The Thresholds and Management of Irrigation and Fertilization Earning Yields and Water Use Efficiency in Maize, Wheat, and Rice in China: A Meta-Analysis (1990–2020)
The increases in crop yield in China are linked to massive increases in fertilizer and water input, which have also accelerated the degradation of soil and environmental pollution. Nevertheless, the long-term changes in crop yield and water use efficiency (WUE) of three major cereals (maize, wheat a...
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MDPI AG
2022-03-01
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| Series: | Agronomy |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/12/3/709 |
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| author | Zhihong Yang Yi Hu Sheng Zhang Sajjad Raza Xiaorong Wei Xiaoning Zhao |
| author_facet | Zhihong Yang Yi Hu Sheng Zhang Sajjad Raza Xiaorong Wei Xiaoning Zhao |
| author_sort | Zhihong Yang |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The increases in crop yield in China are linked to massive increases in fertilizer and water input, which have also accelerated the degradation of soil and environmental pollution. Nevertheless, the long-term changes in crop yield and water use efficiency (WUE) of three major cereals (maize, wheat and rice) in response to field management practices are rarely reported. This meta-analysis evaluated the effect of field management (nitrogen input (N), irrigation, fertilizer type, fertilization frequency, and irrigation method) on crop yield and WUE between 1990 and 2020 based on 3152 observations. We found that the N thresholds for maize, wheat, and rice were 150–200 kg ha<sup>−1</sup>, 140–210 kg ha<sup>−1</sup>, and 90–135 kg ha<sup>−1</sup>, respectively. N fertilization within the threshold levels increased the crop yield and WUE of maize (84% and 74%), wheat (47% and 41%), and rice (55% and 30%). The irrigation (mm) thresholds for maize and wheat were 180–240 mm and 300–400 mm and crop yield and WUE were increased by 37% and 13% for maize and by 84% and 41% for wheat. Agricultural management increased yield and WUE (% and %) through drip irrigation (23 and 13 maize; 31 and 14 wheat), alternate wetting and drying (AWD) (26 and 30 rice), split fertilization (31 and 21 maize; 64 and 40 wheat; 33 and 25 rice) and organic–inorganic fertilizer (43 and 39 maize; 68 and 66 wheat; 38 and 34 rice). With the increase in HI (humidity index) from 10 to 30, the contribution of irrigation to WUE decreased, but that of fertilization increased. This study concludes that N fertilizer and irrigation applications between threshold levels along with suitable field management is a win–win strategy to achieve climate-smart agricultural production with minimum damages to soil and environment and at lower dependence on fertilizer and irrigation. |
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| series | Agronomy |
| spelling | doaj.art-dd2a9d0d3fff4c889226d2eb0480d3042023-11-30T20:45:05ZengMDPI AGAgronomy2073-43952022-03-0112370910.3390/agronomy12030709The Thresholds and Management of Irrigation and Fertilization Earning Yields and Water Use Efficiency in Maize, Wheat, and Rice in China: A Meta-Analysis (1990–2020)Zhihong Yang0Yi Hu1Sheng Zhang2Sajjad Raza3Xiaorong Wei4Xiaoning Zhao5State Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academic of Science, Urumqi 830011, ChinaSchool of Geographical Sciences, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, Nanjing 210044, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academic of Science, Urumqi 830011, ChinaSchool of Geographical Sciences, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, Nanjing 210044, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Soil Erosion and Dryland Farming in the Loess Plateau, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Xianyang 712100, ChinaSchool of Geographical Sciences, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, Nanjing 210044, ChinaThe increases in crop yield in China are linked to massive increases in fertilizer and water input, which have also accelerated the degradation of soil and environmental pollution. Nevertheless, the long-term changes in crop yield and water use efficiency (WUE) of three major cereals (maize, wheat and rice) in response to field management practices are rarely reported. This meta-analysis evaluated the effect of field management (nitrogen input (N), irrigation, fertilizer type, fertilization frequency, and irrigation method) on crop yield and WUE between 1990 and 2020 based on 3152 observations. We found that the N thresholds for maize, wheat, and rice were 150–200 kg ha<sup>−1</sup>, 140–210 kg ha<sup>−1</sup>, and 90–135 kg ha<sup>−1</sup>, respectively. N fertilization within the threshold levels increased the crop yield and WUE of maize (84% and 74%), wheat (47% and 41%), and rice (55% and 30%). The irrigation (mm) thresholds for maize and wheat were 180–240 mm and 300–400 mm and crop yield and WUE were increased by 37% and 13% for maize and by 84% and 41% for wheat. Agricultural management increased yield and WUE (% and %) through drip irrigation (23 and 13 maize; 31 and 14 wheat), alternate wetting and drying (AWD) (26 and 30 rice), split fertilization (31 and 21 maize; 64 and 40 wheat; 33 and 25 rice) and organic–inorganic fertilizer (43 and 39 maize; 68 and 66 wheat; 38 and 34 rice). With the increase in HI (humidity index) from 10 to 30, the contribution of irrigation to WUE decreased, but that of fertilization increased. This study concludes that N fertilizer and irrigation applications between threshold levels along with suitable field management is a win–win strategy to achieve climate-smart agricultural production with minimum damages to soil and environment and at lower dependence on fertilizer and irrigation.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/12/3/709fertilizationirrigationfield managementyieldwater use efficiencymeta-analysis |
| spellingShingle | Zhihong Yang Yi Hu Sheng Zhang Sajjad Raza Xiaorong Wei Xiaoning Zhao The Thresholds and Management of Irrigation and Fertilization Earning Yields and Water Use Efficiency in Maize, Wheat, and Rice in China: A Meta-Analysis (1990–2020) Agronomy fertilization irrigation field management yield water use efficiency meta-analysis |
| title | The Thresholds and Management of Irrigation and Fertilization Earning Yields and Water Use Efficiency in Maize, Wheat, and Rice in China: A Meta-Analysis (1990–2020) |
| title_full | The Thresholds and Management of Irrigation and Fertilization Earning Yields and Water Use Efficiency in Maize, Wheat, and Rice in China: A Meta-Analysis (1990–2020) |
| title_fullStr | The Thresholds and Management of Irrigation and Fertilization Earning Yields and Water Use Efficiency in Maize, Wheat, and Rice in China: A Meta-Analysis (1990–2020) |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Thresholds and Management of Irrigation and Fertilization Earning Yields and Water Use Efficiency in Maize, Wheat, and Rice in China: A Meta-Analysis (1990–2020) |
| title_short | The Thresholds and Management of Irrigation and Fertilization Earning Yields and Water Use Efficiency in Maize, Wheat, and Rice in China: A Meta-Analysis (1990–2020) |
| title_sort | thresholds and management of irrigation and fertilization earning yields and water use efficiency in maize wheat and rice in china a meta analysis 1990 2020 |
| topic | fertilization irrigation field management yield water use efficiency meta-analysis |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/12/3/709 |
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