June 08, 2011

Soil crusting from rapid drying may cause emergence issues

After all the rain and cold weather during the end of May, the forecast calls for us to turn a corner and finally get some warm temperatures moving into June. The increase in temperature will certainly be welcomed to help dry soils out and get planters back in the field, but this rapid warm-up may cause some issues for crops already in the ground. When planting into wet soil conditions, a big concern is the effect secondary tillage operations, double disk openers and packing wheels have on soil structure.

It’s understandable that with such a wet and delayed planting season, there are going to be some field operations performed under less-than-ideal conditions. When soils are worked or manipulated wet, water within pore spaces lubricates soil particles and makes it easier for them to pack together. When these soils rapidly dry, such as in the full-sun, high-80° conditions, water is removed from the soil and particles are left compacted against one another. Read more ...

This blog is written by Martin Little, The Global Miller, published and supported by the GFMT Magazine and the International Milling Directory from Perendale Publishers

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