Preprint Article Version 1 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

Optimization of N Fertilizer Type and Ridge/Furrow Ratio to Improve Resource Use Efficiency and Grain Yield of Rain‐Fed Winter Wheat in Loess Plateau, China

Shengcai Qiang
ORCID logo ,
Yan Zhang
,
Junliang Fan
* ORCID logo ,
Fucang Zhang
ORCID logo ,
Wen Lin
,
Zhiqiang Gao
,
Min Sun
,
Xiwang Tang
Version 1 : Received: 8 December 2023 / Approved: 8 December 2023 / Online: 8 December 2023 (12:09:06 CET)

A peer-reviewed article of this Preprint also exists.

Qiang, S.; Zhang, Y.; Fan, J.; Zhang, F.; Lin, W.; Sun, M.; Gao, Z.; Tang, X. Optimization of N Fertilizer Type and Ridge–Furrow Ratio to Improve Resource Use Efficiency and Grain Yield of Rain-Fed Winter Wheat in Loess Plateau, China. Agronomy 2024, 14, 172. Qiang, S.; Zhang, Y.; Fan, J.; Zhang, F.; Lin, W.; Sun, M.; Gao, Z.; Tang, X. Optimization of N Fertilizer Type and Ridge–Furrow Ratio to Improve Resource Use Efficiency and Grain Yield of Rain-Fed Winter Wheat in Loess Plateau, China. Agronomy 2024, 14, 172.

Abstract

The ridge-furrow plastic mulching (RFPM) system and nitrogen application have been effective strategies for improving crop productivity in the Loess Plateau of China. However, it is not clear how the ridge-furrow ratio and nitrogen fertilizer type (NT) affect the utilization of water, nitrogen, heat and radiation resources for increased rain-fed wheat production. Two nitrogen fertilizer types [Traditional urea (TU) and controlled-release urea (CRU)] and four planting patterns [conventional flat planting (F) and the RFPM system of 20 cm ridge with 40 cm furrow (R2F4), 40 cm ridge with 40 cm furrow (R4F4), and 60 cm ridge with 40 cm furrow (R6F4)] were tested from September, 2018 to June, 2021 during winter wheat growing season. The results showed that the RFPM system can increase the soil thermal time (TTsoil) by 41.0–152.1°C d compared to F. The thermal effect of the RFPM system shortens the vegetative growth period and extends the reproductive growth period by 2–7 days, promoting the increase of the leaf area index (LAI) and final dry matter (DM) accumulation. These significantly increased the grain yield (GY) in the RFPM system by 51.6–115.2% and enhanced the thermal time use efficiency (TUE) by 48–99.5%, water productivity (WP) by 37.4–76.3%, radiation use efficiency (RUE) by 16.3–34.4%, and partial factor productivity of nitrogen (PFPN) by 51.6–115.2% compared to F. Although a high ridge-furrow ratio combined with CRU increased GY and resources use efficiency, it also exacerbated the soil water depletion, especially in the 40–140 cm soil layer. Overall, applying CRU in combination with the RFPM system of 40 cm ridge with 40 cm furrow maximized resources use efficiency and increased wheat production in the Loess Plateau of China.

Keywords

Ridge-furrow ratio; nitrogen fertilizer type; Winter wheat; Soil hydrothermal; Resource use efficiency; Grain yield

Subject

Biology and Life Sciences, Agricultural Science and Agronomy

Copyright: This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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