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Field methods for making productivity classes for site-specific management of wheat

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Abstract

Reducing the decision-making unit to classes within fields can improve yields, efficiency in the use of nutrients and profitability of crops. The objectives were to compare methods for class delimitation in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) crops based on apparent productivity levels and establish similarities among them in terms of spatial overlapping, productive attributes and the use of nitrogen. In three wheat fields, high and low apparent productivity classes (APC) were defined based on eight methodologies: yield maps, soil maps, gramineae vegetation index, rotation crop index, interpretation of satellite images, management records, elevation and integrated soil and yield maps. In each APC, soil and crop yield components were determined under five nitrogen fertilization levels. Among delimitation methodologies, the degree of coincidence varied from 1.4 to 81.7%. The differences in soil properties, nitrogen use efficiency and grain yields were greater among fields than among APC within each field. In each field, the delimitation methodologies identified different single factors that discriminated among the potential management classes and were partially associated with the crop grain yields. The wheat crops at the low APC yielded 39% less and 12% less than at the high APC, respectively. The nitrogen fertilization, at the rate for maximum productivity for each ACP, reduced the yield differences between contrasting APC. Nitrogen fertilization also modified clustering of classes based on expected yields. Making management classes for wheat based on expected productivity is more accurate when based on previous crop production information under similar nitrogen fertilization conditions than the targeted crop.

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Data availability

The raw data support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding authors, M.J.L.S. and M.D.Z., upon reasonable request.

Abbreviations

APC:

Apparent productivity classes

ECa :

Apparent electrical conductivity

ELE:

Elevation

GNSS:

Global navigation satellite system

INTA:

National Institute for Agricultural Technology

MR:

Management records

N:

Nitrogen

Na:

Available nitrogen levels

NDVI:

Normalized and differential vegetation indexes

NDVIall:

Normalized and differential vegetation indexes of crop rotation

NDVIgra:

Normalized and differential vegetation indexes of gramineae

NUE:

Nitrogen use efficiency

OMI:

Organic matter index

OPC:

Observed productivity classes

P:

Phosphorus

PhSI:

Photo interpretation of satellite images

SM:

Soil mapping

SOC:

Soil organic carbon

SS:

Standardized sum

YM:

Yield mapping

YN:

Grain yield increase associated with nitrogen

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Funding

Funding for this research project was provided by INTA MSE AP I177.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. AER INTA Tandil, Rodriguez 370, Tandil, Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Marcelo José López de Sabando

  2. Universidad Nacional de La Pampa, RN 35 km 334, Santa Rosa, La Pampa, Argentina

    Martín Diaz-Zorita

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  1. Marcelo José López de Sabando
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  2. Martín Diaz-Zorita
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Correspondence to Marcelo José López de Sabando.

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López de Sabando, M.J., Diaz-Zorita, M. Field methods for making productivity classes for site-specific management of wheat. Precision Agric 23, 1153–1173 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11119-022-09878-3

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