Alternate or equal ridge–furrow pattern: Which is better for maize production in the rain-fed semi-arid Loess Plateau of China?

Eldoma, Ibrahim M.; Li, Ming; Zhang, Feng; Li, Fengmin

doi:10.1016/j.fcr.2016.02.024

Cited by 63 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…In this study, we assessed two factors-plastic film mulching and N application. In each of the seven years of the experiment, it was proved that full plastic film mulching could promote maize grain yield, and this is consistent with previous studies in the Loess Plateau region [7,[32][33][34]. The availability of water is the key to successful dryland agriculture, and a high level of WUE is particularly important [14,35,36]; the high levels of WUE seen in the present study confirmed these findings.…”

Section: Effect Of Long-term Plastic Film Mulching On Maize Yieldsupporting

confidence: 92%

Plastic Film Mulching Sustains High Maize (Zea mays L.) Grain Yield and Maintains Soil Water Balance in Semiarid Environment

Zhang

Eldoma

et al. 2020

Agronomy

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Ridge–furrow cultivation with plastic film mulching has been widely used for many years to increase crop yields in semiarid regions. The long-term effects of plastic mulching on crop yield and soil water balance need to be seriously considered to assess the sustainability of this widely used field management technique. A seven-year maize field experiment was conducted during 2012–2018 to estimate the yield sustainability and soil water balance with two treatments—mulching (yes; no) and nitrogen fertilization (yes; no). This resulted in the following four groups—no film mulching, no N application (M0N0); film mulching, no N application (M1N0); no film mulching, N application (M0N1); film mulching and N application (M1N1). Our results show that plastic mulching significantly increased maize yield. A combination of mulching and nitrogen application had the highest sustainability yield index (SYI) of 0.75, which was higher than the other three treatments, with SYI values of 0.31, 0.33, and 0.39, respectively. Plastic film mulching increased soil water content and water storage in both the sowing and harvesting periods and did not cause the formation of dry soil layers. Precipitation storage efficiency (PSE) in the nongrowing season played a key role in maintaining the soil water balance and it was positively affected by plastic film mulching. Our research indicates that plastic mulching and N application could maintain maize yield sustainability and the soil water balance of agriculture in semiarid regions. In addition, we highlight the importance of nongrowing season precipitation, and thus, we suggest that mulching the field land with plastic film throughout the whole year should be adopted by farmers to store more precipitation, which is important to crop growth.

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Section: Effect Of Long-term Plastic Film Mulching On Maize Yieldsupporting

confidence: 92%

Plastic Film Mulching Sustains High Maize (Zea mays L.) Grain Yield and Maintains Soil Water Balance in Semiarid Environment

Zhang

Eldoma

et al. 2020

Agronomy

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“…Two mulch practices were established each year: (i) ridgefurrow mulched with plastic film (FM), which has been widely adopted in the semiarid areas of northwest China (Eldoma et al, 2016); and (ii) ridge-furrow with no mulching (NM, control). In FM, both ridges and furrows were mulched with pieces of transparent plastic film of 120 to 130 cm wide before planting.…”

Section: Experimental Design and Treatmentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Maize Yield Response to Nitrogen Rate and Plant Density under Film Mulching

Liu

Wang

et al. 2018

Agronomy Journal

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However, irrational N application regimes (Liu et al., 2014b; Li et al., 2015) and low plant densities (Liu et al., 2014a) are the key factors limiting the further improvement of crop yield and resource use efficiency in this mulching system. N fertilizer plays a significant role in improving grain yield and WUE (Hernández et al., 2015; Li et al., 2015). Previous research focusing on contrasts in water availability (i.e., rain-fed

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“…The ridge-furrow rainwater harvesting system (RFRHS) has been proved to be an effective method to save water and increase water-use efficiency (WUE). The RFRHS usually results in high yields and high soil moisture; previous results showed that it improved the WUE of maize [13] by 9.2%, wheat [14] by 12%, potatoes [15] by 30% and alfalfa [16] by 70%. This is because that the RFRHS can change the…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 94%

Optimal Ridge–Furrow Ratio for Maximum Drought Resilience of Sunflower in Semi-Arid Region of China

Pan

et al. 2019

Sustainability

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Ridge–furrow planting is often applied in semi-arid regions to reduce the drought risk on crop yield under rain-fed conditions. Sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) is widely planted in northern China and how to reduce the drought risk on sunflower production remains a significant issue. A three-year field experiment with seven treatments (a flat plot without mulching, three plastic film-mulching treatments and three non-film-mulching treatments with different ridge–furrow ratios (1.0 m:1.0 m, 1.0 m:0.5 m and 0.5 m:1.0 m)) was conducted to study the effects of the ridge–furrow rainwater harvesting system on the rain-fed sunflower. The results showed that the sunflowers in the film-mulched treatment with the larger ridge–furrow ratio (1.0 m:0.5 m) (M1R2) had greater growth advantage under drought conditions. In the dry year, M1R2 improved the yield and water use efficiency by 11.9%–107.5% and 13.8%–120.6%, respectively, and reduced the blight grain rate by 21.5%–32.5% with less evapotranspiration (ET) compared to other treatments. Based on the historical climatological data, the guarantee rate of sunflower water requirement for M1R2 was about 75%, while the guarantee rates for the other two film-mulched treatments were only about 40% and 50%. Based on the effects of drought resilience and the characteristics of precipitation, M1R2 is recommended to be the relatively optimal treatment for sunflower production in regions with similar climatic conditions to Wuchuan County in northern China.

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Alternate or equal ridge–furrow pattern: Which is better for maize production in the rain-fed semi-arid Loess Plateau of China?

Cited by 63 publications

References 29 publications

Plastic Film Mulching Sustains High Maize (Zea mays L.) Grain Yield and Maintains Soil Water Balance in Semiarid Environment

Plastic Film Mulching Sustains High Maize (Zea mays L.) Grain Yield and Maintains Soil Water Balance in Semiarid Environment

Maize Yield Response to Nitrogen Rate and Plant Density under Film Mulching

Optimal Ridge–Furrow Ratio for Maximum Drought Resilience of Sunflower in Semi-Arid Region of China

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