Performance evaluation of cone penetrometer device for measuring the subsoil compaction in mulched plots
Keywords:
soil strength, raw coir pith, composted coir pith, cone penetrometer, cone index, subsoil compactionAbstract
Soil exhibits layers of extreme compaction from both natural causes and wheel traffic. These compaction layers impede root growth, thereby reducing the plants capacity to obtain water during drought. Subsoil tillage is a remedy for adverse soil compaction that results in improved conditions for crop growth. Mechanical disturbance of subsoil increases water holding capacity and reduces impedance to root penetration. Vertical mulching is a technique that can be used to partially alleviate soil compaction within the critical root zones of deep rooted crops. A study was conducted by placing raw and composted coir pith using a two row subsoil coir pith mulching machine in three different soil depths (250, 350, and 450 mm) at the three application rates of 15 t/ha, 20 t/ha, and 25 t/ha and the effect of soil strength was investigated. The experiment was conducted for a rainfed cotton crop. The soil strength profile was recorded in all the treatments. The cone penetrometer resistance was measured for each increment of 10 mm and recorded manually from a digital force indicator during maturity stages of crop in all the treatment plots. The cone penetrometer resistance was measured directly on the row and the cone index was computed. Deep placement of mulch reduced the soil strength as compared to shallow placement. The lower soil strength (0.5 kPa to 0.8 kPa) in the loosened and mulched zone provided an impedance free zone for the root to proliferate. The rapid increase in cone index values at depths immediately below the respective depth of placement (250, 350 and 450 mm) of raw and composted coir pith mulch indicated that the existence of undisturbed soil profile below the mulched zone which could be potential limiting factor for root development.References
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[18] Carter L M. Portable recording penetrometer measures soil strength profiles. Agricultural Engineering, 1967; 46(6): 348-349.
[19] Hendrick J G. Recording soil penetrometer. Journal of Agricultural Engineering Research, 1969; 14(2): 183-186.
[2] Vepraskas M J, Busscher W J, Edwards J H. Residual effect of deep tillage versus no tillage on corn root growth and grain yield. Journal of Production Agriculture, 1997; 8(3): 401-405.
[3] Raper R L, Schwab E B, Dabney S M. Measurement and aeration of site specific hardpans for site upland soils in the southeastern United States. Soil and Tillage Research, 2005; 8(1): 7-17.
[4] Hume E P. Cocopeat is a byproduct of coconut tree industry. Economic Botany, 1949, 3(1): 42-45.
[5] Kamaraj C M. Exportable coir products in Tamil Nadu. The Coconut Wealth, 1994; 1(6): 6-8.
[6] Ramalingam A, Gangatharan M, KasturiBai R. Solid state bio-treatment of coirpith and paddy straw. Asian Journal of Microbiology, Biotechnology and Environmental Science, 2004; 6: 141-142.
[7] Edwards J H, Burt E C, Raper R L, Hill D T. Effects of deep placement of nutrients, broiler litter and newsprint on cotton yield and rooting depth. Proceedings of the Beltwide Cotton Conference, National Cotton Council, Memphis, 1992(a).
[8] Edwards J H, Burt E C, Raper R L, Hill D T. Recycling newsprint on agricultural land with the aid of broiler litter. Compost Science and Utilization, 1992(b); 1(2): 79-92.
[9] Edwards J H, Walker R H, Burt E C, Raper R L. Issues affecting application of non-composted organic waste to agricultural land. Chapter 11. ASA-CSSA-SSSA, 1995.
[10] Pushpanathan J. Integrated nutrient and soil moisture management for rainfed sorghum. M.Sc. (Ag.) Thesis, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore India, 1987.
[11] Osburn C P, Hendrick J G, Schafer R L. An electronic hand - operated recording penetrometer. Transactions of the ASAE, 1970; 13(1): 385-386
[12] Rathore A L, Pal A R, Sahu K K. Tillage and mulching effects on water use, root growth and yield of rainfed mustard and chick pea grown after low land rice. Journal of Science Food Agriculture, 1998; 78: 149-161.
[13] Schonning P, Rasmussen K J. Danish experiments on subsoil compaction by vehicles with high axle load. Soil and Tillage Research, 1994; 29(2-3): 215-227.
[14] Manohar J D. Studies on mechanics of chisel type shares in dry clay soils in relation to design of deep tillage tool. Unpublished PhD Thesis, Department of Farm Machinery, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, India, 1994.
[15] Busscher W J, Fredrick J R, Bauer P J. Timing effects of deep tillage on penetration resistance and wheat and soybean yield. Soil Science, 2000; 64: 999-1003.
[16] Taylor H M, Roberson G M, Parker Jr J J. Soil strength-root penetration relations for medium to coarse-textured soil materials. Soil Science, 1966; 102: 18- 22.
[17] Whalley W R, To J, Kay B D, Whitmore A. Prediction of the penetrometers resistance of soils with models with few parameters. Geoderma, 2007; 137: 370-377.
[18] Carter L M. Portable recording penetrometer measures soil strength profiles. Agricultural Engineering, 1967; 46(6): 348-349.
[19] Hendrick J G. Recording soil penetrometer. Journal of Agricultural Engineering Research, 1969; 14(2): 183-186.
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Published
2013-09-22
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Thiyagarajan, R., Jayashree, G., Mohankumar, A., & Vijayakumary, P. (2013). Performance evaluation of cone penetrometer device for measuring the subsoil compaction in mulched plots. International Journal of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, 6(3), 19–27. Retrieved from https://ijabe.migration.pkpps03.publicknowledgeproject.org/index.php/ijabe/article/view/707
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Power and Machinery Systems
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