Deep-injected straw incorporation enhances subsoil quality and wheat productivity

• Published in: Plant and soil 2024-06, Vol.499 (1-2), p.207-220
• Main Authors: Ling, Jun, Zhou, Jie, Wu, Gong, Zhao, De-Qiang, Wang, Zhi-Tong, Wen, Yuan, Zhou, Shun-Li
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Agricultural practices; Agricultural production; Agriculture; Biological properties; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Cereal crops; Corn; Crop rotation; Crop yield; Cropping systems; Ecology; Life Sciences; Nutrients; Plant Physiology; Plant Sciences; Productivity; Research Article; Soil chemistry; Soil improvement; Soil nutrients; Soil quality; Soil Science & Conservation; Soils; Straw; Subsoils; Sustainable agriculture; Sustainable development; Topsoil; Wheat; Winter wheat
• ISSN: 0032-079X; 1573-5036
• DOI: 10.1007/s11104-022-05660-6

Purpose Straw incorporation is an important management practice in global agriculture. However, present straw returning usually focus on returning straw into the topsoil, while neglecting the amendment of subsoil. The study aims to investigate the effect of different straw returning strategies on soil quality and wheat productivity, and to develop recommendations regarding sustainable agriculture. Methods A 2-year field experiment was conducted to evaluate the effects of five straw returning strategies on the soil quality and wheat yield in a winter wheat-summer maize cropping system in the North China Plain. Soil quality is defined as an index approach, including soil physical, chemical, and biological properties. The five treatments were straw removal (SR), straw mulching (SM), straw incorporation into topsoil (SI), deep-ploughing straw incorporation (DP-SI) and deep-injected straw incorporation (DI-SI). Results Our results showed that straw returning improved soil quality across 0–40 cm depth relative to SR. The DP-SI and DI-SI a (above straw cluster) significantly increased topsoil quality by 20.5–26.2% and 13.6–19.0% compared with SI and SM. The DI-SI a also enhanced the subsoil quality, which was characterized by a significant increase in soil nutrients, compared to other straw returning strategies. The soil quality of 0–40 cm layer under DP-SI and DI-SI was significantly higher than that of other treatments. In addition, a positive correlation between soil quality and wheat yield was observed. Thus, the higher soil quality under DP-SI and DI-SI improved the average wheat yield by 9.6% and 10.7% compared with SI, respectively. Conclusion These results indicates that DI-SI may improve subsoil properties and wheat yields and is likely an effective measure for sustainable development of a wheat-maize rotation system.