THE EFFECT OF SNOW TRAPPING AND CROPPING SEQUENCE ON MOISTURE CONSERVATION AND UTILIZATION IN WEST-CENTRAL SASKATCHEWAN

Abstract

Snow ridging, trap strips, row-crop fallow, standing stubble and bare fallow were compared as snow and moisture conservation methods over 16 yr. Standing stubble in a continuous crop rotation was the most effective practice, conserving 50-60 mm more annual moisture than bare fallow. Three wheat (Triticum aestivum L. ''Manitou'') rotations, fallow-wheat, fallow-wheat-wheat and continuous wheat, were used to measure the effectiveness of moisture conservation treatments. Continuous wheat produced higher grain yields and used the available soil moisture to produce more per year than either the fallow-wheat or the fallow-wheat-wheat rotations.