Effect of Zero and Minimum Tillage on Cotton Productivity and Soil Characteristics under Different Nitrogen Application Rates

Niamat Ullah Khan, Aftab Ahmad Khan, Muhammad Arif Goheer, Izwa Shafique, Sadam Hussain, Saddam Hussain, Talha Javed, Maliha Naz, Rubab Shabbir, Ali Raza, Faisal Zulfiqar, Freddy Mora-Poblete, Sunny Ahmar, Qasim Ali, Hayssam M. Ali and Manzer H. Siddiqui
Additional contact information
Niamat Ullah Khan: Cotton Research Station, Pakistan Central Cotton Committee, Dera Ismail Khan 29050, Pakistan
Aftab Ahmad Khan: Global Change Impact Study Centre (GCISC), G-8/1, Islamabad 44000, Pakistan
Muhammad Arif Goheer: Global Change Impact Study Centre (GCISC), G-8/1, Islamabad 44000, Pakistan
Izwa Shafique: Department of Botany, University of Agriculture Faisalabad, Faisalabad 38000, Pakistan
Sadam Hussain: College of Agronomy, Northwest Agriculture & Forestry University, Yangling 712100, China
Saddam Hussain: Department of Agronomy, University of Agriculture Faisalabad, Faisalabad 38040, Pakistan
Talha Javed: Department of Agronomy, University of Agriculture Faisalabad, Faisalabad 38040, Pakistan
Maliha Naz: Department of Botany, University of Agriculture Faisalabad, Faisalabad 38000, Pakistan
Rubab Shabbir: College of Agriculture, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 350002, China
Ali Raza: Center of Legume Crop Genetics and Systems Biology/College of Agriculture, Key Laboratory of Ministry of Education for Genetics, Breeding and Multiple Utilization of Crops, Oil Crops Research Institute, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University (FAFU), Fuzhou 350002, China
Faisal Zulfiqar: Department of Horticultural Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture and Environment, The Islamia University of Bahawalpur, Bahawalpur 63100, Pakistan
Freddy Mora-Poblete: Institute of Biological Sciences, University of TalcFa, 2 Norte 685, Talca 3460000, Chile
Sunny Ahmar: College of Plant Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China
Qasim Ali: Institute of Food and Agriculture Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32603, USA
Hayssam M. Ali: Department of Botany and Microbiology, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
Manzer H. Siddiqui: Department of Botany and Microbiology, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 24, 1-13

Abstract: Long-term conservation tillage and straw incorporation are reported to improve the soil health, growth, and yield traits of crops; however, little is known regarding the optimal nitrogen (N) supply under conservation tillage with straw incorporation. The present study evaluated the effects of conservation tillage practices (ZTsas: zero tillage plus wheat straw on the soil surface as such, and MTsi: minimum tillage plus wheat straw incorporated) and different N application rates (50, 100, 150, and 200 kg ha −1 ) on the yield and quality traits of cotton and soil characteristics in a five-year field experiment. The results showed that ZTsas produced a higher number of bolls per plant, boll weight, seed cotton yield, 100-seed weight, ginning out-turn (GOT), fiber length, and strength than MTsi. Among different N application rates, the maximum number of bolls per plant, boll weight, seed cotton yield, GOT, 100-seed weight, fiber length, strength, and micronaire were recorded at 150 kg N ha −1 . Averaged over the years, tillage × N revealed that ZTsas had a higher boll number plant −1 , boll weight, 100-seed weight, GOT, fiber length, and strength with N application at 150 kg ha −1 , as compared to other tillage systems. Based on the statistical results, there is no significant difference in total soil N and soil organic matter among different N rates. Further, compared to MTsi, ZTsas recorded higher soil organic matter (SOM, 8%), total soil N (TSN, 29%), water-stable aggregates (WSA, 8%), and mean weight diameter (MWD, 28.5%), particularly when the N application of 150 kg ha −1 . The fiber fineness showed that ZTsas had no adverse impact on fiber fineness compared with MTsi. These results indicate that ZTsas with 150 kg N ha −1 may be the optimum and most sustainable approach to improve cotton yield and soil quality in the wheat–cotton system.

Keywords: cotton; productivity; soil quality; long-term conservation tillage; fertilizer; aggregate stability; soil organic matter (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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