Penetration resistance to characterize the depth and persistence of soil loosening in tillage studies

Abstract

Soil penetration resistance was used to characterize tillage-induced changes in soil strength, as a function of soil depth and time, under three reduced tillage systems and a deep tillage study in loam to fine sandy loam, Podzolic and Luvisolic soils. Mouldboard ploughing provided a greater degree of soil loosening than chisel ploughing. The use of penetration resistance to rapidly screen soil depth to critical levels of soil strength demonstrated that under sequential direct drilled systems soil loosening should occur on a regular basis to maintain optimum soil structure on fine sandy loam soils. -from Author