Exploring the Trends in Nitrogen Input and Nitrogen Use Efficiency for Agricultural Sustainability

Yuan, Shen; Peng, Shaobing

doi:10.3390/su9101905

Cited by 28 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 45 publications

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“…Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is one of the three major cereal crops in the world [1]. Wheat, rice (Oryza sativa L.), and corn (Zea mays L.) provide more than 30% of food calories to humans in 94 developing countries [2], and represent 99% of the total cereal production in China [3]. Nitrogen (N) is one of the major nutritional elements of wheat and other crops, and is widely used to increase yield and improve end-use quality [4].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of Long-Term Nitrogen Addition on Wheat Yield, Nitrogen Use Efficiency, and Residual Soil Nitrate in a Semiarid Area of the Loess Plateau of China

Xie

et al. 2020

Sustainability

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Nitrogen (N) fertilizer plays an important role in wheat yield, but N application rates vary greatly, and there is a lack of data to quantify the residual effects of N fertilization on soil N availability. A 17-yr experiment was conducted in a semiarid area of the Loess Plateau of China to assess the effects of N fertilization on spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) grain yield, N uptake, N utilization efficiency, and residual soil nitrate. Treatments included a non-N-fertilized control and annual application of 52.5, 105.0, 157.5, and 210.0 kg N ha−1 in the first two years (2003 and 2004). In the third year (2005), the four main plots with N fertilizer application were split. In one subplot, N fertilization was continued as mentioned previously, while in the other subplot, N fertilization was stopped. The concentration of NO3-N in the 0–110 cm depth soil layers was significantly affected by N application, with higher N rates associated with greater soil NO3-N concentration. With the annual application of N over 17 years, residual soil NO3-N concentration in the 100–200 cm soil layer in the last study year was significantly greater than that in the non-N-fertilized control and was increased with rate of N application. There was a significant positive relationship of soil NO3-N in the 0–50 cm and 50–110 cm soil layers at wheat sowing with wheat grain N content and yield. Wheat grain yield in the third year (2005) was significantly, i.e., 22.57–59.53%, greater than the unfertilized treatment after the N application was stopped. Nitrogen use efficiency decreased in response to each increment of added N fertilizer, and was directly related to N harvest index and grain yield. Therefore, greater utilization of residual soil N through appropriate N fertilizer rates could enhance nitrogen use efficiency while reducing the cost of crop production and risk of N losses to the environment. For these concerns, optimum N fertilizer application rate for spring wheat in semiarid Loess Plateau is about 105 kg N ha−1, which is below the threshold value of 170 kg N ha−1 per year as defined by most EU countries.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of Long-Term Nitrogen Addition on Wheat Yield, Nitrogen Use Efficiency, and Residual Soil Nitrate in a Semiarid Area of the Loess Plateau of China

Xie

et al. 2020

Sustainability

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“…We observed significant changes in the N cycle of a number of African countries during the last five decades, but there was no significant change in the total African N budget (figure 7). However, it is necessary to increase soil N input and promote NUE in African agriculture to improve crop production and minimize impacts on human health and the environment (Yuan andPeng 2017, Elrys et al 2019a). Such progress requires effective management practices at all levels.…”

Section: Implications and Practical Recommendationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A number of modern fertilizer techniques have been used to reduce N loss and increase NUE in Africa, including the use of controlled fertilizers, nitrification inhibitors, and water-soluble fertilizers in irrigation water (Elrys et al 2019a(Elrys et al , 2019b. Further, the principles of effective use of N input should be adopted, which includes using the appropriate source of N fertilizer that is applied at the appropriate rate, at the appropriate time, and at the appropriate place (Yuan and Peng 2017). In China, three strategies are widely applied in agriculture to enhance the NUE of irrigated rice: (1) real-time N management, (2) three-control technology (controlling N fertilizer, controlling unproductive tillers, controlling pests), and (3) sitespecific N management (Yuan and Peng 2017).…”

Section: Reducing N Lossmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Further, the principles of effective use of N input should be adopted, which includes using the appropriate source of N fertilizer that is applied at the appropriate rate, at the appropriate time, and at the appropriate place (Yuan and Peng 2017). In China, three strategies are widely applied in agriculture to enhance the NUE of irrigated rice: (1) real-time N management, (2) three-control technology (controlling N fertilizer, controlling unproductive tillers, controlling pests), and (3) sitespecific N management (Yuan and Peng 2017). Furthermore, as variability in NUE exists between different crops genotypes, selective breeding of particular crop varieties with improved NUE can help to minimize the need for SNF application (Yu et al 2015).…”

Section: Reducing N Lossmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Spatial trends in the nitrogen budget of the African agro-food system over the past five decades

Elrys

Abdel-Fattah

Raza

et al. 2019

Environ. Res. Lett.

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Low nitrogen (N) fertilization is a dominant cause of malnutrition in Africa, but the spatial and temporal variability of N cycling patterns in Africa remain unclear. This study is the first to perform a detailed analysis of the N cycling patterns of 52 African countries from 1961 to 2016. We calculated the N use efficiency (NUE) in crop production, country-specific N fertilization trends, and the impacts of N fertilization on human protein demand and the environment. Over the past five decades, total N input to African croplands increased from 20 to 35 kg N ha −1 yr −1 , while the application of synthetic N fertilizers (SNF) increased from 4.0 to 15 kg N ha −1 yr −1 . N contributions from animal manure and biological N fixation remained lower than 10 kg N ha −1 yr −1 and 20 kg N ha −1 yr −1 , respectively. The total N crop production increased from 15 to 22 kg N ha −1 yr −1 from 1961 to 2016. Total N surplus in Africa increased from 5 to 13 kg N ha −1 yr −1 , while estimated gaseous losses increased from 4.0 to 11 kg N ha −1 yr −1 . However, NUE declined from 74% to 63% during the past five decades, and protein consumption increased from 2.99 to 3.78 kg N capita −1 yr −1 . These results suggest that Africa suffers from extremely low N input and that N loss is increasing in agricultural land. We recommend the implementation of an effective N management strategy incorporating the use of locally available organic material along with the balanced application of SNF. Such measures will require effective policy development and cooperation between all stakeholders. Acronyms and abbreviationsOPEN ACCESS RECEIVED

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“…In view of the potential impact of pruning and flower thinning on the marginal output of chemical fertilizers in the cultivation of peach and other fruit trees, if the traditional C-D (short for Cobb-Douglas) function or transcendental logarithm function is used to estimate the marginal output [16][17][18], it is likely to overestimate the actual marginal output and underestimate the marginal output of the labor force. Therefore, to capture the impact of this technical investment on the marginal output of chemical fertilizers and other factors and then to acquire the real marginal output of the key element, this study adds a variable for the degree of technical investment in the pruning and thinning on top of the traditional C-D function and also recognizes the need to add into the model the product of this variable and the natural logarithm of the variables of chemical fertilizers and organic fertilizers [19].…”

Section: Estimation Of Marginal Output Under Different Degrees Of Tecmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evolution of a Development Model for Fruit Industry against Background of an Aging Population: Intensive or Extensive Adjustment?

2017

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Abstract:As an important starting point for optimizing the structure of agricultural products and implementing green production methods, the direction of orchard management development is directly related to the success of "supply side" reform in the fruit industry in China. However, in the context of the progressive aging of the rural labor force, is the old labor force still capable of the high labor intensity and fine cultivation management needed, such as for pruning, or to maintain or improve the application efficiency of fertilizers? In this paper, based on the micro-production data of peach farmers in Jiangsu Province, we explore the influence of aging on the management of fruit trees and further introduce fruit tree management into the production function to analyze the effects of different orchard management methods on fertilizer efficiency. The results show that with the increase of labor force age, although the total labor investment of aged farmer households has somewhat increased, significant differences exist in the distribution of labor investment between the different production processes due to the different labor demands from the various production processes. In technical stages that demand good physical capabilities, such as pruning and flower/fruit thinning, elderly farmers have significantly reduced labor investment than younger ones, and this relative shortfall further reduces the marginal output of their chemical and organic fertilizers. Foreseeably, the aging of the rural labor force will have a negative impact on the efficiency of chemical and other fertilizers, cost-cutting, and profit-making in the fruit and nut industries, which have the same management methods for pruning and flower (fruit) thinning. Therefore, this paper offers relevant policy recommendations for the optimization of production tools, expansion of operation scale, and development of socialized services for the fruit industry, etc.

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Exploring the Trends in Nitrogen Input and Nitrogen Use Efficiency for Agricultural Sustainability

Cited by 28 publications

References 45 publications

Effect of Long-Term Nitrogen Addition on Wheat Yield, Nitrogen Use Efficiency, and Residual Soil Nitrate in a Semiarid Area of the Loess Plateau of China

Effect of Long-Term Nitrogen Addition on Wheat Yield, Nitrogen Use Efficiency, and Residual Soil Nitrate in a Semiarid Area of the Loess Plateau of China

Spatial trends in the nitrogen budget of the African agro-food system over the past five decades

Evolution of a Development Model for Fruit Industry against Background of an Aging Population: Intensive or Extensive Adjustment?

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