Xing Yingying, Fu Jintao, Wang Xiukang
Key Laboratory of Applied Ecology of Loess Plateau, College of Life Science, Yan'an University, Yan'an, Shaanxi, China.
PeerJ. 2024 Dec 3;12:e18644. doi: 10.7717/peerj.18644. eCollection 2024.
Current agricultural practices prioritize intensive food production, often at the expense of environmental sustainability. This approach results in greenhouse gas emissions and groundwater pollution due to over-fertilization. In contrast, organic agriculture promotes a more efficient use of non-renewable energy, improves soil quality, and reduces ecological damage. However, the effects of mulching and organic manure on maize yield, water use efficiency (WUE), and nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) in China's Loess Plateau have not been sufficiently researched. In 2017 and 2018, an experiment utilizing a randomized complete block design with two factors (two mulching levels × three organic nitrogen application rates) was conducted. The water content of the upper soil layer was found to be 12.6% to 19.4% higher than that of the subsoil layer. Across all soil depths and years, the soil nitrate-N content in mulched treatments was 10% to 31.8% greater than in non-mulched treatments with varying organic nitrogen rates. Additionally, mulching resulted in an increase in grain yield of 9.4% in 2017 and 8.9% in 2018 compared to non-mulched treatments. A significant interaction was observed between mulching and organic nitrogen application rate concerning WUE, alongside a negative correlation between WUE and NUE. These findings suggest that the application of 270 kg N ha of sheep manure in conjunction with mulching is a highly recommended practice for the Loess Plateau, thereby supporting sustainable agricultural strategies.
当前的农业生产方式优先考虑集约化粮食生产，往往以环境可持续性为代价。这种方式由于过度施肥导致温室气体排放和地下水污染。相比之下，有机农业促进了对不可再生能源的更有效利用，改善了土壤质量，并减少了生态破坏。然而，在中国黄土高原地区，地膜覆盖和有机肥对玉米产量、水分利用效率（WUE）和氮素利用效率（NUE）的影响尚未得到充分研究。在2017年和2018年，进行了一项采用随机完全区组设计、包含两个因素（两种地膜覆盖水平×三种有机氮施用量）的试验。发现上层土壤层的含水量比下层土壤层高12.6%至19.4%。在所有土壤深度和年份中，不同有机氮施用量下，地膜覆盖处理的土壤硝态氮含量比未覆盖处理高10%至31.8%。此外，与未覆盖处理相比，2017年地膜覆盖使籽粒产量提高了9.4%，2018年提高了8.9%。在地膜覆盖和有机氮施用量之间，观察到关于水分利用效率的显著交互作用，同时水分利用效率与氮素利用效率之间存在负相关。这些研究结果表明，对于黄土高原地区，推荐将270千克氮/公顷的羊粪与地膜覆盖结合施用，从而支持可持续农业战略。
