The impact of crop rotation on peanut productivity in rainfed cropping systems

Abstract

Peanuts are a high value crop in farming systems on Red Ferrosol soils in the inland Burnett, but one that also responds negatively to inadequate crop rotations. This paper reports results of a long term rotation study at Kingaroy designed to quantify the impact of various crop rotations and ley pastures on peanut productivity and crop value, as well as the incidence of known peanut pathogens. On average, peanut crops yielded 25% higher in rotations than in a monoculture, but quality of the harvested pods was unaffected by rotation. There was no additional yield response to rotation breaks longer than a single year, and no additional response to grass leys compared to alternate crops. The incidence of known peanut pathogens was significantly affected by rotation, but the impact of these pathogens on crop yield was strongly related to in-crop rainfall and the resultant seasonal yield potential. Gross returns from peanut crops were $177/ha lower per tonne of potential yield in a monoculture than in crop rotations. These findings can be used as a basis for optimising rainfed peanut farming systems for long-term viability and sustainability.