EVALUATION OF DIFFERENT SOIL TILLAGE METHODS OF WINTER WHEAT PRODUCTION

Several years already, field monitoring and measurements focused on technological and economic comparison of conventional and reduced-tillage technologies of soil cultivation and drilling of winter wheat have been carried out in around 40 farm businesses located in all of the districts of the Czech Republic. The paper presents six-year results starting from the production year 2006/07, where around 240 fields were monitored over that period. In general, reduced-tillage technologies prevailed. Conventional technology was more frequent only in potato production region. In each of the years in question, average wheat yield produced by the reduced-tillage technology slightly surpassed the yield of the conventional technology. The six-year average difference in yields amounted then to 7.7 %, i.e. to 0.52 t.ha(-1). Over the six years, the highest yields were reached in sugar-beet production area, the lowest on the other hand in potato production area. But the difference in average yield among the latter mentioned and the forage and wheat production areas were minor. Over the period in question, reduced-tillage technology demonstrated by 20 % lower fuel consumption, by 19 % lower labour consumption and by 5 % lower total direct costs. The average unit costs per ton of production gained using conventional technology thus surpassed those gained using reduced-tillage technology by 11 %., i.e. by 314 CZK.t(-1)