Field Crops Research最新文献

{"title":"Optimal drip irrigation leaching amount and times enhance seed cotton yield and its stability by improving soil chemical environment and source-sink relationship","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/j.fcr.2024.109531","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.fcr.2024.109531","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Context</h3><p>The arid and semi-arid regions of northwest China play a pivotal role in the national cotton production. However, soil salinization poses a severe constraint on seed cotton yield in this region. Salt leaching by drip irrigation has become increasingly popular for ameliorating saline-alkali soils. Yet, the most effective approach for utilizing drip irrigation leaching to maximize cotton productivity remains uncertain.</p></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><p>Over a three-year period, field experiments were performed to explore the effects of four leaching amounts (75, 150, 225, and 300 mm) and four leaching times (seedling stage, budding stage, flowering stage, and boll-setting stage as one, two, three and four times) on soil-water dynamics, ion composition, source-sink relationships, seed cotton yield and its stability in saline-alkali cotton fields under drip irrigation.</p></div><div><h3>Results</h3><p>The study revealed that soil moisture significantly fluctuated during the cotton growing seasons. Timely irrigation significantly boosted soil moisture content by 11.3 %-23.5 %. Soil salinity was lower at the early growth stages of cotton, but it gradually increased over time, peaking at the flowering and boll-setting stages. Appropriate leaching effectively mitigated soil salinity, particularly at the flowering stage, resulting in a reduction of salt accumulation by 13.9 %-32.7 %. As leaching amount increased, the relative content of Ca²⁺ increased, while K⁺ and Na⁺ contents gradually decreased, thereby reducing the relative content of harmful ions and leading to a decrease in SAR by 7.07 %-34.3 %. In terms of biomass, the W3 treatment exhibited the highest level, whih was 1.68 %-25.4 % greater than that of the other treatments. Among the three years, the S3 and S4 treatments consistently produced the highest biomass, with increases of 12.66 %-35.25 % and a slight 0.85 % difference, respectively.</p></div><div><h3>Significance</h3><p>The optimal leaching strategy, combining the W3 irrigation amount with the S3 leaching times achieved the highest seed cotton yield with the lowest yield variability. This underscored the critical importance of suitable irrigation and management practices for enhancing seed cotton yield and mitigating the adverse effects of soil salinity on cotton production. Soil salinity indicators, such as sodium adsorption ratio and exchangeable sodium percentage, played a pivotal role in biomass accumulation and yield stability. A total leaching amount of 300 mm applied at the seedling, budding, flowering, and boll-setting stages was recommended to maximize cotton productivity.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":12143,"journal":{"name":"Field Crops Research","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":5.6,"publicationDate":"2024-08-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141915273","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Genotypic differences in the agronomic performance of ratoon rice in a cool-temperate environment in central Japan","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/j.fcr.2024.109487","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.fcr.2024.109487","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Context</h3><p>The major challenge for the rice–ratoon-rice system in cool-temperate environments is to ensure high ratooning ability from stubbles after harvesting of main rice crops. The choice of locally adapted cultivars with high ratooning ability is crucial for this system.</p></div><div><h3>Objective</h3><p>We aimed at identifying modern ultrashort-duration cultivars with high ratoon rice yield in central Japan (35°N to 36°N), which represents the northern limit for growing a ratoon crop, and to elucidate the associated growth characteristics.</p></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><p>We evaluated 15 ultrashort-duration cultivars (13 <em>japonica</em> and 2 <em>indica</em>) in 2019, 8 (7 <em>japonica</em> and 1 <em>indica</em>) in 2020, and 3 (all <em>japonica</em>) in 2021 in the rice–ratoon-rice system in Tokyo, Japan.</p></div><div><h3>Results</h3><p>Ratoon rice yield was not negatively correlated with the main rice yield in any year. However, the tiller regeneration rate (the ratio of tiller number in the ratoon rice season to the panicle number in the main rice season) was strongly and significantly positively correlated with ratoon rice yield. The <em>indica</em> cultivars (‘TNAU6484’ and ‘ADT30’) had lower tiller regeneration rates and lower ratoon rice yield than the <em>japonica</em> cultivars. Two <em>japonica</em> cultivars (‘Akitakomachi’ and ‘Ichibanboshi’) had the highest tiller regeneration rate and the highest ratoon rice yield. The stem nonstructural carbohydrate concentration was positively correlated with ratoon bud length at the harvest of the main rice crop.</p></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><p>We found significant differences among cultivars in their ratooning ability. The nonstructural carbohydrates accumulated in stems at the harvest of the main rice crop might contribute to quicker and greater growth of ratoon rice crops in central Japan. Despite competition between stems and grains for photosynthate, this growth characteristic does not necessarily lower the yield of the main rice crop in ultrashort-duration <em>japonica</em> cultivars.</p></div><div><h3>Implications</h3><p>Two <em>japonica</em> cultivars were identified for the rice–ratoon-rice system in cool-temperate environments of mid-latitudes. Improvement of ratooning ability of <em>japonica</em> rice should be targeted by thorough evaluation of germplasms to increase ratoon rice yield in cool-temperate environments.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":12143,"journal":{"name":"Field Crops Research","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":5.6,"publicationDate":"2024-08-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141915275","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Effects of poly-γ-glutamic acid on soil pore structure, maize grain filling, yield and water use efficiency under mulched drip irrigation","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/j.fcr.2024.109528","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.fcr.2024.109528","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Poly-γ-glutamic acid (γ-PGA) is a biodegradable and non-toxic and harmless water retention agent, contributing significantly to in the sustainable development of agriculture. This study focused that investigated effect of γ-PGA on soil pore structure, maize growth, grain filling characteristics, maize yield and water use efficiency under mulched drip irrigation, and the optimal application strategy of γ-PGA. The effect of γ-PGA application rates (0, 40, and 80 kg ha⁻¹) on soil structure was investigated using soil column experiments. Field experiments analyzed the effects of these γ-PGA rates (0, 20, 60 and 80 kg ha⁻¹) on maize growth. The results showed that γ-PGA changed the position and number of soil pores; with the increase of γ-PGA application rate, the number of soil pores increased. The number of soil pores with an equivalent diameter smaller than 300μm increased by 9–14 times, and those with an equivalent diameter larger than 1000μm increased twelvefold. The soil water storage increased by 2∼27 %. γ-PGA prolonged active grain filling period by 1–3 days, increased the maximum grain filling rate (Vmax) by 3∼15 %, the average grain filling rate (Va) by 7∼27 %, and grain weight by 12∼37 %. γ-PGA treatments significantly increased maize plant height, stem diameter, leaf area index (LAI), ear width, grain number per row and 100-grain weight. Compared with P0, yield and water use efficiency for γ-PGA treatment were increased by 4.9∼21.8 % and 1.0∼18.1 %. Based on the Gaussian optimization model and considering local actual conditions, we recommend that the optimal rate of γ-PGA is 70 kg ha⁻¹ in the region. This study provided a theoretical basis for water-saving irrigation of maize under mulched drip irrigation.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":12143,"journal":{"name":"Field Crops Research","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":5.6,"publicationDate":"2024-08-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141915272","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Improving rice yield and water productivity in dry climatic zones of West Africa: Season-specific strategies","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/j.fcr.2024.109519","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.fcr.2024.109519","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Context</h3><p>Irrigated lowland systems contribute most to rice production in sub-Saharan Africa and play a critical role in meeting the increasing rice demand. However, in dry areas of West Africa, negative effects associated with climate change and widespread water scarcity hamper efforts to increase the productivity of irrigated rice. Quantifying rice yields and water productivity and identifying the drivers for the prevailing variability can aid in the targeting and dissemination of appropriate soil, water, and crop management practices.</p></div><div><h3>Objective</h3><p>The main objectives of this research were: (i) to quantify the rice yield gap in representative irrigated systems in dry areas of West Africa, both in wet and dry seasons, and identify factors that can contribute to narrowing the gap, and (ii) to assess the trade-offs or synergies between productivity and resource (water and fertiliser) use efficiency.</p></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><p>We monitored 203 and 192 smallholder farmers’ fields in the wet and dry seasons, respectively, in four contrasting irrigation schemes in Burkina Faso from 2018 to 2020 and assessed key performance indicators (grain yield, water productivity, and nutrient use efficiency). We calculated rice yield gaps (difference between exploitable and actual farmer yields) and identified the drivers of variability of yield and water productivity using machine learning and Shapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) feature importance.</p></div><div><h3>Results</h3><p>Indicators of productivity and sustainability differed between irrigation schemes and seasons. Rice yield was higher in wet (5.3 Mg ha⁻¹) than in dry seasons (3.7 Mg ha⁻¹), while the variability was higher in the dry (CV = 46%) than in the wet seasons (CV = 29%). Also, the yield gap was slightly higher in the dry (36%) than in the wet seasons (31%). While differences in the number of seedlings per hill and the source of seeds were the key drivers of yield variability in wet-season rice, the split of N fertilizer applications, bird control, and the soil dryness index were the most important in dry-season rice. Furthermore, within seasons, high-yielding fields had higher water productivity, and N, P, and K use efficiencies.</p></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><p>These findings suggest that rice yields can be increased without trade-offs with water productivity and nutrient use efficiencies.</p></div><div><h3>Significance</h3><p>This is the first study highlighting the season-specificity of determinants of variability of yield and water productivity in irrigated rice in West Africa. Improved water and fertilizer management can contribute to achieving the dual goal of narrowing the yield gap and improving water productivity, while increasing nutrient use efficiency, particularly in the dry season.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":12143,"journal":{"name":"Field Crops Research","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":5.6,"publicationDate":"2024-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378429024002727/pdfft?md5=b8be185c7ecefe832a920980a50c4177&pid=1-s2.0-S0378429024002727-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141947442","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Breeding for increased grains/m2 in wheat crops through targeting critical period duration: A review","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/j.fcr.2024.109497","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.fcr.2024.109497","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Context</h3><p>Continuing to raise the potential yield of wheat through breeding is essential for global food security. Past progress has largely been associated with greater grains/m² (GN), the critical period for the determination of which relates to spike growth, with GN often closely related to spike dry weight at anthesis (g/m²).</p></div><div><h3>Objective/Methods</h3><p>This focussed review outlines the importance of the critical period duration (Ds, in days or °Cdays) and questions how it may be increased genetically, relying partly on the long involvement of the authors in this field, primarily with lower latitude crops of spring-type wheat. Ds is further defined as the interval between flag leaf emergence and first anthesis, each across 50 % of the culms in any crop, a period encompassing most of the accumulation of spike dry matter, in turn determining floret survival and final fertile floret numbers/m².</p></div><div><h3>Results</h3><p>Natural temperature variation and temperature manipulation, particularly in field crops, confirm the dependence of Ds on temperature, which in °Cdays varies from about 300–500, depending on photoperiod. Evidence points to a stronger influence of night than day temperature on Ds, while maintaining the close positive Ds relationship to GN. However, genetic variation in the response of Ds to temperature appears very minor. Ds is inversely related to photoperiod, again with the expected effects on spike dry weight, fertile florets and GN. Extended photoperiod during the critical period showed the greatest reduction in GN per day advance in anthesis. Ds responses can be related to the major photoperiod sensitivity alleles present. A field experiment with a unique reduced photoperiod treatment demonstrated a strong positive effect on Ds, fertile florets and GN, especially in the fully recessive photoperiod-sensitive isoline. While more recent varieties tend to have a longer Ds, experiments targeting selection for Ds or closely related intervals have delivered little change in Ds, which often showed low heritability.</p></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><p>Field photoperiod shortening studies needs further testing as proof of concept. Better selection studies are also needed. At the same time, knowledge of the molecular basis of the leaf response to photoperiod is such that gene editing is surely ripe to tackle the challenge of down-regulating this response only during the critical period, thereby increasing Ds and GN. Exogenous application of plant development regulators at the appropriate stage may also provide a way forward.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":12143,"journal":{"name":"Field Crops Research","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":5.6,"publicationDate":"2024-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378429024002508/pdfft?md5=c634a6945f0448f11d0d04019ebdb96a&pid=1-s2.0-S0378429024002508-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141769198","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"One–third substitution of nitrogen with cow manure or biochar greatly reduced N2O emission and carbon footprint in saline–alkali soils","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/j.fcr.2024.109517","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.fcr.2024.109517","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>The rapid expansion of farmland and long−term excessive nitrogen (N) application have caused huge environmental risks in fragile ecosystems facing global warming. Partially substituting N fertilizer with organic fertilizers offers an alternative field management strategy to alleviate the pressure of the ecological environment. To this end, the influence of one−third substitution of N fertilizer with cow manure or biochar field experiment was conducted under maize in Tarim River Basin since 2019. Five treatments with three replications were applied: CK (Fallow); no fertilization (0 N); conventional N fertilizer (N; N: 300 kg N ha⁻¹, organic fertilizer: 0 kg N ha⁻¹); one−third substitution of N with biochar (NB; N: 200 kg N ha⁻¹, Biochar: 100 kg N ha⁻¹) and one−third substitution of N with cow manure (NM; N: 200 kg N ha⁻¹, Cow manure: 100 kg N ha⁻¹) under maize season in saline−alkali soils. The greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, net ecosystem carbon budget (NECB), soil organic carbon (SOC), maize yield, carbon footprint (CF), and yield carbon footprint (CF_y) were analyzed from 2021 to 2022. The results showed that NB treatment decreased the average cumulative CO₂ emissions by 21 %, while NM treatment showed no difference compared to N treatment. NB and NM treatments reduced the average cumulative N₂O emissions (−61 %, −49 %), CF (−68 %, −10 %), CF_y (−66 %, −19 %) and increased maize yield (+3 %, +2 %), SOC storage (+43 %, +6 %), NECB (+80 %, +24 %), and agronomic N use efficiency (ANUE) (+5 %, +3 %), compared to N treatment. NB treatment had the lowest emission factors (EF) (0.19 %) and the highest sustainability index (1.58) compared to NM treatment (0.26 %, 0.61) and N treatment (0.53 %, 0.84). To sum up, substituting one−third of N fertilizer with biochar or manure in saline−alkali soils was proved to be a multi−benefit strategy to increase yields and reduce GHG emissions and CF.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":12143,"journal":{"name":"Field Crops Research","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":5.6,"publicationDate":"2024-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141769241","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Synergistic impact of various straw-return methods and irrigation regimes on winter wheat physiological growth and yield","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/j.fcr.2024.109516","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.fcr.2024.109516","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Context or problem</h3><p>Straw return to the field conserves soil moisture, but its effect on winter wheat growth varies, considering the return method used. Optimal irrigation can improve the effects of returning straw to the field. However, studies on the effects of the straw- return method and irrigation interactions on the physiological growth and yield of winter wheat are limited.</p></div><div><h3>Objective or research question</h3><p>The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of two common methods of corn straw-return—burying and mulching— combined with different irrigation regimes on the physiological growth of winter wheat in the North China Plain (NCP). The goal was to establish an economically stable straw-return irrigation regime.</p></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><p>Straw-burying (SB) and straw mulching (SM) treatments were applied under three irrigation regimes: no irrigation (I₀), 60 mm irrigation during the jointing stage (I₆₀), and 60 mm irrigation during both the jointing and heading stages (I₆₀₊₆₀) during the winter wheat growing seasons from 2020 to 2022. Leaf area index (LAI), stem number, photosynthetic characteristics, photosynthesis-active radiation (PAR) capture rate, dry matter accumulation, and winter wheat yield were measured and calculated. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to analyze the correlation between physiological indexes and winter wheat yield.</p></div><div><h3>Results</h3><p>SB-I₆₀ and SB-I₆₀₊₆₀ maintained higher stem numbers and LAI in winter wheat, compared with SM-I₆₀ and SM-I₆₀₊₆₀. SB-I₆₀₊₆₀ had the highest photosynthetic and PAR capture rates. Under the same irrigation treatment, the spike numbers and yield of SB increased by 2.47–5.73 % and 4.37–9.51 % compared with those of SM, respectively. Under the same straw-return treatment, irrigation improved the straw-return effect, and the yield and dry matter accumulation of winter wheat increased with increasing irrigation. SB-I₆₀₊₆₀ recorded the highest wheat yield. SEM analysis revealed that yield was positively affected by LAI and photosynthetic rate.</p></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><p>The application of SB-I₆₀₊₆₀ increased grain yield, enhancing food security and optimizing the benefits from straw return.</p></div><div><h3>Implications or significance</h3><p>This study revealed the optimal straw application and irrigation for wheat production, promoting food security in dry regions.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":12143,"journal":{"name":"Field Crops Research","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":5.6,"publicationDate":"2024-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141769256","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Smart nutrient management Nutrient Expert® enhances rice productivity through adjusting source-sink relationships during grain filling","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/j.fcr.2024.109479","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.fcr.2024.109479","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Smart nutrient management optimises chemical fertiliser application while maintaining crop yields. <em>Nutrient Expert</em>® (NE) is a user-friendly smart nutrient management system designed to improve the productivity of smallholder farmers. However, the physiological mechanisms underlying the effects of nutrient management have yet to be fully understood. We analysed data from field experiments conducted in South and Northeast China to explore the effects of different nitrogen (N) fertiliser inputs and nutrient management systems on panicle weight and post-flowering source-sink relationships in various cropping seasons of rice. Treatments included NE recommendation, local farmers’ practices (FP), soil test based fertiliser recommendation (ST), and four N rate treatments with plus or minus 25 % and plus or minus 50 % of NE. Our analysis indicated that rice panicle weight and N accumulation increased with increasing N application rate up to a recommended rate by NE in most cases, beyond which there was little further increase. Moreover, NE significantly enhanced rice panicle weight and N accumulation compared to FP and ST in the single-season rice in Northeast China. In all experiments, both in South and Northeast China, the post-flowering source-sink difference gradually increased from negative to positive values with an increase in N application rate. Too low N application rate resulted in insufficient source supply, while too high N application rate gave excessive source supply since the sink demand reached its upper limit. Compared with FP and ST, NE achieved higher source supply and sink demand in the single-season rice, and mobilised more N from source organs to sink organs. Our analysis provides evidence for positive impacts of integrated nutrient management strategies on rice source-sink relationships and offers a physiological basis for improved rice productivity of designed NE nutrient management strategies.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":12143,"journal":{"name":"Field Crops Research","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":5.6,"publicationDate":"2024-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378429024002326/pdfft?md5=95ad1f1c7587d89e193e896214b91418&pid=1-s2.0-S0378429024002326-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141769244","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Farming shallow soils: Impacts of soil depth on crop growth in the Everglades Agricultural Area of Florida, USA","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/j.fcr.2024.109523","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.fcr.2024.109523","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Context</h3><p>Over half of the US's sugarcane production comes from the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA) in Florida (USA). However, the loss of organic soils due to oxidation, which results in the gradual reduction of soil depth, poses a significant concern for the future of agriculture throughout the EAA. Understanding the relationship between soil depth and crop production in the EAA is critical to developing sustainable and profitable farming practices in the region.</p></div><div><h3>Objective</h3><p>This study aimed to assess the depths of organic soils in the EAA and monitor the growth of sugarcane to elucidate the relationship between crop growth and soil depths.</p></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><p>The soil depth of five locations spanning a total area of 90 ha were surveyed. The sugarcane yield was estimated using the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) derived from publicly available Landsat 8 satellite images.</p></div><div><h3>Results</h3><p>The soil survey revealed considerable spatial variation in soil depths, ranging from 10 to 105 cm with an average of 51 cm. Over half of the study area had soil depths below 50 cm, while only 11.9 % of the area had soil depths exceeding 80 cm. Multiple linear regression analysis indicated sugarcane variety and age significantly impacts the yield. However, no significant relationship was found between soil depth and sugarcane yields, which can be attributed to the ample availability of nutrients and water in the region, coupled with advancements in agricultural technologies such as stringent soil testing for nutrient recommendations and effective plant breeding that address the constraints posed by shallow soils.</p></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><p>The undetectable threshold for soil depth where crop yields decline may be due to numerous reasons including dataset constraints, and modelling limitations. For sugarcane production to be sustainable and profitable in the region soil loss of Histosols in the region warrants further research. Proactive interventions and conservation farming practices are imperative to mitigate soil loss within the region.</p></div><div><h3>Implications</h3><p>The outcomes of this study furnish valuable data to support decision-makers in policy formulation, with significant implications for food security and environmental sustainability.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":12143,"journal":{"name":"Field Crops Research","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":5.6,"publicationDate":"2024-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141947537","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Biochar effects on crop yield variability","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/j.fcr.2024.109518","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.fcr.2024.109518","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Context or Problem</h3><p>Numerous studies have demonstrated that biochar application can increase crop yield by improving soil properties and health. Yet, these studies, however, neglected how biochar alters yield variability across years – reflecting the yield stability.</p></div><div><h3>Objective or Research question</h3><p>This study aimed to investigate the effects of biochar application on crop yield variability.</p></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><p>Published data from 38 experimental sites were collected from the Web-of-Science. Two-thirds of the data were originated from three main staple crops: maize, wheat, and rice. The remaining were from rapeseed, soybean, sweet potato, and peppermint. Biochar effects on crop yield and its variability as well as their driving factors were analyzed by linear mixed models depending on soil conditions, field management practices, and climate types.</p></div><div><h3>Results</h3><p>Biochar increased the crop yield globally by 14 %, especially in soils with low pH (&lt; 5.5), low nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) inputs (≤ 120 kg N ha⁻¹, &lt; 35 kg P ha⁻¹), with high biochar inputs (≥ 20 Mg ha⁻¹), and under crop rotation. Biochar increased crop yields by 12 % in short-term (≤ 5 years) and 21 % in long-term (&gt; 5 years) experiments. Biochar increased yield variability by 42 % in acidic soils (pH &lt; 5.5) and by 24 % with low N inputs (≤ 120 kg N ha⁻¹), mainly because its liming and fertilization effects were short-lasting within the first few years. The yield variability after biochar application decreased with the increase in mean annual temperature, inter-annual variabilities of temperature and precipitation, but with the decrease in mean annual precipitation in the growing season. Yield variability under biochar increased in short-term experiments by 27 %, but there was no change (0 %) in long-term experiments because of the higher yield gains and resistance to fluctuating weather conditions. Therefore, crop yield variability decreased with increasing yield in long-term experiments.</p></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><p>Biochar application increased short-term variability of crop yields, but its long-term variability remained unaffected.</p></div><div><h3>Implications or Significance</h3><p>This study highlights that biochar can support steadily future crop production in the long run.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":12143,"journal":{"name":"Field Crops Research","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":5.6,"publicationDate":"2024-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141769259","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}