply. Club of Bologna. Vol. IV. June 2002 (2) F. Coolman. Developments in Dutch Farm Mechanization: Past and Future. Vol. IV. August 2002. (3) J. Pawlak. Farm Machinery Market in the Second Half of the XX Century. Vol. IV. July 2002. (4) J. Cuello. Foreword to Agricultural Engineering and International Development in the Third Millennium. Vol. IV. September 2002 (5) L. Clarke and C. Bishop. Farm Power/Present and Future Availability in Developing Countries. Vol. IV. October 2002. (6) T. Takakura. Food Production Strategy in East Asia-Engineering Perspective in the Third Millennium. Vol. IV. October 2002 (7) A. Tamimi. Cooperation Through Education: How Southern West Bank, Palestine, Can Be Developed Through Agricultural Engineering. Vol. IV. September 2002. (8) J. Cuello. Making the World a Better Place: What the Agricultural Engineering Professional Organizations Can Do in the New Century to Make Good on Their Age-Old Promise. Vol. IV. October 2002. (9) D. Slack. Engineering in a Shrinking World. Vol. IV. September 2002. (10) G. Feyereisen. Social and Engineering Aspects of an Aquacultural Development Project in the Nakasongola District of Uganda. Vol. IV. September 2002. (11) W. Clyma. Management Strategies for Sustainable Irrigated Agriculture with Organizational Change to Meet Urgent Needs. Vol. IV. September 2002. (12) A. Munack. Agriculture and the Environment: New Challenges for Engineers. Vol. IV. December 2002. (13) P. De Castro. Mechanization and Traceability of Agricultural Products: a Challenge for the Future-- Quality of Production, Reasons and Means for Traceability, Needs of Markets and Institutional and Prescriptive Aspects in the EU Context. Club of Bologna. Vol. IV. September 2002. (14) F. Pierce and R. Cavalieri. Globalization and Traceability of Agricultural Production: The Role of Mechanization. Club of Bologna. Vol. IV. September 2002. (15) I. Naas. Applications of Mechatronics to Animal Production. Club of Bologna. Vol. IV. October 2002. (16) H. Auernhammer. The Role of Mechatronics in Crop Product Traceability. Club of Bologna. Vol. IV. October 2002. (17) B. Douthwaite. How to Enable Innovation. Vol. IV. October 2002. (18) L. Opara. Engineering and Technological Outlook on Traceability of Agricultural Production and Products. Vol. IV. December 2002. (19) Club of Bologna. Conclusions and Recommendations (traceability of agricultural production). Vol. IV. December 2002. (20) J. Reid. Sensors and Data collection. Power Point presentation. Club of Bologna. November 16, 2002. Vol. IV. December 2002