TY - JOUR T1 - Deep ripping fall-planted wheat after fallow to improve infiltration and reduce erosion JF - Journal of Soil and Water Conservation SP - 198 LP - 202 VL - 52 IS - 3 AU - William F. Schillinger AU - Dale E. Wilkins Y1 - 1997/05/01 UR - http://www.jswconline.org/content/52/3/198.abstract N2 - Water runoff and soil loss from fall-sown wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) fields are often severe during the winter when rain or snow melt occur on frozen soils in the inland Pacific Northwest (PNW). In a 2-year field study near Benge, WA, we tilled planted wheat plots on slopes > 40% in late fall to a depth of 25 or 60 cm with shanks spaced 3.7 or 6.0 m apart. In a dry winter, no soil loss was measured in ripped plots compared to 3.0 t ha−1 soil loss for the control. Soil drying occurred near the tillage channels in ripped plots, reducing over-winter soil water storage. In a winter with higher than average precipitation and frequent frozen soil conditions, soil loss was 6.4 and 20.2 t ha−1 for ripped and control treatments, respectively. Ripping significantly improved water infiltration into the soil to a depth of 180 cm as far as 90 cm down-slope from the tillage channel. In both years, grain yield was reduced in the row most disturbed by the tillage shank, but was increased in adjacent rows. On a whole-plot basis, there were no differences in grain yield between ripped and control treatments either year. Results suggest that deep ripping planted wheat fields in late fall is an effective soil and water conservation practice that does not reduce grain yield. ER -