Cultural Practices for Grain Sorghum Production Through a Cotton Burr Mulch

Carter, David L. and Fanning, C.D. (1965) Cultural Practices for Grain Sorghum Production Through a Cotton Burr Mulch. Journal of Soil and Water Conservation. 20:61-63.

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Abstract

Thick surface mulches aid in the reclamation
of saline soils by slowing
the upward and enhancing the downward
movement of salts (1, 2,). Such mulches
reduce the evaporative loss of soil moisture,
lower the soil temperature, and reduce
runoff.

Mulches of several types have been used
for soil moisture conservation for many
years (3, 4). Usually, thick, organic
mulches used for moisture conservation
purposes are plowed under before crops are
planted. Where thick mulches are applied
to aid in the reclamation of saline soil,
it would be beneficial to crop the soil with
the in place and thus obtain some
return during the latter phases of reclamation.

Reported in this article are the findings
from a study designed to determine if
grain sorghum could be produced on initially
saline soil with a 2- to 3-inch-thick
cotton bur mulch in place on the soil surface.
The usefulness of a permanent ridge-furrow
system on saline soils was investigated
simultaneously. Since salts are
leached from beneath furrows in such a
system (2), we thought that grain sorghum
could be grown in the furrows.

Item Type:	Article
NWISRL Publication Number:	0033
Subjects:	Irrigated crops > Sorghum Mass Import - autoclassified (may be erroneous)
Depositing User:	Dan Stieneke
Date Deposited:	20 Nov 2010 21:51
Last Modified:	15 Feb 2017 20:39
Item ID:	297
URI:	https://eprints.nwisrl.ars.usda.gov/id/eprint/297