Effect of Long-Term Nitrogen Addition on Wheat Yield, Nitrogen Use Efficiency, and Residual Soil Nitrate in a Semiarid Area of the Loess Plateau of China

Aixia Xu, Lingling Li, Junhong Xie, Xingzheng Wang, Jeffrey A. Coulter, Chang Liu and Linlin Wang
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Aixia Xu: Gansu Provincial Key Laboratory of Aridland Crop Science, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou 730070, China
Lingling Li: Gansu Provincial Key Laboratory of Aridland Crop Science, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou 730070, China
Junhong Xie: Gansu Provincial Key Laboratory of Aridland Crop Science, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou 730070, China
Xingzheng Wang: Dingxi Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Dingxi 743000, China
Jeffrey A. Coulter: Department of Agronomy and Plant Genetics, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN 55108, USA
Chang Liu: Gansu Provincial Key Laboratory of Aridland Crop Science, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou 730070, China
Linlin Wang: Gansu Provincial Key Laboratory of Aridland Crop Science, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou 730070, China

Sustainability, 2020, vol. 12, issue 5, 1-17

Abstract: Nitrogen (N) fertilizer plays an important role in wheat yield, but N application rates vary greatly, and there is a lack of data to quantify the residual effects of N fertilization on soil N availability. A 17-yr experiment was conducted in a semiarid area of the Loess Plateau of China to assess the effects of N fertilization on spring wheat ( Triticum aestivum L.) grain yield, N uptake, N utilization efficiency, and residual soil nitrate. Treatments included a non-N-fertilized control and annual application of 52.5, 105.0, 157.5, and 210.0 kg N ha −1 in the first two years (2003 and 2004). In the third year (2005), the four main plots with N fertilizer application were split. In one subplot, N fertilization was continued as mentioned previously, while in the other subplot, N fertilization was stopped. The concentration of NO 3 -N in the 0–110 cm depth soil layers was significantly affected by N application, with higher N rates associated with greater soil NO 3 -N concentration. With the annual application of N over 17 years, residual soil NO 3 -N concentration in the 100–200 cm soil layer in the last study year was significantly greater than that in the non-N-fertilized control and was increased with rate of N application. There was a significant positive relationship of soil NO 3 -N in the 0–50 cm and 50–110 cm soil layers at wheat sowing with wheat grain N content and yield. Wheat grain yield in the third year (2005) was significantly, i.e., 22.57–59.53%, greater than the unfertilized treatment after the N application was stopped. Nitrogen use efficiency decreased in response to each increment of added N fertilizer, and was directly related to N harvest index and grain yield. Therefore, greater utilization of residual soil N through appropriate N fertilizer rates could enhance nitrogen use efficiency while reducing the cost of crop production and risk of N losses to the environment. For these concerns, optimum N fertilizer application rate for spring wheat in semiarid Loess Plateau is about 105 kg N ha −1 , which is below the threshold value of 170 kg N ha −1 per year as defined by most EU countries.

Keywords: grain yield; nitrogen use efficiency; nitrogen harvest index; nitrate accumulation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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