Effectiveness of residues from six crops for reducing wind erosion in a semiarid region

The effectiveness of residues from six crops for reducing wind erosion in the semiarid Southern High Plains was evaluated using the wind erosion equation and 38 years of crop residue data. The crops and their respective potential annual soil losses from wind erosion [when C = 70, I = 193 t/ha (86 tons/acre), L = 914 m (3,000 feet), and K = 0.7] were as follows: kafir, 12 t/ha; forage sorghum, cut 80 cm high, 15 t/ha; winter wheat, 39 t/ha; grain sorghum, 43 t/ha; corn, 77 t/ha; and cotton, 83 t/ha.