Field Crop 2024, Vol.7, No.5, 261-269 http://cropscipublisher.com/index.php/fc 264 4 Triticale in Crop Rotation Systems 4.1 Role of triticale in diversifying crop rotations Triticale plays a significant role in diversifying crop rotations, which is crucial for sustainable agricultural practices. Diversified crop rotations, including triticale, can reduce weed density by altering the ecological conditions that weeds are exposed to, thereby reducing their prevalence and the selection pressure for herbicide resistance (Figure 2) (Weisberger et al., 2019). Additionally, incorporating triticale into crop rotations can enhance the overall yield of subsequent crops. For instance, a study in China demonstrated that crop rotation, including triticale, increased crop yields by an average of 20% compared to continuous monoculture practices (Zhao et al., 2020). This yield benefit is attributed to the varied planting dates and crop species richness that diversified rotations bring, which disrupts pest and weed cycles and improves soil health. Figure 2 Scaled importance of nine predictors for weed density response to increased rotational diversity (Adopted from Weisberger et al., 2019) Image caption: Variable importance derived from a generalized boosted regression tree (Adopted from Weisberger et al., 2019) 4.2 Enhancing soil fertility through crop rotation with triticale Incorporating triticale into crop rotations can significantly enhance soil fertility. Triticale, when used in rotation with legumes, benefits from the nitrogen-fixing capabilities of legumes, which increase the soil's nitrogen content and improve the productivity of subsequent crops. For example, a study in a Mediterranean climate found that rotating triticale with legumes such as cowpea, faba bean, and pea improved cereal productivity by up to 59%, equivalent to the application of 153 kg of synthetic nitrogen per hectare (Oliveira et al., 2019). This improvement is due to the biologically fixed nitrogen from legumes, which remains in the soil and is available for the triticale crop, thereby reducing the need for synthetic fertilizers and promoting sustainable soil management. 4.3 Effects on weed suppression and pest management Triticale in crop rotations has been shown to effectively suppress weeds and manage pests, contributing to healthier and more productive cropping systems (Derejko and Studnicki, 2019). A long-term study in Finland demonstrated that diversified crop rotations, including triticale, significantly reduced weed density and the severity of plant diseases such as wheat leaf blotch (Jalli et al., 2021). The study found that the most diverse crop rotations reduced weed density by 49% and decreased disease severity by 20% compared to monoculture systems.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjQ4ODYzNA==