Deng Haoliang, Pan Xiaofan, Li Guang, Wang Qinli, Xiao Rang
College of Civil Engineering, Hexi University, Zhangye 734000, China.
Gansu Provincial Engineering Research Center for the Resource Utilization of Edible Fungi and Fungi Bran, Hexi University, Zhangye 734000, China.
Plants (Basel). 2025 Jul 4;14(13):2050. doi: 10.3390/plants14132050.
The planting area of the maize-soybean strip intercropping system has been increasing annually in the Hexi Corridor oasis irrigation area of China. However, long-term irrational water resource utilization and the excessive mono-application of fertilizers have led to significantly low water and nitrogen use efficiency in this cropping system. To explore the sustainable production model of high yield and high water-nitrogen productivity in maize-soybean strip intercropping, we established three irrigation levels (low: 60%, medium: 80%, and sufficient: 100% of reference crop evapotranspiration) and three nitrogen application levels (low: maize 230 kg ha, soybean 29 kg ha; medium: maize 340 kg ha, soybean 57 kg ha; and high: maize 450 kg ha, soybean 85 kg ha) for maize and soybean, respectively. Three irrigation levels without nitrogen application served as controls. The effects of different water-nitrogen combinations on multiple indicators of the maize-soybean strip intercropping system, including yield, water-nitrogen productivity, and quality, were analyzed. The results showed that the irrigation amount and nitrogen application rate significantly affected the kernel quality of maize. Specifically, the medium nitrogen and sufficient water (N2W3) combination achieved optimal performance in crude fat, starch, and bulk density. However, excessive irrigation and nitrogen application led to a reduction in the content of lysine and crude protein in maize, as well as crude fat and crude starch in soybean. Appropriate irrigation and nitrogen application significantly increased the yield in the maize-soybean strip intercropping system, in which the N2W3 treatment had the highest yield, with maize and soybean yields reaching 14007.02 and 2025.39 kg ha, respectively, which increased by 2.52% to 138.85% and 5.37% to 191.44% compared with the other treatments. Taking into account the growing environment of the oasis agricultural area in the Hexi Corridor and the effects of different water and nitrogen supplies on the yield, water-nitrogen productivity, and kernel quality of maize and soybeans in the strip intercropping system, the highest target yield can be achieved when the irrigation quotas for maize and soybeans are set at 100% ET0 (reference crop evapotranspiration), with nitrogen application rates of 354.78422.51 kg ha and 60.2771.81 kg ha, respectively. This provides guidance for enhancing yield and quality in maize-soybean strip intercropping in the oasis agricultural area of the Hexi Corridor, achieving the dual objectives of high yield and superior quality.
在中国河西走廊绿洲灌溉区，玉米-大豆带状间作系统的种植面积逐年增加。然而，长期不合理的水资源利用和化肥过量单施导致该种植系统的水氮利用效率显著低下。为探索玉米-大豆带状间作高产和高水氮生产率的可持续生产模式，我们分别为玉米和大豆设置了三个灌溉水平（低：参考作物蒸散量的60%；中：80%；充足：100%）和三个施氮水平（低：玉米230 kg/ha，大豆29 kg/ha；中：玉米340 kg/ha，大豆57 kg/ha；高：玉米450 kg/ha，大豆85 kg/ha）。三个不施氮的灌溉水平作为对照。分析了不同水氮组合对玉米-大豆带状间作系统多个指标的影响，包括产量、水氮生产率和品质。结果表明，灌溉量和施氮量显著影响玉米的籽粒品质。具体而言，中氮和充足水分（N2W3）组合在粗脂肪、淀粉和容重方面表现最佳。然而，过量灌溉和施氮导致玉米中赖氨酸和粗蛋白含量以及大豆中粗脂肪和粗淀粉含量降低。适宜的灌溉和施氮显著提高了玉米-大豆带状间作系统的产量，其中N2W3处理产量最高，玉米和大豆产量分别达到14007.02和2025.39 kg/ha，与其他处理相比分别提高了2.52%至138.85%和5.37%至191.44%。考虑到河西走廊绿洲农业区的生长环境以及不同水氮供应对带状间作系统中玉米和大豆产量、水氮生产率及籽粒品质的影响，当玉米和大豆的灌溉定额设定为100% ET0（参考作物蒸散量），施氮量分别为354.78422.51 kg/ha和60.2771.81 kg/ha时，可实现最高目标产量。这为提高河西走廊绿洲农业区玉米-大豆带状间作的产量和品质提供了指导，实现高产和优质的双重目标。
