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Journal of Integrative Agriculture  2024, Vol. 23 Issue (03): 836-848    DOI: 10.1016/j.jia.2023.05.034
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The first factor affecting dryland winter wheat grain yield under various mulching measures: Spike number

Yingxia Dou1, 2, Hubing Zhao1, 2#, Huimin Yang1, 2, Tao Wang1, 2, Guanfei Liu1, 2, Zhaohui Wang1, 2, Sukhdev Malhi3

1 College of Natural Resources and Environment, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China

2 Key Laboratory of Plant Nutrition and the Agri-Environment in Northwest China, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Yangling 712100, China 

3 Department of Renewable Resources, University of Alberta, Edmonton T6G 2H1, Canada 

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摘要  

水分是限制旱地小麦产量的关键因素。覆盖通过影响土壤水分进而影响作物产量和产量构成要素。但产量构成因素和土壤水分与产量之间的关系,以及覆盖措施下影响籽粒产量的最重要因素需要进一步的研究。因此,本试验在西北地区黄土高原进行为期9年的长期定位试验,共设置3个处理:不覆盖(CK)、地膜覆盖(MP)和秸秆覆盖(MS)。试验测定产量、其构成要素和土壤水分相关指标,并通过相关性分析、结构方程模型和重要性分析探讨产量构成要素和土壤水分与产量之间的关系。结果表明,与CK相比,MPMS处理的籽粒产量分别提高13.0%10.6%MP处理比MS处理年均增产134 kg·ha-13个处理的产量构成要素差异不显著(P < 0.05)MS处理的土壤蓄水量高于MP处理,但差异不显著。MS处理的夏闲土壤蓄水量(SWSSF)和播前土壤蓄水量(SWSS)均显著高于CK,分别提高38.5%13.6%MPCK处理的SWSSF差异不显著,但MPSWSS显著高于CK。在收获土壤蓄水量(SWSH)和生育期耗水量(ET)方面,3个处理差异不显著。通过3种分析方法,我们发现穗数和ET与籽粒产量呈正相关关系。在MPMS处理中,穗数是对产量相对重要性最大的因素;在CK处理中,ET是对产量相对重要性最大的因素。充足的SWSSF可以间接增加穗数和ET。因此,覆盖措施可以提高产量和土壤蓄水量。在覆盖措施下,影响旱地小麦籽粒产量的最重要因素是穗数;在不覆盖条件下影响旱地小麦籽粒产量的最重要因素是ET。本研究结果有助于理解在覆盖和不覆盖措施下影响旱地小麦籽粒产量的最主要因素。



Abstract  Water is the key factor limiting dryland wheat grain yield.  Mulching affects crop yield and yield components by affecting soil moisture.  Further research is needed to determine the relationships between yield components and soil moisture with yield, and to identify the most important factor affecting grain yield under various mulching measures.  A long-term 9-year field experiment in the Loess Plateau of Northwest China was carried out with three treatments: no mulch (CK), plastic mulch (MP) and straw mulch (MS).  Yield factors and soil moisture were measured, and the relationships between them were explored by correlation analysis, structural equation modeling and significance analysis.  The results showed that compared with CK, the average grain yields of MP and MS increased by 13.0 and 10.6%, respectively.  The average annual grain yield of the MP treatment was 134 kg ha–1 higher than the MS treatment.  There were no significant differences in yield components among the three treatments (P<0.05).  Soil water storage of the MS treatment was greater than the MP treatment, although the differences were not statistically significant.  Soil water storage during the summer fallow period (SWSSF) and soil water storage before sowing (SWSS) of MS were significantly higher than in CK, which increased by 38.5 and 13.6%, respectively.  The relationship between MP and CK was not statistically significant for SWSSF, but the SWSS in MP was significantly higher than in CK.  In terms of soil water storage after harvest (SWSH) and water consumption in the growth period (ET), there were no significant differences among the three treatments.  Based on the three analysis methods, we found that spike number and ET were positively correlated with grain yield.  However, the relative importance of spike number to yield was the greatest in the MP and MS treatments, while that of ET was the greatest in CK.  Sufficient SWSSF could indirectly increase spike number and ET in the three treatments.  Based on these results, mulch can improve yield and soil water storage.  The most important factor affecting the grain yield of dryland wheat was spike number under mulching, and ET with CK.  These findings may help us to understand the main factors influencing dryland wheat grain yield under mulching conditions compared to CK.
Keywords:  dryland winter wheat        plastic mulch        spike number        straw mulch   
Received: 07 February 2023   Accepted: 05 May 2023
Fund: 

This study was supported financially by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (2021YFD1900703) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (31272250).

About author:  Yingxia Dou, E-mail: 1546637383@qq.com; #Correspondence Hubing Zhao, Tel/Fax: +86-29-87043250, E-mail: zhaohubing@hotmail.com

Cite this article: 

Yingxia Dou, Hubing Zhao, Huimin Yang, Tao Wang, Guanfei Liu, Zhaohui Wang, Sukhdev Malhi. 2024.

The first factor affecting dryland winter wheat grain yield under various mulching measures: Spike number . Journal of Integrative Agriculture, 23(03): 836-848.

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