Does Tillage Affect Variety Selection In Spring Wheat?

Many growers have asked the questions: "Does no-till spring wheat yield as well as spring wheat sown following tillage?" and "Are some varieties better suited to no-till than other varieties?"

Dr. Harvey Voldeng and crew at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in Ottawa, used the variety entries from the Performance Trial and the Registration Trials to answer these questions. The plots were all randomized and replicates 4 times for each treatment.

The plots were sown on May 8^th in 2002 and on May 5^th in 2003. The no-till treatment was directly sown with a no-till plot planter. The tillage treatment consisted of a pass with the chisel plow in the fall and once over with the Triple-K cultivator in the spring. In both years the preceding crop was soybeans. The results are summarized in Table 1.

There was no evidence that varieties responded differently in yield to tillage or no-till treatments. They measured other traits as well, such as height, kg/hl, and protein, but found no significant differences between the tillage treatments.

Can you no-till spring wheat? The answer is yes! While yields are not affected greatly by tillage systems, the need for good seed-to-soil contact and soil moisture for germination is essential. Other factors for success are drill capacity, crop rotation, crop residue management, good weed control, and adequate fertility.