Progress 07/01/03 to 06/30/08
Outputs
OUTPUTS: ACTIVITIES: Intensive geo-referenced soil cone penetrometer measurements were obtained to develop an algorithm for determining the optimum tillage depth in coastal plain soils. Field tests were conducted to evaluate the performance of three different strip tillage systems compared to conventional and no-till methods and to investigate the feasibility of eliminating the need for annual deep tillage by planting crops directly into the previous year's subsoil furrow and controlling traffic. The performance of an electronic nose (Cyranose 320) for detecting stink bugs and their damage in cotton production was evaluated under greenhouse/laboratory conditions. Tests were carried out on three different coastal plain soils to compare energy requirement of site-specific tillage with uniform-depth tillage operations. Also, the effects of tractor speed, soil texture, moisture contents, and electrical conductivity on energy requirement and fuel consumption were determined. The Clemson VR lateral irrigation system was used to compare five different irrigation scheduling methods: irrigation scheduling based on 1) soil moisture sensors; 2) pan evaporation data and a crop coefficient; 3) tensiometers; 4) reference evapotranspiration model (Jensen-Haise); and 5) no irrigation. The effects of various irrigation scheduling methods on water use, crop response, and yield were determined. Test were conducted to investigate the feasibility of site-specific application of plant growth regulators (PGR) and harvest aids (HA) based on soil electrical conductivity (EC) data and plant Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI). EVENTS: Results were presented at the annual American Society of Agricultural & Biological Engineering international meetings(2003-2008); Beltwide Cotton Conferences (2003-2008); Sunbelt Expo, Moultrie, GA; precision agriculture international meeting; and at regional and local field days and workshops. PRODUCTS: An algorithm and computer program was developed to determine the optimum tillage depth from the penetrometer data. Equipment for variable-rate application of water for lateral irrigation systems and site-specific nematicide placement were developed. These systems are ready for commercial deployment and use by growers. A variable-rate application delivery system for PGR and HA was developed by retrofitting controllers on an existing J.D. sprayer. DISSEMINATION: In order to move the innovative variable-rate irrigation technology into practical use among growers, six variable-rate irrigation systems were installed on SC farmers' center pivots in Orangeburg, Barnwell, Darlington, Bamberg, Calhoun, and Hampton counties. In addition the Clemson SNP (site-specific nematicide placement) system was installed on five growers' equipment. Yield monitors were installed on their cotton pickers which would allow us to correlate nematode densities and nematicide use to cotton yields and to determine the effects of this new technology on farm profits. The farmers and their farm managers and workers were trained to generate application maps, yield maps, and operate SNP and VRI equipment. PARTICIPANTS: INDIVIDUALS: Ahmad Khalilian (PI), Will Henderson, Young Han, Tom Owino, Charles Privette (Ag & Bio Engineering Department); Jeremy Greene, Pawel Wiatrak, John Mueller (Department of Entomology, soils and Plant Sciences); Elizabeth Caraway (Environmental Toxicology), College of Agriculture, Forestry and Life Sciences , Clemson University. PARTNER ORGANIZATIONS: USDA-NRCS; EPA; Cotton Incorporated, the SC cotton Board; Monsanto Company; Redball LLC; Southeast Ag Equipment Co; Capstan Ag Systems; Inc.; Dow AgroSciences; the University of Arkansas; & the University of Georgia. TARGET AUDIENCES: TRAINING OR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT: Five MS level graduate students and four PhD students were involved in this project. A Precision Agriculture course AGM 410 (senior level) is offered in the Dept. of Agricultural & Biological Engineering. Training field days and workshops were offered to farmers, county extension agents, and agricultural-related businesses. Since the benefits of innovative tools and technologies, such as site-specific nematicide placement and variable-rate irrigation, are very much site-specific, aggressive demonstration projects were conducted to familiarize stakeholders with the benefits of these technologies. Stakeholders included interested producers, county extension agents, vocational agriculture teachers, landowners, general citizenry, business community (especially Ag-related businesses), environmental groups, and state-level USDA-NRCS personnel. Policymakers included elected officials and staff (local/state), local/regional/state planning groups, and state regulatory agencies. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: There were no major changes to this project
Impacts
RESULTS: The results clearly indicated that the thickness and the location of the hardpan can be determined from the soil cone penetrometer data. A great amount of variation was observed in the depth and the thickness of the hardpan as well as in the optimum tillage depth. By controlling traffic and planting directly into the previous year's subsoiler furrow, the residual effect of deep tillage operations could extend at least for two additional years. The energy saving of 50% and fuel saving of 30% were achieved by site-specific tillage as compared to uniform-depth tillage in a loamy sand soil type. The tillage depth had bigger effect on the draft and drawbar power than the tractor speed. Under laboratory conditions, the E-nose identified presence of stink bugs 100 percent of the time. There was a strong correlation between the number of sting bugs in a sample and the E-nose sensors response. The soil moisture-based irrigation treatments significantly increased seed cotton yields compare to the ET-based treatments. Moisture-based treatments applied significantly more water than ET-based treatment. Soil moisture sensors can be used successfully for site-specific irrigation scheduling in production fields. It was found that energy savings of up to 52% can be achieved with the variable rate irrigation system. The variable-rate application of PGR required 40% less chemicals. Likewise, the variable-rate HA application required 33% less chemicals compared to uniform rate applications. OUTCOME: Crops in the Southern United States are generally produced in fields which are known to have a high degree of variability in soil type and other major factors which affect crop production. Variable rate irrigation (VRI) technology is an innovative technology that enables an overhead irrigation system to match field variability with an appropriately variable irrigation application, differentially applying irrigation water to match the needs of individual management zones within a field. It can lead to substantial water conservation while increasing crop yields. Blanket applications of plant growth regulators based on a constant rate often results in the application of chemical to areas of a field that may not require treatment and as a result, may decrease yields. Likewise, insufficient application may also decrease yields in excessively leafy areas. A cost saving of approximately 40% could be achieved using variable-rate PGR application, compared to the traditional method. Strip tillage systems have shown considerable promise for reducing the energy and labor requirement, equipment cost, soil erosion and cotton plant damage from blowing sand. Cost savings of approximately $20 per acre could be achieved by strip tillage compared to conventional methods. Recently, sucking bugs have become a major problem in current genetically engineered cotton varieties. Crop losses from these pests exceeded $50 million. Development of technologically-derived instrumentation for detecting stink bugs would facilitate treatment decisions and site-specific application of insecticides.
Publications
- Keskin, M., Y. J. Han, R. B. Dodd and A. Khalilian. 2008. Reflectance-based sensor to predict visual quality ratings of turfgrass. Applied Engineering in Agriculture, 24(6):855-860. Khalilian, A., Will Henderson, Young Han, Pawel Wiatrak. 2008. Improving Nitrogen Use Efficiency in Cotton through Optical Sensing. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Conferences, National Cotton Council of America, Memphis, TN. http://www.cotton.org/beltwide/proceeding.
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Progress 01/01/07 to 12/31/07
Outputs
OUTPUTS: ACTIVITIES: Tests were conducted in 2007 to develop an algorithm for variable-rate application of nitrogen in cotton production utilizing plant NDVI (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index) and soil electrical conductivity (EC) data. Five different rates of nitrogen fertilizer (0, 30, 60, 90, and 120 lbs/acre) were applied to plots of each zone for developing the "N-rate" algorithm. Equipment was developed for applying nitrogen "Ramped Calibration Strips" in production fields for predicting the potential response to applied N fertilizer. Tests were continued in 2007 to determine the optimum irrigation scheduling method for cotton utilizing site-specific irrigation management. The Clemson VR lateral irrigation system was used to compare five different irrigation scheduling methods. The soil electrical conductivity (EC) data was used to divide the test field into five management zones. The following treatments were applied at random to the plots of each zone: irrigation
scheduling based on 1) soil moisture sensors; 2) pan evaporation data and a crop coefficient; 3) tensiometers; 4) reference evapotranspiration model (Jensen-Haise); and 5) no irrigation. The effects of various irrigation scheduling methods on water use, crop response, and yield were determined. Test were conducted in 2007 to investigate the feasibility of site-specific application of plant growth regulators (PGR) and harvest aids (HA) based on soil electrical conductivity (EC) data and plant Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) measured utilizing airborne multi-spectral imagery and sprayer-mounted GreenSeeker mapping system. EVENTS: Results were presented at the Beltwide Cotton Conferences; 2007 precision agriculture workshop, New Orleans, LA; 2007 Sunbelt Expo, Moultrie, GA; Field crop production and management workshop, Santee, SC; Precision Systems in Agriculture workshop, Screven County, GA; and local field days such as the Edisto REC Fall Field day. PRODUCTS: Equipment
for site-specific nematicide placement and variable-rate application of irrigation water were developed. These systems are ready for commercial deployment and use by growers. DISSEMINATION: In order to move the innovative variable-rate irrigation technology into practical use among growers, six variable-rate irrigation systems were installed on SC farmers' center pivots in Orangeburg, Barnwell, Darlington, Bamberg, Calhoun, and Hampton counties. In addition the Clemson SNP (site-specific nematicide placement) system was installed on five growers' equipment. Yield monitors were installed on their cotton pickers which would allow us to correlate nematode densities and nematicide use to cotton yields and to determine the effects of this new technology on farm profits. The farmers and their farm managers and workers were trained to generate application maps, yield maps, and operate SNP and VRI equipment.
PARTICIPANTS: INDIVIDUALS: Ahmad Khalilian (PI), Will Henderson, Young Han, Tom Owino, Charles Privette (Ag & Bio Engineering Department); Jeremy Greene, Pawel Wiatrak, John Mueller (Department of Entomology, soils and Plant Sciences); Elizabeth Caraway (Environmental Toxicology), College of Agriculture, Forestry and Life Sciences , Clemson University. PARTNER ORGANIZATIONS: USDA-NRCS; EPA; Cotton Incorporated, the SC cotton Board; Monsanto Company; Redball LLC; Southeast Ag Equipment Co; Capstan Ag Systems; Inc.; Dow AgroSciences; the University of Arkansas; & the University of Georgia. TRAINING OR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT: Four MS level graduate students and two PhD students are involved in this project. A Precision Agriculture course AGM 410 (senior level) is offered in the Dept. of Agricultural & Biological Engineering. Training field days and workshops were offered to farmers, county extension agents, vocational agriculture teachers, landowners, business community (especially
agricultural-related businesses), environmental groups, state-level USDA-NRCS personnel, etc.
TARGET AUDIENCES: Since the benefits of innovative tools and technologies, such as site-specific nematicide placement and variable-rate irrigation, are very much site-specific, aggressive demonstration projects were conducted to familiarize stakeholders with the benefits of these technologies. Stakeholders included interested producers, county extension agents, vocational agriculture teachers, landowners, general citizenry, business community (especially Ag-related businesses), environmental groups, and state-level USDA-NRCS personnel. Policymakers included elected officials and staff (local/state), local/regional/state planning groups, and state regulatory agencies.
PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: There were no major changes to this project
Impacts
RESULTS:There is a potential to use mid-season specific plant NDVI data for variable-rate application of N fertilizer in cotton production. The soil EC data should be included in the N-rate prediction equation for the Southeastern Coastal Plain region. The variable-rate N application predicted 31% less fertilizer compared to uniform N applications. The soil moisture-based treatments significantly increased seed cotton yields compare to the ET-based treatments. Moisture-based treatments applied significantly more water than ET-based treatment. The irrigation depth applied was a significant factor affecting the seed cotton yields. Soil moisture sensors can be used successfully for site-specific irrigation scheduling in production fields. However, since the ETbased models provide irrigation depths independent of the soil variations, they are not suitable for site-specific irrigation management. There was a strong correlation between NDVI and the calculated rates of PGR.
The variable-rate application of PGR and HA required significantly less chemicals compared to uniform rate applications. There were strong correlations between NDVI measurements and plant heights. Also, there were strong correlations between NDVI and the length of internodes. This important information is a requirement for site specific application of PGR. The EC and NDVI data can be used effectively for making PGR and HA application recommendations to address spatial variability of cotton growth in the field. OUTCOME: High production costs and low cotton prices make it more important for our growers to reduce crop inputs and maximize yields. Drastic increases in the cost of oil and the subsequent increase in N fertilizer costs has forced many producers to consider the variable-rate or reduced rate N fertilizer application. Optical sensor-base algorithms for applying crop nitrogen could increase farm profits while reducing N application rates significantly compared to farmers
practice. Crops in the Southern United States are generally produced in fields which are known to have a high degree of variability in soil type and other major factors which affect crop production. Variable rate irrigation (VRI) technology is a relatively new concept in agriculture which applies irrigation water to match the needs of individual management zones within a field. Innovative irrigation practices that use the latest technology for irrigation scheduling, will result in high water use efficiency and higher crop yields. Soil variation results in the development of cotton plants with a tremendous amount of growth variability associated with them. Blanket applications of plant growth regulators based on a constant rate often results in the application of chemical to areas of a field that may not require treatment and as a result, may decrease yields. Likewise, insufficient application may also decrease yields in excessively leafy areas. A cost saving of approximately 40% could
be achieved using variable-rate PGR application, compared to the traditional method.
Publications
- Keskin, M., Y. J. Han, R. B. Dodd and A. Khalilian. 2007. Reflectance-based sensor to predict visual quality ratings of turfgrass. Applied Engineering in Agriculture (in print).
- Khalilian, A., Will Henderson, Young Han, Tom Owino, and Burhan Niyazi. 2007. Scheduling site-specific irrigation for cotton production using a linear move system. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Conferences, National Cotton Council of America, Memphis, TN. http://www.cotton.org/beltwide/proceeding.
- Khalilian, A., Will Henderson, and Richard Hallman. 2007. Site-Specific Application of Plant Growth Regulators in Cotton Production. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Conferences, National Cotton Council of America, Memphis, TN. http://www.cotton.org/beltwide/proceeding.
- Khalilian, A., Young Han, Will Henderson, Pawel Wiatrak. 2008. Improving Nitrogen Use Efficiency in Cotton through Optical Sensing. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Conferences, National Cotton Council of America, Memphis, TN. http://www.cotton.org/beltwide/proceeding.
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Progress 01/01/06 to 12/31/06
Outputs
Tests were conducted in 2006 to determine the optimum irrigation scheduling method for cotton utilizing site-specific irrigation management. A variable rate linear-move sprinkler irrigation system was used to compare five different irrigation scheduling methods. The soil electrical conductivity (EC) data was used to divide the test field into five management zones. The following treatments were applied at random to the plots of each zone: irrigation scheduling based on 1) soil moisture sensors; 2) pan evaporation data and a crop coefficient; 3) tensiometers; 4) reference evapotranspiration model (Jensen-Haise); and 5) no irrigation. The soil moisture-based treatments (tensiometer and TDT sensors) significantly increased seed cotton yields compare to the ET-based treatments (pan & NOAA). All irrigated plots yielded significantly higher then the non-irrigated plots. Moisture-based treatments applied significantly more water than ET-based treatment. The irrigation depth
applied was a significant factor affecting the seed cotton yields. It was found that soil moisture sensors and tensiometers can be used successfully for site-specific irrigation scheduling in production fields. However, since the evaporation pan and ET models provide irrigation depths independent of the soil variations, it is not suitable for site-specific irrigation management. In order to move this innovative technology into practical use among growers, in 2006, three VRI systems were installed on farmers' center pivots in SC. Test were conducted in 2006 to investigate the feasibility of site-specific application of plant growth regulators (PGR) and harvest aids (HA) based on soil electrical conductivity (EC) data and plant Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) measured utilizing airborne multi-spectral imagery and sprayer-mounted GreenSeeker mapping system. A variable-rate application delivery system for PGR and HA was developed by retrofitting controllers on an existing
J.D. sprayer. The variable-rate equipment consists of a Raven Viper and a rate controller and Capstan's 'Sharp Shooter' pulse spray control system for chemical applications. There were strong correlations between soil EC and NDVI measurements with the plant parameters such as plant height and cotton yields. The variable-rate application of PGR required 40% less chemicals. There were no differences in PGR requirements between two cotton varieties (PRG dependent--DP 555 and PGR independent--DP 455). The plant-height at harvest in zone three averaged 35.8 inches compared to 27.5 inches in zone two and 12 inches in zone one. The variable-rate HA application required 33% less chemicals compared to uniform rate applications. There were significant differences in cotton yield between three management zones. However, the application methods of PGR had no significant effect on the cotton yield within each management zone. Based on the results of this study, cotton growth can be accurately
correlated to the soil EC and NDVI measurements. The EC and NDVI data can be used effectively for making PGR and HA application recommendations to address spatial variability of cotton growth in the field.
Impacts
Crops in the Southern United States are generally produced in fields which are known to have a high degree of variability in soil type and other major factors which affect crop production. Variable rate irrigation (VRI) technology is a relatively new concept in agriculture which applies irrigation water to match the needs of individual management zones within a field. It can lead to substantial water conservation while increasing crop yields. High production costs and low cotton prices make it more important for our growers to maximize yields. There is no published information on optimum irrigation scheduling method in cotton production for site-specific irrigation management. Nor is there a standard procedure to schedule irrigation based on the field's spatial variability. Innovative irrigation practices that use the latest technology for irrigation scheduling, will result in high water use efficiency and higher crop yields. Soil variation results in the development
of cotton plants with a tremendous amount of growth variability associated with them. Blanket applications of plant growth regulators based on a constant rate often results in the application of chemical to areas of a field that may not require treatment and as a result, may decrease yields. Likewise, insufficient application may also decrease yields in excessively leafy areas. A cost saving of approximately 40% could be achieved using variable-rate PGR application, compared to the traditional method. Similarly, site-specific application of harvest aids could result in significant reductions in chemical use.
Publications
- Gorucu, S., A. Khalilian, Y. J. Han, R. B. Dodd, and B. R. Smith. 2006. An algorithm to determine the optimum tillage depth from soil penetrometer data in coastal plain soils. Applied Engineering in Agriculture 22(5): 625-631.
- Henderson, W.G., A. Khalilian, and Y. J. Han. 2006. Detecting Stink Bugs/Damage in Cotton Utilizing a Portable Electronic Nose. ASABE Paper Number: 06-1103, ASAE, St. Joseph, MI 49085.
- Abbaspour, Y., A. Khalilian, R. Alimardani, A. keyhani, and H. Sadati. 2006. "Effects of soil texture, moisture content, electrical conductivity, and tractor speed on energy requirements of variable-depth tillage". Iranian Journal of Agricultural Sciences (IJAS), Vol. 35, No 2.
- Henderson, W., A. Khalilian, S.Turnipseed1 and Y. Han. 2006. Innovative Technology for Detecting Stink Bug Feeding in Cotton. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Conferences, National Cotton Council of America, Memphis, http://www.cotton.org/beltwide/proceeding.
- Abbaspour, Y., A. Khalilian, R. Alimardani, A. keyhani, and H. Sadati. 2006. "Energy Requirement of Site-Specific and Conventional Tillage as Affected by Tractor Speed and Soil Parameters". International Agricultural Engineering Journal 8(4):409-503.
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Progress 01/01/05 to 12/31/05
Outputs
The data acquisition system on the variable-rate lateral irrigation (VRLI) was upgraded to acquire information from various sensors for site-specific application of water. This system is able to monitor and apply water based on the actual soil moisture content, pan evaporation data, or the U.S. Climate Reference Network (CRN) data. Information from the moisture sensors, evaporation pan and CRN is acquired using wireless technology. The irrigation pump was retro-fitted with a variable speed drive in order to maintain constant line pressure. The variable speed drive slows the speed of the motor when line pressure increases, causing the system to produce a stable pressure throughout the system, even when 20 out of 25 nozzles are closed on the lateral system. It was found that energy savings of up to 52% can be achieved with the variable rate irrigation system. The performance of the variable-rate lateral irrigation system was evaluated in 2005. The nozzle pulsing
technique to adjust irrigation rate worked very well. The average water application rate error was less than 2%. The performance of an electronic nose (Cyranose 320) for detecting stink bugs and their damage in cotton production was evaluated under greenhouse/laboratory conditions. The system could accurately identify stink bug damaged bolls approximately 95 percent of the time. Volatile chemicals produce by stink bugs has been identified to be trans-2-decenal, and trans-2-octenal. The E-nose showed similar responses to these chemical as compared to those obtained from sting bugs. Under laboratory conditions, the E-nose identified presence of stink bugs 100 percent of the time. There was a strong correlation (R2 = 0.9486) between the number of sting bugs in a sample and the E-nose sensors response. Tests were carried out on three different coastal plain soils to compare energy requirement of site-specific tillage with uniform-depth tillage operations. Also, the effects of tractor
speed, soil texture, moisture contents, and electrical conductivity on energy requirement and fuel consumption were determined. The energy saving of 50% and fuel saving of 30% were achieved by site-specific tillage as compared to uniform-depth tillage in a loamy sand soil type. Although draft force increased with an increase in travel speed in all soil types but the tillage depth had bigger effect on the draft and drawbar power than the tractor speed. The effect of soil moisture content on draft force and fuel consumption was not significant in loamy sand and sandy loam soil types. Soil EC was highly correlated to soil texture (R2=0.916) and draft force across the field.
Impacts
Recently, sucking bugs have become a major problem in current genetically engineered cotton varieties. From 1995 to 2001, insecticide application for stink bug control increased from 0 to 4 million applications at a cost of $27 million. In 2000, crop losses from these pests exceeded $50 million. A major constraint to managing the stink bug is the difficulty associated with obtaining information necessary to make treatment decisions. Development of technologically-derived instrumentation for detecting stink bugs would facilitate treatment decisions and site-specific application of insecticides. Crops in the Southern United States are generally produced in fields which are known to have a high degree of variability in soil type and other major factors which affect crop production. Therefore, conventional uniform-rate overhead irrigation systems tend to over-apply or under-apply water to the crop. VRI is an innovative technology that enables an overhead irrigation system
to match field variability with an appropriately variable irrigation application, differentially applying irrigation water to match the needs of individual management zones within a field. It can lead to substantial water conservation while increasing crop yields. Soil compaction management in the southeastern Coastal Plain soils relies heavily on the use of costly annual deep tillage operations. Variable-depth or site-specific tillage which modifies the physical properties of soil only where the tillage is needed for crop growth, has potential to reduce costs, labor, fuel, and energy requirements.
Publications
- Abbaspour, Y. A. Khalilian, R. Alimardani1, A. keyhani1, H. Sadati. 2005. Energy savings with variable-depth tillage. Proc. Southern Conservation Tillage Systems Conf., Florence, SC. http://www.ag.auburn.edu/aux/nsdl/sctcsa/Proceedings/2005/proc2005.ht ml.
- Khalilian Ahmad. 2005. Demonstration of advanced conservation-tillage equipment and technologies. Proc. Southern Conservation Tillage Systems Conf., Florence, SC. http://www.ag.auburn.edu/aux/nsdl/sctcsa/Proceedings/2005/proc2005.ht ml.
- Khalilian, A., Young Han, Sam Moore, Tom Owino, and Burhan Niyazi. 2005. Variable-rate lateral irrigation system. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Conferences, National Cotton Council of America, Memphis, TN. http://www.cotton.org/beltwide/proceeding.
- Moore, S, Young Han, A. Khalilian, Tom Owino, and Burhan Niyazi. 2005. Instrumentation for variable-rate lateral irrigation system. ASAE Technical Paper No. 05-2184, ASAE, St. Joseph, MI 49085.
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Progress 01/01/04 to 12/31/04
Outputs
A variable-rate irrigation (VRI) system was developed for site-specific application of water by modifying a 250-ft existing lateral irrigation system. This system can control each individual sprinkler or a group of sprinklers. All sprinklers are equipped with air-actuated water control valves. The air-actuated valves in each group are controlled by a solenoid valve and pressurized air is supplied using an air compressor and a reservoir tank. A control and data acquisition (CDA) system acquires information from various sensors and controls the rate of water application in each section accordingly. A solid-state relay board controlled by a laptop computer cycles the sprinklers (on or off) to adjust the rate of irrigation water in each section and also varies the speed of the lateral system. A map-based computer program controls the amount of water applied in each section based on irrigation requirements. A GPS receiver is used to determine the position of the lateral
irrigation system in the field. Variable-rate speed control system allows the lateral irrigation system to move quickly over wet spots and slow down over dry spots. There was a strong correlation between soil electrical conductivity (EC) and soil water holding capacity. Therefore, the EC measurements could be used for irrigation scheduling decisions. The lateral irrigation system could be successfully controlled by nozzle-pulsing technique for variable-rate water application. Field tests were conducted for the third year to evaluate the performance of three different strip tillage systems compared to conventional and no-till methods and to investigate the feasibility of eliminating the need for annual deep tillage by planting cotton directly into the previous year's subsoil furrow and controlling traffic. In 2004, the test plots from previous year were split in half to determine the residual effects of different tillage systems. No deep tillage was applied to one-half of the plots
(tillage every three years) while the other half received the same tillage treatment as in 2002 and 2003 (annual deep tillage). There were no significant differences in lint yield between the plots which had annual deep tillage compared to those which had tillage operation only in 2002. However, when data was analyzed for individual treatments, cotton yields from annual deep tillage (in straight shank strip-till and conventional subsoil-bed plots) were significantly higher than those which had deep tillage operation only in 2002. The yield increase from annual deep tillage was about 100 lbs lint/acre for these two tillage treatments. The results showed that with controlled traffic and planting directly into the previous years subsoiler furrow, the residual effect of deep tillage operations with the Paratill and Terra Max strip-till systems could extend at least for two additional years.
Impacts
Crops in the Southern United States is generally produced in fields which are known to have a high degree of variability in soil type, topography, water holding capacity and other major factors which affect crop production. Therefore, conventional uniform-rate overhead irrigation systems tend to over-apply or under-apply water to the crop. VRI is an innovative technology that enables an overhead irrigation system to match field variability with an appropriately variable irrigation application, differentially applying irrigation water to match the needs of individual management zones within a field. It can lead to substantial water conservation while increasing crop yields. Reduction of losses due to soil compaction by one percent nationally could result in an additional $100 million in crop revenue. Soil compaction management in the southeastern U.S. relies heavily on the use of annual deep tillage. The conventional crop production systems in this area require a
minimum of three and often five field operations at a cost of approximately $31 per acre. Strip tillage systems have shown considerable promise for reducing the energy and labor requirement, equipment cost, soil erosion and cotton plant damage from blowing sand. Cost savings of approximately $20 per acre could be achieved by strip tillage compared to conventional methods.
Publications
- Keskin, M., R. B. Dodd, Y. J. Han and A. Khalilian. 2004. Assessing nitrogen content of golf course turf grass clippings using spectral reflectance. Applied Engineering in Agriculture, 20(6):851-860.
- Khalilian, A., J.D. Mueller, Y.J. Han, and T. Kirkpatrick. 2004. Crop Management Applications of Soil Electrical Conductivity in Precision Agriculture. ASAE Technical Paper No. 04-1093, ASAE, St. Joseph, MI 49085.
- Khalilian, A., Michael Jones, Mike Sullivan, and James Frederick. 2004. Comparison of strip tillage system in coastal plain soils for cotton production. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Conferences, National Cotton Council of America, Memphis, TN. http://www.cotton.org/beltwide/proceeding.
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Progress 01/01/03 to 12/31/03
Outputs
An algorithm was developed to determine the optimum tillage depth from soil cone penetrometer data in coastal plain soils. Intensive geo-referenced soil cone penetrometer measurements (1,800 probes) were obtained and each cone index profile was graphically examined. After defining the algorithm, a computer program was written to automate the application of the algorithm for large data sets. The results showed 21 different patterns or conditions for the soil cone penetrometer profiles on a Dothan loamy sand soil. The results also, clearly indicated that the thickness and the location of the hardpan can be determined from the soil cone penetrometer data. A great amount of variation was observed in the location and the thickness of the hardpan as well as in the optimum tillage depth. Also, the effects of soil moisture and temperature on performance of the Veris soil electrical conductivity (EC) meter were determine. Use of soil electrical conductivity to predict soil
texture was very successful. There was a strong negative correlation between % sand and EC and positive correlation between %clay and EC measurements in each levels of soil moisture content. The soil texture found to be the major factor affecting soil EC. Soil moisture also affected EC values to some degree. However, the effect of soil temperature on EC was insignificant. Field tests were conducted for the second year to evaluate the performance of three different strip tillage systems compared to conventional and no-till methods and to investigate the feasibility of eliminating the need for annual deep tillage by planting cotton directly into the previous year's subsoil furrow and controlling traffic. In 2003, the test plots from previous year were split in half to determine the residual effects of different tillage systems. No deep tillage was applied to one-half of the plot while the other half received the same tillage treatment as in 2002. There was no difference in lint yield
between plots which had deep tillage operation in 2002 & 2003 and those which had tillage operation only in 2002. On average deep tillage (either in 2002 or 2003) increased lint yield by 41.5% compared to no-till system. With controlled traffic and planting directly into the previous year's subsoil furrow, the residual effect of deep tillage operations will extend at least for one additional year.
Impacts
Reduction of losses due to soil compaction by one percent nationally could result in an additional $100 million in crop revenue. Cone penetrometers have been used for many years as the primary instrument for soil compaction measurement. However, there has not been a reported standard or comprehensive method in determining the tillage depth from the soil penetrometer data. Ideally, the depth and the thickness of the hardpan need to be explicitly determined to decide the optimum tillage depth for effective removal of the hardpan. Therefore, a comprehensive algorithm to determine the optimum tillage depth from penetrometer data, will allow the growers to select the best tillage method and depth for each field. Considerable variation in soil types occurs within and across production fields in the Southeastern US. Soil texture has a major impact on productivity and will affect management strategies for crop production. Soil electrical conductivity (EC) is one
characteristic that can be used to determine soil texture. Utilizing a commercially available EC meter, variable-rate applications of pesticides, herbicides, irrigation and variable-depth tillage can be made based upon soil type that could significantly reduce crop inputs and costs and increase productivity and profits.
Publications
- Gorucu, S., A. Khalilian, Y. J. Han, R. B. Dodd, and B. R. Smith. 2003. Developing an Algorithm to Determine the Tillage Depth from Soil Penetrometer Data in Coastal Plain Soils. ASAE Technical Paper No. 03-1074, ASAE, St. Joseph, MI 49085.
- Khalilian, A., Michael Jones, Mike Sullivan, and James Frederick. 2003. Performance of variable rate nematicide application systems. National Cotton Council of America, Memphis, TN. http://www.cotton.org/beltwide/proceeding.
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