EFFECT OF SOWING METHODS ON SILAGE YIELD AND
Turk JField Crops2018, 23(1), 72-79DOI: 10.17557/tjfc.424379EFFECT OF SOWING METHODS ON SILAGE YIELD AND QUALITY OFSOME CORN CULTIVARS GROWN IN SECOND CROP SEASON UNDERIRRIGATED CONDITION OF CENTRAL ANATOLIA, TURKEYOnur ILERI1*, Emine BUDAKLI CARPICI2, Betul ERBEYI2, Suleyman AVCI1, Ali KOC11Eskisehir Osmangazi University, Faculty of Agriculture, Department of Field Crops, Eskisehir, TURKEY2Uludag University, Faculty of Agriculture, Department of Field Crops, Bursa, TURKEY*Corresponding author: oileri@ogu.edu.trReceived: 21.03.2018ABSTRACTSilage corn has an important potential as second crop under irrigated lands of semi-arid regions. This researchwas conducted to determine silage yield and quality of some corn cultivars (Ada, Cadiz, Donana, Sagunto andSakarya) grown after barley harvest using different sowing methods (direct and conventional) in 2014 and2015 years in Eskisehir Plain. Investigated parameters were significantly different between years except forleaf ratio and neutral detergent fiber (NDF) content. In the first year, plant height, fresh forage yield, andFleig point were higher than the second year but dry matter, crude protein, acid detergent fiber (ADF)content, cob ratio and pH were contrarily higher in the second year. Sowing method significantly affected allparameters except leaf ratio. Using direct sowing method increased cob ratio (40.3 %), dry matter (22.93 %),crude protein content (7.56 %), pH (3,76) and Fleig score (85.82) compared to conventional sowing method.Cultivars significantly varied in terms of plant height, cob ratio, dry matter, crude protein, neutral detergentfiber, acid detergent fiber, pH, and Fleig point. Considering the total silage yield and quality the domesticcultivar Ada, which seeds are common in the market, could be suggested after barley harvest for second cropproduction as long as sown conventionally in irrigated lands of Central Anatolia.Keywords: Second crop, silage corn, silage quality, silage yield, sowing methodet al., 2006; Kruse et al., 2008). Besides high yieldperformance, silage corn also provides higher quality,especially energy, feed for livestock (Geren et al., 2008).Cultivation area of the plant may increase regularly as thesecond crop after released hybrid cultivars which have ashort growing period.INTRODUCTIONGood quality forage scarcity is the main problem ofanimal husbandry system in Turkey. Thus, both producersand government have been seeking alternative ways toovercome this problem. In Central Anatolia Region,higher yield in forage crop production can be practicedunder irrigated conditions due to lack of precipitation butgrowers cannot prefer perennial forage species becausethey are nonintegrated into cash crop rotation designs.However, annual forage crops can be an alternative asboth rotation crop and second crop after cereals or cerealsharvest. If annual forage species integrated as the secondcrop in cash crop pattern, it can be preferred by growersbecause second crops do not cause any decreases in cashcrop sowing area and provide extra income. On the otherhand, regional researchers frequently point out that secondcrops are important to alleviate forage shortage in Turkey(Kendir and Sevimay, 1997; Cecen et al., 2005; Gunesand Acar, 2006).Besides consuming more energy (Karaagac et al.,2010), preparing seedbed by tillage delays sowing averageone week due to irrigation, plowing and smoothing. Directsowing of second crop silage corn into main crop stubbleprovides a decreased energy cost, save irrigation waterand early recruitment of seedling (Karaagac and Barut,2007; Cikman et al., 2010; Barut et al., 2011; Akar et al.,2014). Consequently, direct sowing provides an extragrowing period for crops compared to conventionalsowing practices.Cultivar selection is an important practice forobtaining a sustainable yield from crop production.Climatic conditions, especially growing period longevityaffect cultivar selection directly. Generally, the cultivarshave a short growing period provide advantage as growingperiod shorten especially under second crop condition. Forexample, Mut et al. (2017) tested yield performance of 17Silage corn has a high potential as the second cropunder irrigated conditions of dry environment where leasthave 3 months extra growing period. In these areas, silagecorn contributes significantly in ruminant rations (Bayhan72
silage corn cultivars under second crop period in Yozgatclimatic condition and the authors suggested only 3cultivars among them for the second crop production withrespect to sustainable silage yield and quality.Central Anatolia Region and this period is approximatelyadequate for earlier hybrid cultivars. In this research, itwas aimed to determine yield performance and silagequality of five different earlier hybrid silage corn cultivars(Ada, Cadiz, Donana, Sagunto and Sakarya) as the secondcrop after barley harvest with sowing directly into barleystubble or after tillage.Silage quality is affected by different applications suchas cultivar, fertilization irrigation, temperature etc. Someproperties of silage such as crude protein content, neutraland acid detergent fiber content, pH and Fleig pointinvestigated frequently for making interpretation ofquality (Kilic, 1986; Cherney and Cherney, 2003;Baytekin and Gul, 2009). Silage quality and yield areaffected by sowing method, cultivar and applied culturalpractices. For example, Mulayim et al. (1995) stated thatyield performance of sole or mixed second crops (coolseason grasses and annual legumes) was higher whensown directly into winter wheat stubble than sown in theconventional method. Whereas, Tugay and Acar (2013)did not found significant yield differences in warm seasonannual forage crops between direct and conventionalsowing methods. Carter et al. (2002) and Santos et al.(2018) also indicated that herbage yield, dry matter andcrude protein content of silage corn are not affected bydirect or conventional sowing methods. Whereas, someresearchers (Garibay et al., 1997; Yalcin and Cakir, 2006)pointed out that silage corn is less productive under directsowing method.MATERIALS AND METHODSThe experiment was carried out at the experimentalstation of Faculty of Agriculture, Eskisehir OsmangaziUniversity, Eskisehir, between 2014 and 2015 years. Thestation is located at 39 45′ 19.4″ N and 30 28′ 31.9″ Eand an altitude of 800 m. According to soil analysis reportof Soil Science Department of Faculty of Agriculture, thesoil characteristics in 0-20 cm depth of the experimentalarea was loamy with organic matter content of 1.85 %, pHof 7.50, lime of 4.49 %, saline content of 0.04 %, Olsenphosphorus content of 55.3 kg ha-1 and availablepotassium of 3751 kg ha-1. The corn cultivars used in theexperiment are Ada (FAO 650), Cadiz (FAO 700),Donana (FAO 600), Sagunto (FAO 700) and Sakarya(FAO 650).The experimental area has a typical continental climatewith cold and moist winter and hot and dry summer. Theweather was warmer than long-term average during theexperimental periods in both years. While July and Augustwere warmer in the first experimental year, September andOctober were warmer in the second experimental yearcompared to the long-term average. Although, Augustreceived more precipitation than the long-term average inboth years (Table 1), and it was insufficient to meet plantwater needs. While September of the first experimentalyear has received quite higher precipitation, it wasextremely drought in the second year. In general, exceptfor September of first experimental year, the precipitationreceived during the experiment was far from meetingplant water needs during the experimental years.Second crop silage corn cultivation provides anefficient usage of irrigated lands as well as the productionof high-quality silage material. Herbage yield, CP, NDF,ADF contents and silage quality is high in second cropconditions (Geren et al., 2003; Carpici, 2016). Moreover,Turan and Yilmaz (2000) stated that herbage yield ofsecond crop silage corn was higher than main crop silagecorn.Corn breeders have developed high yielded earliercultivars which reach harvesting maturity about 75-80days. The period from barley harvest to next winter cropsowing time in irrigated lands is more than 90 days inTable 1. Average weather data in related months of Eskisehir between 2014 – 2015 yearsMonthsJulyAugustSeptemberOctoberPrecipitation 8.142.934.032.8201458.659.870.778.9Humidity 1422.623.017.412.2Temperature 7Conventional sowing was done in 10th and 21st of July for2014 and 2015 years, respectively.The experiment was designed in the split-plot within arandomized complete block design with 3 replications.While main plots consisted of sowing methods, subplotsconsisted of experimental cultivars. Under direct sowingtreatments, after barley harvest, sowing made directly intostubble using experiment drill in 4th and 13th July in yearsof 2014 and 2015, respectively. Following the barleyharvest, 50 mm water applied to plots in order to thawingsoil and 4 days after irrigation experimental plots wereplowed and then seedbed prepared using a rotator.Every plot consisted of 9.6 (4m x 2.4m) m2 area andsowing was carried out using 60 cm row spacing and 15cm intra-row spacing. Phosphorus (80 kg ha-1) andnitrogen (160 kg ha-1) fertilizers were applied as suggestedby Acikgoz (2001). Nitrogen was divided two parts, halfof it applied during the sowing and second part wasapplied when the plants reached up to 40-50 cm height.Weeding was picked out mechanically when the plants73
were at 30-40 cm height and sprinkler irrigation wasapplied with regard to water requirement of the plants.Water applied two and three times in the years of 2014and 2015, respectively and 100 mm water applied in eachirrigation practice.After weighting to determine dry matter content, sampleswere grounded to pass through a 2 mm sieve and analyzedfor chemical characteristics. Crude protein (CP) content ofthe samples was determined by Kjeldahl method (Jones,1981) and neutral detergent fiber (NDF) and aciddetergent fiber (ADF) contents were determined using themethod suggested by Van Soest et al. (1991).Harvest stage was determined considering thesuggestion of Geren and Kavut (2009) and it waspracticed on two-third milking stage. Harvesting wasperformed after taking out one row from each side of theplots and 45 cm from beginning and end of each row.After sowing, directly sown plots reached to harvestmaturity in 104 and 109 days while it was 98 and 101days for sowing conventionally in 2014 and 2015,respectively. Fresh forage yield was determined from themid two rows of the plots while plant height, cob, and leafratio were determined from 10 individual plants selectedrandomly from the plots. Thereafter, 10 plants from eachplot were taken and chopped mechanically and pressedinto 1.5 l special anaerobic jars (Le Parfait, France)without additives. The jars were then tightly sealed andkept in dark storage approximately 60 days forfermentation. After silage maturity, silage pH wasmeasured using pH meter (Nkosi et al., 2011) and Fleigpoint was estimated from the formula suggested by Kilic(1986). Thereafter, samples were oven-dried at 70 C untilreached constant weight (Cook and Stubbendieck, 1986).All data were subjected to ANOVA using SAS 9.3software (SAS, 2011). Means were separated usingTUKEY Multiple Range Test.RESULTSInvestigated characteristics of silage corn weregenerally varied due to year, sowing method and cultivar,and some of two and three-way interactions were alsosignificant. Plant height was affected significantly byyears (p 0.01), sowing methods (p 0.01) and cultivars(p 0.05) (Table 2). Plant height was quite higher in thefirst year than in the second year. The conventionallysown plants had higher plant height (273.3 cm) than theplants sown directly (221.1 cm). Average plant height was247.0 cm and it changed between 227.7 (Sakarya) and255.1 cm (Donana) among cultivars. There were nosignificant interaction effects on plant height in theexperiment.Table 2. Agronomic characteristics of the cultivars in different sowing methods and yearsPlant heigth (cm)Fresh forage yield (t ha-1)Cob ratio (%)Leaf ratio r (Y)20142015Sowing Method (SM)Direct sowingConventional sowingCultivar snsnsnsns*****nsnsnsnsnsnsnsnsnsnsns(ns: nonsignificant *:P 0.05, **:P 0.01)An average fresh forage yield was 77.0 t ha-1 and itwas affected by years (p 0.05) and sowing methods(p 0.01) but it was not affected by cultivar differences.Fresh forage yield was higher in the first year (81.1 t ha -1)than the second years (72.2 t ha-1). The plants which sownconventionally had about 50% higher fresh forage yieldcompared to the plants sown directly on stubble. Althoughfresh forage yield changed between 71.4 and 80.5 t ha -1among the cultivars, these changes were statisticallyinsignificant (Table 2). Neither two-way nor three-wayinteraction was significant for fresh forage yield.Overall leaf percentage was 16.11% and it was notaffected by any treatments but cob percentage was74
affected significantly. The plants grown in 2015 hadhigher (p 0.01) cob ratio (42.87%) than grown in the2014 (33.20 %). Cob ratio of conventionally sown plotswas lower (p 0.05) than directly sown plots. An averageof cob ratio was 38.08% and it varied significantlydepending on cultivars. While the cultivar Sakarya had thehighest (p 0.01) cob ratio (42.50 %), the cultivar Saguntohad the lowest (33.80 %) cob ratio among the cultivars.These differences with respect to dry matter contentamong the cultivars depend on years were responsible foryear x cultivar interaction.Crude protein content of silage was quite higher(p 0.01) in the second year than the first year (Figure 2a).Similarly, the plant sown conventionally had lower crudeprotein content (6.23 vs 7.56 %) than sown directly(Figure 2b). The cultivars Sagundo, Ada and Sakarya hadhigher crude protein content than the other cultivars.While the cultivar Sakarya had similar crude proteincontent in both years, the other cultivars had higher crudeprotein content in the second year. Therefore, year xcultivar interaction was significant for crude proteincontent. Although all cultivars had lower crude proteincontent under the conventionally sown condition, theirresponse to sowing method changed depending oncultivar. Consequently, this differences of cultivars inresponse to sowing method was responsible for sowing xcultivar interaction.On average, dry matter content of silage was 21.33 %and it changed significantly depending on years, sowingmethod and cultivar (p 0.01) and year x cultivarinteraction was also statistically significant. Dry mattercontent was higher in the second year crops and directlysown plots than the others (Figure 1).There was a significant effect (p 0.01) of sowingmethod and cultivar differences on NDF content but yearseffect was not significant. Year x cultivar and year xsowing method x cultivar interaction was significant at p 0.01 and 0.05 level, respectively. An average of NDFcontent was 49.78 %, and it was higher in the plantmaterial harvested from conventionally sown plots thanthe directly sown plats. While the cultivar Cadiz had thehighest NDF content (51.82 %), the Cultivar Donana hadthe lowest NDF content (47.98 %) among the cultivars.NDF content of the cultivar sown directly showed partlysimilar trend between years, the plant which sownconventionally showed a different trend (Figure 3). On theother hand, the rank of the cultivar varied between yearswith respect to NDF content. Thus, year x sowing methodx cultivar interaction was significant for NDF content ofsilage material.Figure 1. Dry matter content of the cultivars in 2014 and 2015While the cultivar Donana had the highest dry mattercontent (23.35 %), the cultivar Sakarya had the lowest drymatter content (20.69 %). The cultivars showed a differentresponse to years with respect to dry matter content. Forexample, dry matter content of the cultivar Donana washigher in the first year while the cultivar Sakarya washigher in the second year compared to the other year.Figure 2. Crude protein content of the cultivars in different years (a) and sowing methods (b).75
Figure 3. NDF content of the cultivars under different sowingmethods in 2014 and 2015.Figure 4. ADF content of the cultivars under different sowingmethods in 2014 and 2015.Except for year x sowing interaction, all treatmentsand their interactions were significant at p 0.01 level forADF content of silage material. An average of ADFcontent was 24.25 %, and it was higher in the year of 2015than 2014. The material harvested from conventionallysown plots had also higher ADF content than the other.While the cultivar Cadiz had higher ADF content, thecultivar Donana had the lowest ADF content. The cultivarAda and Sakarya had similar ADF content across theyears while the others showed a different trend across theyears and their ranking also showed differences betweenyears (Figure 4). Thus years x sowing x cultivarinteraction was significant for ADF content.Average silage pH and Fleig point were 3.72 and84.32, respectively. All treatments affected both silage pHand Fleig point. While year x cultivar and year x sowing xcultivar interactions were significant for bothcharacteristics, sowing x cultivar interaction wassignificant for only Fleig point (Table 3). Silage pH washigher in the year of 2015 than 2014. The silage samplesharvested from the plots sown directly had higher pHvalue than the plots sown conventionally. The silagesamples obtained from Sakarya and Donana cultivars hadhigher pH value than the other cultivars but pH values ofthe cultivars were affected differently by both years andsowing methods (Figure 5).Table 3. Silage quality of the cultivars in different sowing methods and years.Year (Y)20142015Sowing Method (SM)Direct sowingConventional sowingCultivar YxSMYxCSMxCYxSMxCDry matter (%)Crude protein(%)NDF *****ns**ns*******ns***********ns**nsns(ns: nonsignificant *:P 0.05, **:P 0.01)76
Hence, the interactions were significant for silage pH.Fleig point of silage samples was higher in the first yearand it was higher in the plot sown directly. The silage wasmade from the cultivar Donana had higher Fleig pointwhile the cultivar Sakarya had the lowest Fleig point.Fleig points of the cultivars were affected differently byboth years and sowing methods (Figure 6) and thus, theinteractions were significant for Fleig point.varieties and some annual legumes under second cropcondition in the region.Silage corn is commonly cultivated as the second cropunder irrigated area in dry climatic condition. Under thecentral Anatolia and similar regions of Turkey, severalsecond crop corn experiment conducted and obtainedprominent results under irrigated conditions (Geren et al.,2003; Gunes and Acar, 2006; Karasu et al., 2009). Theinvestigated characteristics in the experiment wereaffected by years, sowing methods and cultivars. Bothplant height and fresh forage yield were higher in the firstyear which warm weather condition prevailed comparedto the second year. This is a
generally varied due to year, sowing method and cultivar, and some of two and three-way interactions were also significant. Plant height was affected significantly by years (p 0.01), sowing methods (p 0.01) and cultivars (p 0.05)
sowing from around mid April til the end of May. It has useful tolerance to acid soils. SOWING RATE Higher sowing rates generally increase drymatter production, especially in early grazing, generally the first six to 14 weeks after sowing. High sowing
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delaying sowing date in both years. The highest seed yield was obtained from Aveline corn cultivar in late sowing date in both years because of having high thousand seed weight. The percentage of decreased in terms of protein was to highest in Aveline cultivar with the delaying sowing date.
presence of size seeds, cultivar and sowing date. The sowing seed size affect yield and yield components of legume. There are many reports on legumes showing the important effect of seed size. Growing large seeds increased vegetative gr
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Integrity inspection, American Petroleum Institute (API), Steel Tank Institute (STI), Magnetic Flux Leakage (MFL), Ultrasonic Testing (UT), National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). WHAT IS AN INTEGRITY INSPECTION An integrity inspection of a container(s) is a system designed to be sure that a container would not fail under normal operating conditions. In this application, it generally .
