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Effects of straw incorporation on the yield, nitrogen fertilizer and insecticide requirements of sugarbeet (Beta vulgaris)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 March 2009

M. F. Allison
Affiliation:
Broom's Barn Experimental Station, Higham, Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk IP28 6NP, UK
K. W. Jaggard
Affiliation:
Broom's Barn Experimental Station, Higham, Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk IP28 6NP, UK
P. J. Last
Affiliation:
Broom's Barn Experimental Station, Higham, Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk IP28 6NP, UK

Summary

Incorporation of large amounts of straw (8–15 t/ha dry matter) into the soil had no effect on the incidence of soil pests and diseases or sugarbeet seedling population densities in experiments performed over three seasons (1984/85 to 1986/87) in Suffolk. Straw incorporation had no effect on sugar yield at the recommended rate of nitrogen fertilizer application, but the sugar yield and nitrogen uptake were reduced in one year by the incorporation of straw when the rate of applied nitrogen was low. It is probable that incorporating straw reduced the amount of nitrogen leached over the winter; however, the longer-term implications of straw incorporation remain to be assessed.

Type
Crops and Soils
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1992

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