Effect of soil aeration in minimising/alleviating soil compaction and sward damage in grassland.

Abstract

Due to increased farmer interest in mechanical spiking as a method for alleviating soil compaction in grassland, a series of experiments was conducted from 1995- 98. Experiments comparing single (one year only in spring and autumn) or annual spiking in spring and autumn were conducted at: Oak Park, Carlow; Knockbeg, Co. Laois; Kilmaley, Co. Clare; and Solohead, Co. Tipperary under grazing and silage management regimes. While there were differences between spiked and unspiked treatments, these were usually small and inconsistent. The results of these experiments show that routine spiking of grassland is unlikely to produce any yield benefits. Spiking may be beneficial where specific shallow compaction problems occur but is unlikely to alleviate the effects of wheel traffic.