Effect of tillage system on soil properties and yield of Oba 98 maize variety in Zaria

Abstract

Nigeria loses significant amount of soil, organic matter and plant nutrients to the continuous tilling of soil for various crop production. This leads to declining and stagnation of crop yields. Three year field trials were conducted during 2006, 2007 and 2008 wet seasons at the experimental farm of Institute for Agricultural Research of Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria (Lat. 11° 11' N: Long 7° 38' E: 686 m above sea level) to investigate the effect of tillage system on soil chemical properties, physical properties and grain yield of Oba 98 maize variety. The treatments consisted of six tillage systems laid out in Complete Randomize Block Design and replicated five times. The parameters measured included soil chemical properties such as ions concentrations and Cation Exchange Capacity, soil textural class, soil bulk density and grain yield of the maize under test. The results obtained indicated that GPx (Glyphosate followed by Primextra Gold) and PPx (Paraquat followed by Primextra Gold) tillage systems enhanced soil nutrients with higher Cation Exchange Capacity, highest cations and anions concentrations due to organic matter accumulation in the soil, improved soil structure that resulted to better grain yield of maize. The two types of tillage systems will therefore help in reducing the effect of soil degradation through frequent tilling and also improved soil aggregate and fertility as a result of organic matter accumulation on the soil surface.

Keywords: Tillage, soil, yield, maize.