Effects of Lime, Magnesia and Silicon on Soil Acid-Neutralizing Capacity and Rice Yield in Acidic Paddy Fields

Ting Yang, Geng Sun, Mei Sun, Huihui Du, Zunchang Luo, Qiufen Feng, Yong Zheng, Junyu Zhou and Zedong Long ()
Additional contact information
Ting Yang: Soil Ecology Department, Hunan Institute of Agricultural Soil and Eco-Environment, Changsha 410125, China
Geng Sun: Soil Ecology Department, Hunan Institute of Agricultural Soil and Eco-Environment, Changsha 410125, China
Mei Sun: Soil Ecology Department, Hunan Institute of Agricultural Soil and Eco-Environment, Changsha 410125, China
Huihui Du: College of Environment & Ecology, Hunan Agricultural University, Changsha 410127, China
Zunchang Luo: Soil Ecology Department, Hunan Institute of Agricultural Soil and Eco-Environment, Changsha 410125, China
Qiufen Feng: Soil Ecology Department, Hunan Institute of Agricultural Soil and Eco-Environment, Changsha 410125, China
Yong Zheng: Soil Ecology Department, Hunan Institute of Agricultural Soil and Eco-Environment, Changsha 410125, China
Junyu Zhou: Soil Ecology Department, Hunan Institute of Agricultural Soil and Eco-Environment, Changsha 410125, China
Zedong Long: Soil Ecology Department, Hunan Institute of Agricultural Soil and Eco-Environment, Changsha 410125, China

Agriculture, 2025, vol. 15, issue 10, 1-13

Abstract: Soil acidification is a significant threat to agricultural sustainability, particularly in paddy fields, where acidic conditions can limit crop productivity and soil health. This study aimed to explore the combined effects of alkaline amendments—lime, magnesia, and silicon fertilizer—on the acid-neutralizing capacity (ANC) of paddy soils and the rice yield, with the objective of identifying effective strategies to mitigate soil acidification and enhance agricultural productivity. From 2018 to 2021, a four-year field trial in Hunan tested lime, magnesia, and silicon fertilizers. Soil samples (0–20 cm depth) were collected once post-harvest in 2021 to evaluate the cumulative treatment effects. After four years, the control soil pH was 6.12. Lime and light magnesia treatment increased it to 6.70 and 6.99, respectively. Silicon fertilizer showed no significant difference (pH 6.05). ANC analysis revealed the following anti-acidification capacity ranking: light magnesia > lime > control > silicon fertilizer. Light magnesia boosted the rice yield by 13.02% over the control. Statistical analyses indicated a significant positive correlation between the soil acid-neutralizing capacity and pH (ANC4.0 = 7.53 × pH − 30.00, R 2 adj = 0.70; ANC5.0 = 6.96 × pH − 37.49, R 2 adj = 0.58). The rice yield was correlated with exchangeable magnesium (yield = 0.42 × Ex-Mg + 24.54, R 2 adj = 0.44). The continuous application of lime and light magnesia enhanced the nutrient availability and soil anti-acidification, with light magnesia also improving the rice yield. These findings provide insights to aid in enhancing soil quality and agricultural productivity in acid-affected regions.

Keywords: lime; light magnesia; silicon fertilizer; acid-neutralizing capacity; rice yield (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q17 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/15/10/1042/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/15/10/1042/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jagris:v:15:y:2025:i:10:p:1042-:d:1653556

Access Statistics for this article

Agriculture is currently edited by Ms. Leda Xuan

More articles in Agriculture from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().