Companion cropping in asparagus: Impacts on asparagus yield andsoil structure

摘要

A replicated long-term asparagus field trial was established to develop a suite of Best Management Practices (BMPs) to concurrently mitigate wheeling compaction, improve soil structural status, reduce run-off and erosion, prevent asparagus decline andfacilitate long-term profitability. Initial results indicate that at both 0-5 cm and 5-10 cm depth, only the rye (Cereale secale L.) and mustard (Sinapis alba L.) companion crop treatments and the bare soil no subsoiling ridged and un-ridged controls were associated with significantly higher penetrative resistance values (kPa) as compared with the 2016 pre-treatment baseline. Further, the 2018 asparagus yield associated with the rye no subsoiling non ridged treatment was between 18.9 and 28.5% lower (P<0.1) than several of the other BMP treatments. This has significant economic implications for growers and will be further investigated as the trial continues, as rye is a widely adopted companion crop for soil erosion control.