The impact of soil structure on the establishment of winter wheat (Triticum aestivum)

Soil physical properties affect the establishment of crops; these properties are influenced by cultivation employed during seedbed preparation and vary greatly depending upon the intensity of cultivations. However, there is little quantified data concerning the influence of cultivation on the precise soil structural arrangement of the seedbed and the effects of this on crop establishment. The dynamics of soil structure at the meso-scale (10-1000 μm), on a range of seedbeds and how they relate to crop establishment are considered in this paper. Significant interactions between cultivation techniques including soil structural properties and the interaction with crop establishment were identified. The relationship between soil structure and crop establishment was highly significant, with increased pore space reducing final establishment numbers. An improvement to a previous model (soil quality of establishment (SQE)) was developed following the addition of soil structural properties, accounting for an improved predictability of 14% of the variation across soil texture (sandy loam and clay loam) from ca. 56% to ca. 70%.