Effect of Different Tillage Systems after Wheat Harvest on Soil Physical Properties and Seed Germination of Lentil

The conservation of soil moisture content in rainfed agriculture area is very important to increase crop yield. The suitable tillage method should be used to protect the soil moisture content and physical properties. Therefore, this study determined the effect of conventional, reduced and no-tillage methods after wheat harvest on residue cover, soil physical properties and seed germination of lentil. The study was conducted in Diyarbakir conditions during 2010-2011 growing season. In result of research, it was determined that while no-till method had the highest residue cover (%98), conventional tillage resulted in the lowest cover residue (%58). Compared with conventional tillage, no-till and reduced tillage methods resulted in higher soil moisture content. The while penetration resistance was the highest under no-till at 0-10 and 10-20 cm soil depth, it was the highest under conventional tillage at 20-30 cm. Emergence rate was found %77.35 for conventional tillage, %84.75 for reduced tillage and %62.25for no-tillage. It was observed that the emergence rate was affected by the mice damage. There was no difference in soil bulk density and temperature among tillage methods.