Growth and Distribution of Maize Roots in Response to Nitrogen Accumulation in Soil Profiles after Long-Term Fertilization Management on a Calcareous Soil

Yunlong Zhang, Tengteng Li, Shuikuan Bei, Junling Zhang and Xiaolin Li
Additional contact information
Yunlong Zhang: College of Resources and Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
Tengteng Li: College of Resources and Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
Shuikuan Bei: College of Resources and Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
Junling Zhang: College of Resources and Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
Xiaolin Li: College of Resources and Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China

Sustainability, 2018, vol. 10, issue 11, 1-16

Abstract: The replacement of inorganic fertilizer nitrogen by manure is highlighted to have great potential to maintain crop yield while delivering multiple functions, including the improvement of soil quality. However, information on the dynamics of root distributions in response to chemical fertilizers and manure along the soil profile is still lacking. The aim of this study was to investigate the temporal-spatial root distributions of summer maize ( Zea mays L.) from 2013 to 2015 under four treatments (unfertilized control (CK), inorganic fertilizer (NPK), manure + 70% NPK (NPKM), and NPKM + straw (NPKMS)). Root efficiency for shoot N accumulation was increased by 89% in the NPKM treatment compared with the NPK treatment at V12 (the emergence of the twelfth leaf) of 2014. Root growth at 40–60 cm was consistently stimulated after manure and/or straw additions, especially at V12 and R3 (the milk stage) across three years. Root length density (RLD) in the diameter <0.2 mm at 0–20 cm was significantly positively correlated with soil water content and negatively with soil mineral N contents in 2015. The RLD in the diameter >0.4 mm at 20–60 cm, and RLD <0.2 mm, was positively correlated with shoot N uptake in 2015. The root length density was insensitive in response to fertilization treatments, but the variations in RLD along the soil profile in response to fertilization implies that there is a great potential to manipulate N supply levels and rooting depths to increase nutrient use efficiency. The importance of incorporating a manure application together with straw to increase soil fertility in the North China Plain (NCP) needs further studies.

Keywords: root length density; fertilization; compost; straw (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/10/11/4315/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/10/11/4315/ (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:jsusta:v:10:y:2018:i:11:p:4315-:d:184365

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

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