Abstract
This chapter describes characteristics of four major rainfed farming regions and systems in the USA: Great Plains wheat-sorghum-cattle; midwestern corn-soybean-hogs, southern cotton-peanut-poultry, and coastal diversified crops-dairy. Rainfed farming systems in the USA are highly productive, economically important, ecologically diverse and technologically driven. Management approaches to achieve resource efficiency and agricultural sustainability are described, including the use of improved genetic seed sources, crop rotations, appropriate fertiliser application techniques, conservation tillage and integrated crop-livestock production systems. Issues of increasing oil and fertiliser prices, sustainability of soil and water resources, and climate change are current challenges facing agriculture in the USA.
Keywords
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- 1.
Soil maps of the USA can be found at:
- 2.
See glossary of plant names for scientific names
- 3.
PUE and WUE are defined and discussed in Chap. 1
- 4.
Full costs of production include: variable costs (inputs consumed in one production season), cash costs (variable cost plus rent, taxes, insurance, interest), and total economic costs (cash cost plus depreciation, returns to management and land, and family labour).
- 5.
See Glossary.
- 6.
See Glossary for definition.
- 7.
See Glossary.
- 8.
Refer to Glossary for definition.
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Franzluebbers, A., Steiner, J., Karlen, D., Griffin, T., Singer, J., Tanaka, D. (2011). Rainfed Farming Systems in the USA. In: Tow, P., Cooper, I., Partridge, I., Birch, C. (eds) Rainfed Farming Systems. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-9132-2_20
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