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.
 
 

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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