Perennial grasses as circular strips improve rainfall conservation and crop growth in center pivot agriculture

Rainwater, an important water source after the Ogallala Aquifer (OA) in the Southern High Plains, is increasingly lost due to more intense rainfall events and the limited retention capacity of the irrigated production systems. This study tested integrating circular buffer strips (CBS) of native perennial grasses within center pivot to enhance rainwater conservation. We compared soil moisture, crop microclimate, and growth between CBS and a control pivot without grass strips (CT). After two intense rain events of 2019 and 2020, rainwater conservation was 138 and 90% greater in CBS than in CT. CBS maintained a cooler and wetter microclimate, reducing maize water stress by 10% and 13%, and increasing biomass accumulation by 41% after the two rain events. This led to a 50 and 63% improvement in biomass water productivity (WP) of maize in CBS. These findings demonstrate CBS’s effectiveness in enhancing rainwater conservation, optimizing crop growing conditions, and reducing groundwater reliance.