CROP MANAGEMENT – CASES AND TOOLS FOR HIGHER YIELD AND SUSTAINABILITY Edited by Fabio R. Marin           Crop Management – Cases and Tools for Higher Yield and Sustainability Edited by Fabio R. Marin Published by InTech Janeza Trdine 9, 51000 Rijeka, Croatia Copyright © 2012 InTech All chapters are Open Access distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 license, which allows users to download, copy and build upon published articles even for commercial purposes, as long as the author and publisher are properly credited, which ensures maximum dissemination and a wider impact of our publications. After this work has been published by InTech, authors have the right to republish it, in whole or part, in any publication of which they are the author, and to make other personal use of the work. Any republication, referencing or personal use of the work must explicitly identify the original source. As for readers, this license allows users to download, copy and build upon published chapters even for commercial purposes, as long as the author and publisher are properly credited, which ensures maximum dissemination and a wider impact of our publications. Notice Statements and opinions expressed in the chapters are these of the individual contributors and not necessarily those of the editors or publisher. No responsibility is accepted for the accuracy of information contained in the published chapters. The publisher assumes no responsibility for any damage or injury to persons or property arising out of the use of any materials, instructions, methods or ideas contained in the book. Publishing Process Manager Mirna Cvijic Technical Editor Teodora Smiljanic Cover Designer InTech Design Team First published February, 2012 Printed in Croatia A free online edition of this book is available at www.intechopen.com Additional hard copies can be obtained from orders@intechweb.org Crop Management – Cases and Tools for Higher Yield and Sustainability, Edited by Fabio R. Marin p. cm. ISBN 978-953-51-0068-3   Contents  Preface VII Part 1 Controlling Genome, Plant and Soil 1 Chapter 1 Ripening and the Use of Ripeners for Better Sugarcane Management 3 Marcelo de Almeida Silva and Marina Maitto Caputo Chapter 2 Population Management for Yield Improvement in Upland Rice Ecologies for West Africa Region 25 Andrew A. Efisue Chapter 3 Managing Cover Crops for Conservation Purposes in the Fraser River Delta, British Columbia 41 Jude J. O. Odhiambo, Wayne D. Temple and Arthur A. Bomke Chapter 4 Soil Management Strategies for Radish and Potato Crops: Yield Response and Economical Productivity in the Relation to Organic Fertilizer and Ridging Practice 57 Masakazu Komatsuzaki and Lei Dou Part 2 Understanding and Making Decisions 75 Chapter 5 A Conceptual Model to Design Prototypes of Crop Management: A Way to Improve Organic Winter Oilseed Rape Performance in Farmers’ Fields 77 Muriel Valantin-Morison and Jean-Marc Meynard Chapter 6 Understanding Sugarcane Yield Gap and Bettering Crop Management Through Crop Production Efficiency 109 Fábio Ricardo Marin  Preface  Agricultural production is related to physical constrains, which may not always be overcomed by technology. However, under the same conditions, it is possible to see well-managed farms consistently making greater profits than similarly structured, neighboring farms. For each abiotical condition, it is well-known there is a difference between the potential and observed yields, which is usually high and often could be reduced through more appropriate management techniques. The list of available techniques for increasing agricultural yield is long and deals with different aspects related to the agricultural production. The selection of the best solutions, however, is an art that requires information access and decision-making ability. It is worth of remembering that policy makers would find in such kind of information useful directions to guide their actions. In this book, we have a selection of agricultural problems encountered in different regions of the world which were addressed using creative solution, offering new approaches for well-known techniques and new tools for old problems. The book is divided into two sections - first section describes cases addressing strategies based on genetic resources, soil and plant management. The second one provides tools for the diagnosis of the problem decision making. We appreciate Ms. Mirna Cvijic, the Publishing Manager of InTech, for all time spent, the dedication and patience throughout of this task. Fabio R. Marin Embrapa Agriculture Informatics Campinas Brazil Part 1 Controlling Genome, Plant and Soil [...]... against diseases and insect pests 4 Measurements Measurements were taken as at when due for all traits using Standard Evaluation System (SES) for the Rice Reference Manual (IRRI, 1996) Before the commencement of data taken, 10 plants were labelled at random from the middle rows of each plot and these plants were used for all data taken 28 Crop Management – Cases and Tools for Higher Yield and Sustainability. .. paralyzes development, which induces the translocation and storage of sugars, and confers resistance to lodging, which facilitates cutting and reduces losses in the field 12 Crop Management – Cases and Tools for Higher Yield and Sustainability and the amount of foreign matter transported to the industry When applied, the ripener is absorbed by the plant and acts by selectively reducing the level of active... to extract and involves the loss of stalk weight and, consequently, a reduction in the final yield Fig 1 Flowering of sugarcane 10 Crop Management – Cases and Tools for Higher Yield and Sustainability Quantification of the degree of the pith process and the possible changes in the quality of the raw material may provide critical data to the design of the area to be planted for each variety and the best... planted for each variety and to determine the time periods most favorable for their industrialization However, depending on the variety and environmental conditions to which it is subjected, the intensity of the process is variable, as is the intensity of the problems arising from these phenomena 4 Crop Management – Cases and Tools for Higher Yield and Sustainability A gradual drop in temperature and. .. ethephon Ethephon has yielded improvements in the technological quality in areas that do not have flowering, and when blooms are present, there is improvement in the production of 14 Crop Management – Cases and Tools for Higher Yield and Sustainability sugarcane However, Gururaj Rao et al (1996) found distinct responses for different varieties of sugarcane when considering production For Caputo et al (2007),... to develop varieties with high yield potential, which is the result of several 26 Crop Management – Cases and Tools for Higher Yield and Sustainability components that are determined at various stages in the growth of rice (Yoshida, 1981) Effective population management will enhance yield potential by selecting promising genotypes from the early generations of the rice crop, thus reduce the carry-over... fiber and reducing sugars, and the total recoverable sugars during plant development, (Caputo, 2006) 2.1 Mechanism of sucrose accumulation in sugarcane stalks Sugarcane has the capacity to maximally use the available sunlight for photosynthesis Each internode produces a new leaf in approximately ten days, and older leaves senesce, leaving 6 Crop Management – Cases and Tools for Higher Yield and Sustainability. .. 20 Crop Management – Cases and Tools for Higher Yield and Sustainability flowering and restricts the volume of the parenchyma without juice (i.e., it decreases the pith process) No negative effect on subsequent ratoon sprouting has been reported, unlike for glyphosate Maleic hydrazide (1,2-dihydro-3,6-pyridazinedione) is a plant growth inhibitor that is considered to be a possible ripening agent for. .. SP81-3250 Acta Scientiarum Agronomy Vol.30, No.1, (January 2008), pp 65-71, ISSN 1807-8621 24 Crop Management – Cases and Tools for Higher Yield and Sustainability Viator, B.J.; Viator, C.; Jackson, W.; Waguespack, H.; Richard Junior., E.P (2003) Evaluation of potassium-based ripeners as an alternative to glyphosate and the effects of 2,4-D on herbicidal cane ripening Sugar Journal, Vol.66, No.1, pp 21,... studies have reported two negative effects of glyphosate as a ripener for sugarcane The first is the elevated rate of side shoots on stems after application (Fig 5), which leads to lower raw material quality The second is the detrimental effect on sprouting ratoons after 18 Crop Management – Cases and Tools for Higher Yield and Sustainability harvest from treated areas, with a reduction of tillers . CROP MANAGEMENT – CASES AND TOOLS FOR HIGHER YIELD AND SUSTAINABILITY Edited by Fabio R. Marin           Crop Management – Cases and Tools for Higher Yield and Sustainability. translocation and storage of sugars, and confers resistance to lodging, which facilitates cutting and reduces losses in the field Crop Management – Cases and Tools for Higher Yield and Sustainability. sunlight for photosynthesis. Each internode produces a new leaf in approximately ten days, and older leaves senesce, leaving Crop Management – Cases and Tools for Higher Yield and Sustainability