Soil Tillage Effects on Root Development Pepper Plant Part 1: Grown Inside the Greenhouse

Soil compaction can restrict root growth and water infiltration, resulting in yield reduction. Tillage often promotes root growth. In nature however, roots grow without tillage. Problems with root growth in agricultural soils often occur when a soil lacks of permanent pore system and has poor tilt. In this study, the effects of soil tillage method on penetration resistance and root development of pepper grown inside a greenhouse were investigated. Four tillage systems were ploughing, ploughing and rotary tillage, rotary tillage and no tillage. There was significant (p<0.01) effect of soil tillage method on penetration resistance at 0-10 cm depth. Primary tillage using a moldboard plough and following a secondary tillage using a rotary tillage supplied lower penetration resistance. Better root growth was obtained under this tillage method.