Wheat grain yield in integrated crop-livestock production systems under no-tillage system

Abstract

The objective of this study was to assess grain yield of wheat in production systems integrating crop-livestock under no-tillage. The treatments consisted of five production systems: system I (wheat/soybean, common vetch/corn, and wheat oat/soybean); system II (wheat/soybean, black oat (pasture) + common vetch/corn (pasture), and white oat/soybean); system III [perennial cool season pastures (fescue + white clover + red clover + birdsfoot trefoil)]; system IV [perennial warm season pastures (Bahia grass + black oat + rye grass + white clover + red clover + birdsfoot trefoil)]; and system V (alfalfa). A completely randomized block design with four replications was used. Wheat grown after warm-season perennial forages / corn, showed a higher grain yield than after vetch / corn. Wheat grown after black oat + common vetch / corn (pasture), perennial cool-season pasture corn, and after alfalfa/corn, stood in an intermediate position. There were no significant differences in hectoliter weight, 1,000 kernel weight, number of spikes per plant, number of grains per plant, and grain mass per plant among wheats cultivated in crop-livestock integration systems.