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Journal of Integrative Agriculture
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Water and nitrogen footprint assessment of integrated agronomic practice management in a summer maize cropping system
Ningning Yu*, Bingshuo Wang*, Baizhao Ren, Bin Zhao, Peng Liu, Jiwang Zhang#

State Key Laboratory of Crop Biology and College of Agronomy, Shandong Agricultural University, Tai’an 271018, China

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摘要  水足迹和氮足迹(WFNF)可全面的反映水分消耗和活性氮(Nr)损失的类型和数量。本试验以传统农户的管理方式T1)为对照,设置了三个综合农艺管理处理IAPM):优化管理处理T2)、超高产处理T3)和土壤-作物综合管理处理ISCM),研究综合农艺管理对夏玉米生产的水足迹、活性氮损失、水分利用效率(WUE)和氮利用效率(NUE)的影响。研究结果表明,IAPM可优化土壤水分分布,促进夏玉米水分吸收与利用。在整个玉米生长期,虽然IAPM的蒸散量增加,但产量增加更多,导致WUE显著增加。与T1相比,T2T3ISCMWUE分别显著增加19.8-21.5%31.8-40.6%34.4-44.6%IAPMWF降低,其中ISCMWF最低,比T131.0%。此外,IAPM还能优化土壤全氮(TN)的分布,显著增加耕作层的TN含量。然而,T3为获得高产施用过量的氮肥,导致氮素损失最高。相比之下,ISCM在部分牺牲粮食产量的基础上降低氮肥施用量,减少氮素损失,最终氮素利用效率和氮素回收率显著提高。与T1相比,ISCM的氮损失率降低34.8%,氮利用效率显著提高56.8-63.1%。因此,综合考虑产量、WUENUEWFNFISCM为更可持续和清洁的夏玉米可持续生产系统。

Abstract  The footprints of water and nitrogen (WF and NF) provide a comprehensive overview of the type and quantity of water consumption and reactive nitrogen (Nr) loss in crop production. In this study, a field experiment over two years (2019 and 2020) compared three integrated agronomic practice management (IAPM) systems: An improved management system (T2), a high-yield production system (T3), and an integrated soil-crop management system (ISCM) using a local smallholder farmer's practice system (T1) as control, to investigate the responses of WF, Nr losses, water use efficiency (WUE), and nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) to IAPM. The results showed that IAPM optimized water distribution and promoted water use by summer maize. The evapotranspiration over the whole maize growth period of IAPM increased, but yield increased more, leading to a significant increase in WUE. The WUE of the T2, T3, and ISCM treatments was significantly greater than in the T1 treatment, in 2019 and 2020 respectively, by 19.8-21.5, 31.8-40.6, and 34.4-44.6%. The lowest WF was found in the ISCM treatment, which was 31.0% lower than that of the T1 treatment. In addition, the ISCM treatment optimized soil total nitrogen (TN) distribution and significantly increased TN in the cultivated layer. Excessive nitrogen fertilizer was applied in treatment T3, producing the highest maize yield, and resulting in the highest Nr losses. In contrast, the ISCM treatment used a reduced nitrogen fertilizer rate, sacrificing grain yield partly, which reduced Nr losses and eventually led to a significant increase in nitrogen use efficiency and nitrogen recovery. The Nr level in the ISCM treatment was 34.8% lower than in the T1 treatment while NUE was significantly higher than in the T1 treatment by 56.8-63.1% in 2019 and 2020, respectively. Considering yield, WUE, NUE, WF, and NF together, ISCM should be used as a more sustainable and clean system for sustainable production of summer maize.
Keywords:  integrated agronomic practice management       water footprints              nitrogen footprints              water use efficiency              nitrogen use efficiency              yield  
Online: 19 April 2024  
Fund: The authors are grateful for the useful comments from the anonymous reviewers and for the support of the National Key R&D Program of China (2023YFD2301500), the China Agriculture System of MOF and MARA (CARS-02), and the Shandong Central Guiding the Local Science and Technology Development, China (YDZX20203700002548).
About author:  Ningning Yu, E-mail: yuning@sdau.edu.cn; Bingshuo Wang, E-mail: 1785537450@qq.com; #Correspondence Jiwang Zhang, E-mail: jwzhang@sdau.edu.cn *These authors contributed equally to this study.

Cite this article: 

Ningning Yu, Bingshuo Wang, Baizhao Ren, Bin Zhao, Peng Liu, Jiwang Zhang. 2024. Water and nitrogen footprint assessment of integrated agronomic practice management in a summer maize cropping system. Journal of Integrative Agriculture, Doi:10.1016/j.jia.2024.03.061

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