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Area under No- tillage in different countries
One has to be aware that only a few countries in the world conduct surveys on the extent of no-tillage adoption and that in most cases the data is based on estimates made by farmer organizations, agro industry and others. Table 1 shows the estimated area under no-tillage worldwide.
| Country |
Area under No- tillage
in ha 2007/ 2008 |
| USA 1 |
26.500.000 |
| Argentina 2 |
25.785.000 |
| Brazil 3 |
25.502.000 |
| Australia 4 |
17.000.000 |
| Canada 5 |
13.481.000 |
| Paraguay 6 |
2.400.000 |
| China 7 |
1.330.000 |
| Kazakhstan 8 |
1.300.000 |
| Bolivia 9 |
706.000 |
| Uruguay 10 |
655.000 |
| Spain 11 |
650.000 |
| South Afrika 12 |
368.000 |
| Venezuela 13 |
300.000 |
| France 14 |
200.000 |
| Finland15 |
200.000 |
| Chile16 |
180.000 |
New Zealand 17 |
162.000 |
| Colombia18 |
102.000 |
| Ukraine 19 |
100.000 |
Total |
116.921.000 |
Source: Derpsch, R. and Friedrich, T., 2010
Extracted from: http://www.fao.org/ag/ca/6c.html
Information provided by:
1) CTIC, 2007; 2) AAPRESID, 2010; 3) FEBRAPDP, 2005/06; 4) Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2009; 5) Dr. Doug McKell, Soil Conserv. Council of Canada, 2006; 6) MAG & CAPECO, 2008; 7) Li Hongwen, 2008; 8) Mekhlis Suleimenov, 2007; 9) ANAPO, Bolivia, 2007; 10) ) Miguel Carballal AUSID, 2007; 11) Emilio González-Sánchez, AEAC/SV, 2008; 12) Richard Fowler, 2008; 13) Rafael E. Perez, 2004; 14) APAD, 2008; 15) Timo Rouhianinen, FINCA, 2008; 16) Carlos Crovetto, 2008; 17) John Baker, 2008; 18) Fabio Leiva,
2008; 19) Estimate by the authors.
Readers of this paper, who think that their
countries should be mentioned in this list, or that some numbers should be
corrected, are invited to contact the author giving credit of the sources of
the information. Internationally accepted definitions of no-tillage should be
used.
According
to previous sources there would be 650,000 ha of no-tillage in Mexico. But
this estimate was based on the number of no-till machines sold which was
multiplied by average farm size. Newer data by CIMMYT showed that this system
greatly overestimated the area under this practice.
While
more than 70% of the area under no-tillage in Argentina, Brazil,
Bolivia, Paraguay and Australia is permanently not being
tilled, this is only the case in about 10 - 12% of the area in
the USA (CTIC, 2005).
Despite the fact that
the United States has the biggest area under no- tillage, it is interesting to note that in this
country no-tillage accounts for only 25.5% of all cropland hectares. In Brazil and Argentina no-tillage accounts for about 70% and in Paraguay for 75% of all cropland
hectares. Paraguay is now the leading country in the world in terms of percentage of no-tillage
adoption.
It is estimated that
no-tillage is practiced on about 105.8 million hectares world wide.
Approximately 47% of the technology is practiced in Latin America, 38% is
practiced in the United States and Canada, 11% in Australia, 2.3% in Asia, 1.1%
in Europe and about 0.3% in Africa Despite good and long lasting research in these
last continents, no-tillage has had only small rates of adoption in Africa,
Europe and Asia.
Published in: Derpsch, R. & Friedrich, T.,
2009. Global Overview of Conservation Agriculture Adoption. Proceedings, Lead
Papers, 4th World Congress on Conservation Agriculture, 4-7 February 2009, New
Delhi, India, p 429-438.
SUSTAINABLE CROP PRODUCTION INTENSIFICATION - THE ADOPTION OF CONSERVATION AGRICULTURE WORLDWIDE - 16th ISCO Congress, 8-12 Nov. 2010, Santiago, Chile
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The Knife Roller
A new development for permanent cover cropping systems
Green Manure Cover Crops
(GMCC's) and crop rotation are the key factors for the unprecedented growth of no-tillage
especially in Brazil and Paraguay. Linked to the spread of cover crops is the use of a Knife
Roller to flatten cover crops. This implement is not terribly expensive and in many cases can
be made locally or by the farmer himself. The implement can be pulled by medium sized tractors
or the smaller version by animal traction and has contributed a lot in reducing herbicide rates
in the no-tillage system. The Knife Roller has become an essential tool for managing GMCC's in
many countries of South America. The knives should not cut the plants but just smash the stems,
in order to impede water circulation in the plant. It has been a big error of many manufacturers
to make the implement with sharp knives. In this case knives penetrate into the soil enhancing
weed germination
Dimensions of a Knife Roller:
The Knife Roller consists of a hollow steel cylinder, 6mm thick, approx. 115 - 200 cm wide and
60 -70 cm in diameter.
Ends are welded to be filled with water if needed.
Approx. 8 - 12 blunt knives are placed every 19 cm.
The knives are about 7 - 10 cm high and are placed parallel to the cylinder
at an angle of 45° or 90°.
Weight of each 200 cm cylinder is aprox. 400 kg empty and 800 kg full of water.
Three cylinders are often placed in such a way that two run in front and one
in back allowing for greater working width.
Cylinders are mounted on a frame to allow hydraulic lifting.
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The Knife Roller to flatten and kill green manure cover
crops and leave the plant residues on the soil surface is an essential tool for cover
crop management. |
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