Yield-phenology relations and water use efficiency of maize (Zea mays L.) in ridge-furrow mulching system in semiarid east African Plateau

Mo, Fei; Wang, Jianyong; Li, Fengmin; Nguluu, Simon N.; Ren, Huazhong; Zhou, Hong; Zhang, Jian; Kariuki, C.W.; Gicheru, Patrick; Kavagi, Levis; Cheruiyot, Wesly Kiprotich; Xiong, You‐Cai

doi:10.1038/s41598-017-03372-x

Cited by 29 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…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. Nitrogen fertilization was another important factor that can affect crop production.…”

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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“…The shape of alternating ridges and furrows can be modified to increase the efficiency of rainfall collection. The ridges reduce rainwater run-off, and the furrows aid in water conservation 18 . Rainwater channeled to the furrows penetrates deeper into the soil profile, increases SWS, and is readily available to the plants.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Maize productivity and soil properties in the Loess Plateau in response to ridge-furrow cultivation with polyethylene and straw mulch

Deng

Xiong

Zhang

et al. 2019

Sci Rep

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Ridge-furrow with full film mulching (RFFM) is widely used in the Loess Plateau (LP) to increase maize yield. However, continuous RFFM application may cause excessive depletion of soil organic carbon (SOC) and soil water storage (SWS). The present study tested four production systems, namely, (1) RFFM; (2) ridge-furrow with polyethylene film and straw mulching (RFFSM); (3) non-contoured seedbed with film mulching (FFM); and (4) non-contoured seedbed without mulching (CK) in 2013 and 2014 to identify an optimal technique to increase maize yield yet minimizing the negative effects. SWS under RFFSM was significantly higher by 5.4% and 13.4% compared to RFFM and CK, respectively. The changes in SOC were −0.2, −0.2, and −0.4 g·kg −1 for RFFM, FFM, and CK, respectively, and 0.3 g·kg −1 for RFFSM. Increased root residue and extra external carbon input to soil under RFFSM directly contributed to SOC recovery. RFFSM had a comparable grain yield but higher water use efficiency compared to RFFM. The combination of RFFSM is promising for improving SOC stocks, water storage, and maize productivity.

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“…Mulching technologies are common and effective practices to improve crop production worldwide, particularly in dryland areas ( Mo et al, 2017 ). Numerous studies have reported that mulching can increase soil water availability in dryland areas, mainly because of its ability to reduce soil evaporation by preventing capillarity ( Liu et al, 2017 ; Zhang P. et al, 2017 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of Plastic Mulching and Basal Nitrogen Application Depth on Nitrogen Use Efficiency and Yield in Maize

Wang

Xing

et al. 2018

Front. Plant Sci.

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The demand for increased grain production to support population and consumption growth has led to increased interest in field management approaches that incorporate plastic mulching and fertilization management. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of plastic mulching and basal nitrogen (N)-fertilizer application depth on N balance estimations, N use efficiency (NUE) and maize yield. The experiment was conducted in 2014 and 2015 with six treatments: no N fertilizer and no mulching (CK), traditional broadcast N fertilizer with mulching (T0), basal N-fertilizer application at a depth of 6 cm with no mulching (T1), basal N-fertilizer application at a depth of 6 cm with plastic mulching (T2), basal N-fertilizer application at a depth of 12 cm with no mulching (T3) and basal N-fertilizer application at a depth of 12 cm with plastic mulching (T4). Mulching and basal N-fertilizer application depth each had significant effects on grain yield, but there were no significant interactions between them. The highest grain yield was observed in the T2 treatment and was 89.1% and 99.8% higher than the grain yield in the CK treatment in 2014 and 2015, respectively. The N uptake in T2 was 21.3% and 25.3% higher than that in the T0 treatment in 2014 and 2015, respectively. Relative to the value in the T0 treatment, the mean N loss over the 2 years was reduced by 34.6% in T2 and by 39.8% in T4. The basal N-fertilizer application depth of 12 cm yielded an obvious increase in NUE, but a high N residual remained below 50 cm after harvest, indicating the higher potential for N losses. In addition, the field application of this type of fertilizer management would require more labor in the absence of the implementation of mechanization. Based on the results, basal N-fertilizer application a depth of 6 cm without plastic mulching is recommended because it significantly increased grain yield and NUE, reduced N loss and requires no investment in plastic film, which are conducive to food security and environmental conservation.

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Yield-phenology relations and water use efficiency of maize (Zea mays L.) in ridge-furrow mulching system in semiarid east African Plateau

Cited by 29 publications

References 42 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 productivity and soil properties in the Loess Plateau in response to ridge-furrow cultivation with polyethylene and straw mulch

Effects of Plastic Mulching and Basal Nitrogen Application Depth on Nitrogen Use Efficiency and Yield in Maize

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