This study analyzes the potential of conservation tillage (CT) for improving maize productivity under a range of soil and rainfall conditions in a semiarid zone of West-Central Mexico, evaluating the consequences of tillage practices on the crop's ability to take up and store water, on evapotranspiration, on crop physiology, and on grain yield, under cropping systems typical of small-scale farmers. Even with low use of crop residue mulching (0.2 kg/m2), CT has considerable potential for adoption in these areas, once technical issues such as supply of appropriate machinery, weed control, and the competing use of the maize residue for forage have been resolved. Even under wetter conditions, CT resulted in acceptable yields.