Residue removal from maize (Zea mays) fields offers an opportunity to increase farmer profits, but potential tradeoffs for water dynamics and crop performance merit further evaluation. This study, established in 2014, compared the effects of two tillage practices (no-till and conventional) and two residue management practices (harvested vs. kept in place) on maize grain yields, water infiltration, evapotranspiration, and soil physical attributes. On average, maize grain yields under limited irrigation increased with residue retention by 1.1 Mg ha−1 year−1 between 2016 and 2018, but tillage had no significant effect. Total infiltration (over 30 min) was higher with residue retention. Neither tillage nor residue management had a significant impact on evapotranspiration during the vegetative growth stage. However, there was a significant residue by tillage interaction where vegetative evapotranspiration was reduced by no-till and residue retention. Conversely, penetrometer resistance was significantly reduced by both tillage and residue retention. Volumetric water content in the soil profile at planting was higher with residue retention. These results suggest that plots with residue removal would on average require 60 mm year−1 of additional irrigation to attain the same yields as fields with residue retention. In summary, our findings suggest that high rates of crop residue removal under limited irrigation in a semiarid environment can negatively affect water conservation and yields, and that tradeoffs surrounding residue export need to be fully considered in land management and policy decisions.

中文翻译：

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在科罗拉多州东部半干旱种植系统中耕作和残留管理对灌溉玉米性能和水循环的影响

从玉米（Zea mays）田中去除残留物提供了增加农民利润的机会，但水动力学和作物性能的潜在权衡值得进一步评估。该研究成立于 2014 年，比较了两种耕作方式（免耕和常规）和两种残留管理方式（收获与保持原位）对玉米产量、水分渗透、蒸发蒸腾和土壤物理属性的影响。平均而言，在 2016 年至 2018 年间，有限灌溉下的玉米籽粒产量随着残留物保留增加了 1.1 Mg ha-1 year-1，但耕作没有显着影响。总渗透（超过 30 分钟）更高，残留物保留。在营养生长阶段，耕作和残留管理都对蒸散量没有显着影响。然而，耕作相互作用产生了显着的残留物，其中植物蒸腾量因免耕和残留物保留而减少。相反，耕作和残留物保留显着降低了针入度计的阻力。种植时土壤剖面的体积含水量较高，残留物保留。这些结果表明，去除残留物的地块平均需要每年 60 毫米的额外灌溉，以获得与残留物保留的田地相同的产量。总而言之，我们的研究结果表明，在半干旱环境中有限灌溉下的高作物残留去除率会对节水和产量产生负面影响，并且在土地管理和政策决策中需要充分考虑围绕残留物出口的权衡。