Overestimation of Crop Root Biomass in Field Experiments Due to Extraneous Organic Matter

Hirte, Juliane; Leifeld, Jens; Abiven, Samuel; Oberholzer, Hans‐Rudolf; Hammelehle, Andreas; Mayer, Jochen

doi:10.3389/fpls.2017.00284

Cited by 30 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 74 publications

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“…It is highly reasonable that root biomass, RL, and root surface area could be distributed differently in soil mass. For mature maize plants, the shallow axial roots are usually thicker and occupy a larger root biomass proportion, while the lateral roots are generally more slender and denser, exhibit deeper extension and had higher values in RL and root surface area (do Rosário G. Oliveira et al., 2000; Hirte et al., 2017; Pagès & Pellerin, 1994; Peng et al., 2010). More importantly, our study further clarified that FM treatment had less RL and root surface area in the 0.60−1.00‐m soil at the R1 stage (Figures 4 and 5) and less root biomass in the 0.40−0.80‐m soil at the R3 stage (Figure 3) compared to the control.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

High‐yield characteristics and root support of rain‐fed maize under film mulching

Liang

Yuan

et al. 2020

Agronomy Journal

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Full ridge-furrow plastic film-mulching (FM) is an important drought-resistant and high-yield agricultural method employed in the Loess Plateau. The characteristics of FM, which are closely related to high-efficiency resource utilization and root-shoot coordination of crops, may serve as references for yield increases in a broad range of farmland types. However, few studies have investigated this topic. A 2-yr field study was conducted in the rain-fed arid farmland of the Loess Plateau experimental station to investigate the canopy development and root support of FM maize (Zea mays L.). Our results showed that FM not only accelerated canopy growth in the vegetative phase and prolonged the reproductive phase but also promoted N and biomass accumulation in leaves after flowering. The leaf N concentration and biomass in FM maize increased by 6.2-24.7% and 16.9-29.3%, respectively, during R1 (silking)-R3 (milk) stage compared with the control. However, although the total root biomass decreased, and less RL (root length) and root surface area were distributed in deep soil, FM reduced the decline rate of RL and surface area during the R1-R3 period by 20.5 and 15.2% in topsoil, respectively, compared to the control. Moreover, FM significantly increased the root efficiency of leaf nitrogen (REN) absorption by 66.7-84.6% at the R1 stage and increased the water use efficiency (WUE) of grain yield by 20.3-69.4%.In conclusion, maize plants under FM had strengthened photosynthetic organs with high efficiency and long-lasting root support in a prolonged reproductive phase.Abbreviations: CK, control treatment; FM, full ridge−furrow with plastic film-mulching method; PT, planting time; R1, silking stage; R3, milk stage; R6, mature stage; REN, root efficiency for nitrogen absorption, that is, shoot nitrogen absorption per unit of root length; RL, root length; SR, shoot/root biomass ratio; SW, soil water content; V6, 6-leaf stage; WUE, water use efficiency.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

High‐yield characteristics and root support of rain‐fed maize under film mulching

Liang

Yuan

et al. 2020

Agronomy Journal

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“…From every plot, deep soil cores were extracted using a steel probe (6.2 cm diameter) attached to a hydraulic Giddings machine (Windsor, CO). Cores were divided into sections (0-15, 15-30, 30-60, 60-90, 90-120, 120-150, 150-180 and 180−210 cm) and stored at 4 o C prior to root cleaning following Ordóñez et al (2018b), which consisted of separating root tissues from soil by using a Hydropneumatic Elutriation washing system (Smucker et al, 1982;Hirte et al, 2017;Gillison's Variety Fabrication).…”

Section: Below-ground Root Sampling Proceduresmentioning

confidence: 99%

Root to shoot and carbon to nitrogen ratios of maize and soybean crops in the US Midwest

Ordóñez

Archontoulis

Martinez-Feria

et al. 2020

European Journal of Agronomy

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Root traits are important to crop functioning, yet there is little information about how root traits vary with shoot traits. Using a standardized protocol, we collected 160 soil cores (0−210 cm) across 10 locations, three years and multiple cropping systems (crops x management practices) in Iowa, USA. Maximum root biomass ranged from 1.2 to 2.8 Mg ha−1 in maize and 0.86 to 1.93 Mg ha−1 in soybean. The root:shoot (R:S) ratio ranged from 0.04 to 0.13 in maize and 0.09 to 0.26 in soybean. Maize produced 27 % more root biomass, 20 % longer roots, with 35 % higher carbon to nitrogen (C:N) ratio than soybean. In contrast, soybean had a 47 % greater R:S ratio than maize. The maize R:S ratio values were substantially lower than literature values, possibly due to differences in measurement methodologies, genotypes, and environment. In particular, we sampled at plant maturity rather than crop harvest to minimize the effect of senescence on measurements of shoots and roots. Maximum shoot biomass explained 70 % of the variation in root biomass, and the R:S ratio was positively correlated with the root C:N measured in both crops. Easily-measured environmental variables including temperature and precipitation were weakly associated with root traits. These results begin to fill an important knowledge gap that will enable better estimates of belowground net primary productivity and soil organic matter dynamics. Ultimately, the ability to explain variation in root mass production can be used to improve C and N budgets and modeling studies from crop to regional scales.

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“…By contrast, maize seedlings grown in better hydrothermal conditions (i.e., rainy 2015 or FM treatment) showed shorter RL per plant at the V3 stage (Figure 4). The different performances of RL and root biomass at the V3 stage was probably due to the fact that RL was mainly contributed by capillary root (Peng, Niu, Peng, Zhang, & Li, 2010), but capillary root only accounted for a small proportion of root dry weight (Hirte et al, 2017;Peng et al, 2010). Furthermore, it seemed that the plant preferred the changes of RL rather than root biomass to mitigate unsuitable soil circumstance (Freschet, Swart, & Cornelissen, 2015;Ryser & Lambers, 1995;Weiner, 2004).…”

Section: Root Developmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Film mulching optimizes the early root and shoot development of rain‐fed spring maize

Liang

Yuan

et al. 2020

Agronomy Journal

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Full ridge‐furrow plastic film‐mulching (FM) is a key agriculture drought mitigation technique in the semiarid Loess Plateau of China. The establishment of high‐yield maize (Zea mays L.) population under FM is built on robust plant development and indispensable soil support that generally started from the seedling stage. However, there is still a lack of information on the root‐shoot development of maize seedling under FM. A 2‐yr field experiment was performed in rainfed plots of Loess Plateau experimental station to study the effects of FM on root‐shoot growth of maize seedlings. Root samples were harvested from different soil layers until max rooting depth at V3 and V6 stages to detail the vertical development. Our results implied that FM significantly improved soil hydrothermal conditions and canopy development at V3 and V6 stages. At the V3 stage, there was no significant difference in root biomass between treatments or growth seasons, but root length under FM treatment was decreased by about 17%; moreover, ridge‐furrow without mulching (CK) treatment intended to distribute 4–9% more root biomass in deeper soil layers, and the root biomass per unit length under FM treatment was increased. At the V6 stage, FM brought about significant advantages in root biomass and length. Nonetheless, maize seedlings under FM treatment had a consistently lower root/shoot ratio, higher root efficiency, and higher water use efficiency during the V3–V6 period. In conclusion, FM helped rainfed maize seedlings run a lightweight but high‐efficiency root to support its productive shoot since the very beginning.

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Overestimation of Crop Root Biomass in Field Experiments Due to Extraneous Organic Matter

Cited by 30 publications

References 74 publications

High‐yield characteristics and root support of rain‐fed maize under film mulching

High‐yield characteristics and root support of rain‐fed maize under film mulching

Root to shoot and carbon to nitrogen ratios of maize and soybean crops in the US Midwest

Film mulching optimizes the early root and shoot development of rain‐fed spring maize

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