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Irrigating Row Crops from Sod Furrows to Reduce Erosion¹

ABSTRACT

Kentucky bluegrass (Poa pratensis L.) sod furrows were established to stablize the soil. The furrows were used to irrigate corn (Zea mays L.), wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), barley (Hordeum vulgaris L.), beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.), and sugar beets (Beta vulgaris L.). The sod strips containing the furrows were 0.3-m wide and managed as a permanent living entity. A strip moving machine and a miniature rotary ditcher were developed to maintain the sod furrows. Crops were grown in clean tilled strips 0.9-m wide between the sod strips. Normal use of fertilizer, herbicides, and cultivation was utilized for the crop rows in the clean tilled strips. This management system eliminated soil erosion, at least doubled the infiltration rate of irrigation water, and allowed the production of satisfactory yields of wheat, barley, dry beans, and corn for silage. Sugar beet production was unacceptable due to competition from the sod.

¹ Contribution from the Snake River Conservation Research Center, USDA-ARS, Route 1, Box 186, Kimberly, ID 83341.

² Soil Scientist.

Received for publication January 21, 1986.