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The residue can be ploughed directly into the ground, or burned first. In contrast, no-till, strip-till or reduced-till agriculture practices are carried out to maximize crop residue cover. Simple line-transect measurements can be used to estimate residue coverage. [1] Process residues are materials left after the crop is processed into a ...
The four most commonly grown agricultural crops worldwide are sugarcane, maize, cereals and rice. [3] The total weight of all these crops is more than 16,500 billion kilograms per year. [ 4 ] Since 80% of this consists of agricultural waste, many tens of thousands of billions of kilograms of agricultural waste remain worldwide. [ 5 ]
Also called the residue yield or straw/grain ratio, the equation takes the mass of residue divided by the mass of crop produced, and the result is dimensionless. [1] The RPR can be used to project costs and benefits of bio-energy projects, and is crucial in determining financial sustainability. The RPR is particularly important for estimating ...
Different types of tillage result in varying amounts of crop residue being incorporated into the soil profile. Conventional or intensive tillage typically leaves less than 15% of crop residues on a field, reduced tillage leaves 15–30%, and conservation tillage systems leave at least 30% on the soil surface. [10]
Planting cover crops that keep the soil anchored and covered in off-seasons so that the soil is not eroded by wind and rain. Crop rotations [18] for row crops alternate high-residue crops with lower-residue crops to increase the amount of plant material left on the surface of the soil during the year to protect the soil from erosion.
Fertilizers are used to provide crops with additional sources of nutrients, such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, that promote plant growth and increase crop yields. While they are beneficial for plant growth, they can also disrupt natural nutrient and mineral biogeochemical cycles and pose risks to human and ecological health.
Sustainable intensification encompasses Integrated pest management (IPM) practices, which are widely recognised as an appropriate strategy for, not only reducing financial costs to farmers and growers, but also managing technical constraints associated with pesticide resistance, resurgence and the risks of high crop residues.
Cover crops then need to be killed so that the newly planted crops can get enough light, water, nutrients, etc. [37] [38] This can be done by rollers, crimpers, choppers and other ways. [39] [40] The residue is then planted through, and left as a mulch. Cover crops typically must be crimped when they enter the flowering stage. [41]