• Authors:
    • Horwath, W. R.
    • Zhu, X.
    • You, M.
    • Han, X.
    • Miao, S.
    • Qiao, Y.
  • Source: Field Crops Research
  • Volume: 161
  • Year: 2014
  • Summary: Long-term agronomic studies are useful to determine cropping system nitrogen (N) use efficiency and the fate of applied fertilizers. We used a subtractive fertilizer experiment incorporating N, phosphorous (P), potassium (K) and swine manure to determine long-term changes in grain yield, soil organic carbon (SOC), total soil nitrogen (N), as well as carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions. The experiment was conducted on a 22-year maize-soybean-wheat rotation in Northeastern China. Crop residues were removed for cooking fuel and forage according to local practices. Five fertilizer treatments were applied annually: control (no fertilizer), NK, NP, NPK, and NPKOM (N, P. K and manure). The NPKOM treatment increased SOC and total soil N by 4.59 and 0.45 Mg ha(-1), respectively. In contrast, SOC decreased by 10.6 and 6.64 Mg ha(-1) in the control and NK treatments, respectively. The NPKOM treatment had an average of 2.9 times more N2O emissions than the other fertilizer treatments. The cropping system balances for N and SOC, together with fuel use for farming practices and manure handling, were used to calculate the global warming potential (GWP) of the different fertilizer treatments. Due to SOC sequestration, the GWP of the NPKOM treatment (6.77 Mg C equivalent ha(-1)) was significantly lower than that of both the control (14.4 Mg C equivalent ha(-1)) and the NK treatment (12.8 Mg C equivalent ha(-1)). The results suggest that in rainfed agricultural systems in Northeastern China, the application of manure supplemented with NPK can simultaneously achieve higher grain yield and lower GWP compared to mineral fertilizers alone.
  • Authors:
    • Chen, Q.
    • Wang, J. G.
    • Ren, T.
  • Source: International Society for Horticultural Science, Acta Horticulturae
  • Issue: 1018
  • Year: 2014
  • Summary: Organic manure is one of the most important factors to maintain soil fertility and achieve high yield in greenhouse vegetable production. Effects of organic manure, mineral nitrogen application and wheat straw incorporation on C cycling was investigated based on a six-year greenhouse tomato experiment in Shandong Province, northern China. In contrast to the amount of 0.14 t C ha -1 a -1 contributed by root residue, chicken manure, with 3.80 t C ha -1 a -1, was the dominant C supplement. Without any manure application, soil organic carbon and soil non-labile carbon fraction significantly decreased after 6 years of intensive tomato production. High chicken manure applied rates ranging from 13 to 20 t ha -1 a -1 only could maintain SOC content at their initial levels in the greenhouse. Based on the organic manure application, little effect of different mineral N application rate on SOC content was observed. Manure and straw incorporation significantly enhanced soil respiration rate, especially for straw incorporation, which led to higher negative net ecosystem productivity. Meanwhile no significant increase of SOC content was observed with manure and straw incorporation. High organic carbon decomposition rate due to year-round high temperature and moisture and excessive manure with low C/N ratio might be the dominant reason for the low accumulated rate of soil organic matter in this greenhouse tomato planting system. How to improve the soil organic matter further will be a great challenge in greenhouse vegetable production.
  • Authors:
    • Liu, H.-Y.
    • Qiu, J.-J.
    • Li, H.
    • Wang, L.-G.
    • Yang, L.
  • Source: Journal of Integrative Agriculture
  • Volume: 13
  • Issue: 4
  • Year: 2014
  • Summary: Spring maize is one of the most popular crops planted in northeastern China. The cropping systems involving spring maize have been maintaining high production through intensive management practices. However, the high rates of nitrogen (N) fertilizers application could have introduced a great amount of nitrous oxide (N2O) into the atmosphere. It is crucial for sustaining the maize production systems to reduce N2O emissions meanwhile maintaining the optimum yields by adopting alternative farming management practices. The goal of this study was to evaluate effects of alternative fertilization and crop residue management practices on N2O emission as well as crop yield for a typical maize field in northeastern China. Field experiments were conducted during the 2010-2011 maize growing seasons (from early May to late September) in Liaoning Province, northeastern China. N2O fluxes were measured at the field plots with six different treatments including no N fertilizer use (CK), farmers' conventional N fertilizer application rate (FP), reduced N fertilizer rate (OPT), reduced N fertilizer rate combined with crop straw amendment (OPTS), slow-release N fertilizer (CRF), and reduced N fertilizer rate combined with nitrification inhibitor (OPT+DCD). The static chamber method combined with gas chromatography technique was employed to conduct the measurements of N2O fluxes. The field data showed that N2O emissions varied across the treatments. During the maize growing season in 2010, the total N2O emissions under the treatments of CK, FP, OPT, OPTS, and CRF were 0.63, 1.11, 1.03, 1.26, and 0.98 kg N ha(-1), respectively. The seasonal cumulative N2O emissions were 0.54, 1.07, 0.96, 1.12, and 0.84 kg N ha(-1), respectively, under CK, FP, OPT, OPTS, and OPT+DCD in 2011. In comparison with FP, CRF or OPT+DCD reduced the N2O emissions by 12 or 21%, respectively, while the crop yields remained unchanged. The results indicate that the reduction of N-fertilizer application rate in combination with the slow-release fertilizer type or nitrification inhibitor could effectively mitigate N2O emissions from the tested field. The incorporation of crop residue didn't show positive effect on mitigating N2O emissions from the tested cropping system. The field study can provide useful information for the on-going debate on alternative N fertilization strategies and crop straw management in China. However, further studies would be needed to explore the long-term impacts of the alternative management practices on a wide range of environmental services.
  • Authors:
    • Li, D.-C.
    • Wang, B.-R.
    • Li, J.-W.
    • Ding, X.-S.
    • Sun, N.
    • Wu, L.-H.
    • Zhang, X.-B.
  • Source: Journal of Integrative Agriculture
  • Volume: 13
  • Issue: 3
  • Year: 2014
  • Summary: Upland red soils have been identified as major CO2 and N2O sources induced by human activities such as fertilization. To monitor characteristics of soil surface CO2 and N2O fluxes in cropland ecosystems after continuous fertilizer applications over decades and to separate the respective contributions of root and heterotrophic respiration to the total soil CO2 and N2O fluxes, the measurements of soil surface CO2 and N2O fluxes throughout the maize growing season in 2009 were carried out based on a fertilization experiment (from 1990) through of the maize (Zea mays L.) growing season in red soil in southern China. Five fertilization treatments were chosen from the experiment for study: zero-fertilizer application (CK), nitrogen-phosphorus-potassium (NPK) fertilizer application only, pig manure (M), NPK plus pig manure (NPKM) and NPK with straw (NPKS). Six chambers were installed in each plot. Three of them are in the inter-row soil (NR) and the others are in the soil within the row (R). Each fertilizer treatment received the same amount of N (300 kg ha(-1) yr(-1)). Results showed that cumulative soil CO2 fluxes in NR or R were both following the order: NPKS>M, NPKM>NPK>CK. The contributions of root respiration to soil CO2 fluxes was 40, 44, 50, 47 and 35% in CK, NPK, NPKM, M and NPKS treatments, respectively, with the mean value of 43%. Cumulative soil N2O fluxes in NR or R were both following the order: NPKS, NPKM>M>NPK>CK, and soil N2O fluxes in R were 18, 20 and 30% higher than that in NR in NPKM, M and NPKS treatments, respectively, but with no difference between NR and R in NPK treatment. Furthermore, combine with soil temperature at -5 cm depth and soil moisture (0-20 cm) together could explain 55-70% and 42-59% of soil CO2 and N2O emissions with root interference and 62-78% and 44-63% of that without root interference, respectively. In addition, soil CO2 and N2O fluxes per unit yield in NPKM (0.55 and 0.10 kg C t(-1)) and M (0.65 and 0.13 g N t(-1)) treatments were lower than those in other treatments. Therefore, manure application could be a preferred fertilization strategy in red soils in South China
  • Authors:
    • Wu, J.
    • Liu, J.
    • Zhou, G.
    • Jiang, P.
    • Chang, S. X.
    • Li, Y.
    • Zhang, J.
    • Shen, Z.
  • Source: Plant and Soil
  • Volume: 376
  • Issue: 1-2
  • Year: 2014
  • Summary: The impact of understory vegetation control or replacement with selected plant species, which are common forest plantation management practices, on soil C pool and greenhouse gas (GHG, including CO2, CH4 and N2O) emissions are poorly understood. The objective of this paper was to investigate the effects of understory vegetation management on the dynamics of soil GHG emissions and labile C pools in an intensively managed Chinese chestnut (Castanea mollissima Blume) plantation in subtropical China. A 12-month field experiment was conducted to study the dynamics of soil labile C pools and GHG emissions in a Chinese chestnut plantation under four different understory management practices: control (Control), understory removal (UR), replacement of understory vegetation with Medicago sativa L. (MS), and replacement with Lolium perenne L. (LP). Soil GHG emissions were determined using the static chamber/GC technique. Understory management did not change the seasonal pattern of soil GHG emissions; however, as compared with the Control, the UR treatment increased soil CO2 and N2O emissions and CH4 uptake, and the MS and LP treatments increased CO2 and N2O emissions and reduced CH4 uptake (P < 0.05 for all treatment effects, same below). The total global warming potential (GWP) of GHG emissions in the Control, UR, MS, and LP treatments were 36.56, 39.40, 42.36, and 42.99 Mg CO2 equivalent (CO2-e) ha(-1) year(-1), respectively, with CO2 emission accounting for more than 95 % of total GWP regardless of the understory management treatment. The MS and LP treatments increased soil organic C (SOC), total N (TN), soil water soluble organic C (WSOC) and microbial biomass C (MBC), while the UR treatment decreased SOC, TN and NO3 (-)-N but had no effect on WSOC and MBC. Soil GHG emissions were correlated with soil temperature and WSOC across the treatments, but had no relationship with soil moisture content and MBC. Although replacing competitive understory vegetation with legume or less competitive non-legume species increased soil GHG emissions and total GWP, such treatments also increased soil C and N pools and are therefore beneficial for increasing soil C storage, maintaining soil fertility, and enhancing the productivity of Chinese chestnut plantations.
  • Authors:
    • Huang, Y.
    • Sun, W.
    • Li, T.
    • Yu, Y.
    • Zhang, W.
  • Source: Environmental Science & Technology
  • Volume: 48
  • Issue: 5
  • Year: 2014
  • Summary: Cropland soils have been shown to emit nitrous oxide (N2O) and methane (CH4) into the atmosphere and to sequester carbon when field management is improved, yet the spatiotemporal changes in the N2O and CH4 emissions and the soil organic carbon (SOC) in China's croplands are unclear with regard to an integrated global warming potential (GWP). This limits our overall evaluation of anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and impairs effective decision making. On the basis of model simulations primarily from 1980 to 2009, we estimated a 69% increase in the gross GWP of CH4 and N2O emissions, from 244 Tg CO2-equiv yr(-1) in the early 1980s to 413 Tg CO2-equiv yr(-1) in the late 2000s. The SOC was estimated to have increased from 54 Tg CO2-equiv yr(-1) to 117 Tg CO2-equiv yr(-1) during the same period. A reduction in the carbon input during the rice season, along with an improvement of synthetic nitrogen use efficiency in crops to 40%, would mitigate GHG emissions by 111 Tg CO2-equiv yr(-1) and keep SOC sequestration at 82 Tg CO2 yr(-1). Together, this would amount to a reduction of 193 Tg CO2-equiv yr(-1), representing similar to 47% of the gross GWP in the late 2000s. The mitigation of GHG emissions in Henan, Shandong, Hunan, Jiangsu, Hubei, Sichuan, Anhui, Jiangxi, Guangdong and Hebei Provinces could lead to a similar to 66% national improvement and should be given priority.
  • Authors:
    • Lu, S.
    • Zhang, F.
    • Chen, Q.
    • Wang, J.
    • Ren, T.
  • Source: PLoS ONE
  • Volume: 9
  • Issue: 5
  • Year: 2014
  • Summary: With the goal of improving N fertilizer management to maximize soil organic carbon (SOC) storage and minimize N losses in high-intensity cropping system, a 6-years greenhouse vegetable experiment was conducted from 2004 to 2010 in Shouguang, northern China. Treatment tested the effects of organic manure and N fertilizer on SOC, total N (TN) pool and annual apparent N losses. The results demonstrated that SOC and TN concentrations in the 0-10cm soil layer decreased significantly without organic manure and mineral N applications, primarily because of the decomposition of stable C. Increasing C inputs through wheat straw and chicken manure incorporation couldn't increase SOC pools over the 4 year duration of the experiment. In contrast to the organic manure treatment, the SOC and TN pools were not increased with the combination of organic manure and N fertilizer. However, the soil labile carbon fractions increased significantly when both chicken manure and N fertilizer were applied together. Additionally, lower optimized N fertilizer inputs did not decrease SOC and TN accumulation compared with conventional N applications. Despite the annual apparent N losses for the optimized N treatment were significantly lower than that for the conventional N treatment, the unchanged SOC over the past 6 years might limit N storage in the soil and more surplus N were lost to the environment. Consequently, optimized N fertilizer inputs according to root-zone N management did not influence the accumulation of SOC and TN in soil; but beneficial in reducing apparent N losses. N fertilizer management in a greenhouse cropping system should not only identify how to reduce N fertilizer input but should also be more attentive to improving soil fertility with better management of organic manure.
  • Authors:
    • Yu, Y.
    • Zhang, W.
    • Li, T.
    • Wang, G.
  • Source: PLoS ONE
  • Volume: 9
  • Issue: 4
  • Year: 2014
  • Summary: Dynamics of cropland soil organic carbon (SOC) in response to different management practices and environmental conditions across North China Plain (NCP) were studied using a modeling approach. We identified the key variables driving SOC changes at a high spatial resolution (10 kmx10 km) and long time scale (90 years). The model used future climatic data from the FGOALS model based on four future greenhouse gas (GHG) concentration scenarios. Agricultural practices included different rates of nitrogen (N) fertilization, manure application, and stubble retention. We found that SOC change was significantly influenced by the management practices of stubble retention (linearly positive), manure application (linearly positive) and nitrogen fertilization (nonlinearly positive) - and the edaphic variable of initial SOC content (linearly negative). Temperature had weakly positive effects, while precipitation had negligible impacts on SOC dynamics under current irrigation management. The effects of increased N fertilization on SOC changes were most significant between the rates of 0 and 300 kg ha(-1) yr(-1). With a moderate rate of manure application (i.e., 2000 kg ha(-1) yr(-1)), stubble retention (i.e., 50%), and an optimal rate of nitrogen fertilization (i.e., 300 kg ha(-1) yr(-1)), more than 60% of the study area showed an increase in SOC, and the average SOC density across NCP was relatively steady during the study period. If the rates of manure application and stubble retention doubled (i.e., manure application rate of 4000 kg ha(-1) yr(-1) and stubble retention rate of 100%), soils across more than 90% of the study area would act as a net C sink, and the average SOC density kept increasing from 40 Mg ha(-1) during 2010s to the current worldwide average of similar to 55 Mg ha(-1) during 2060s. The results can help target agricultural management practices for effectively mitigating climate change through soil C sequestration.
  • Authors:
    • Sui, P.
    • Chen, Y.
    • Zhang, M.
    • Gao, W.
    • Yang, X.
  • Source: Journal of Cleaner Production
  • Volume: 76
  • Issue: August
  • Year: 2014
  • Summary: Increasing atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases has caused grievous global warming and associated consequences. Lowering carbon footprint to promote the development of cleaner production demands the immediate attention. In this study, the carbon footprint calculations were performed on five cropping systems in North China Plain from 2003 to 2010. The five cropping systems included sweet potato -> cotton -> sweet potato -> winter wheat-summer maize (SpCSpWS, 4-year cycle), ryegrass-cotton -> peanut -> winter wheat-summer maize (RCPWS, 3-year cycle), peanut -> winter wheat-summer maize (PWS, 2-year cycle), winter wheat-summer maize (WS, 1-year cycle), and continuous cotton (Cont C), established in a randomized complete-block design with three replicates. We used a modified carbon footprint calculation with localized greenhouse gas emissions parameters to analyze the carbon footprint of each cropping system per unit area, per kg biomass, and per unit economic output. Results showed that the lowest annual carbon footprint values were observed in SpCSpWS among the five cropping systems, which were only 27.9%, 28.2% and 25.0% of those in WS rotation system (the highest carbon footprint) in terms of per unit area, per unit biomass, and per unit economic output, respectively. The five cropping systems showed the order of SpCSpWS < Cont C < RCPWS < PWS < WS sorting by their annual carbon footprint calculated by all the three metrics above-mentioned. Results revealed that appropriate diversified crop rotation systems could contribute to decreased carbon footprint compared with conventional intensive crop production system in North China Plain. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
  • Authors:
    • Zheng, J. F.
    • Pan, G. X.
    • Li, L. Q.
    • Zhang, X. H.
    • Zhang, A F.
    • Liu, Y. M.
    • Kibue, G. W.
    • Ye, Y. X.
    • Liu, X. Y.
    • Zheng, J. W.
  • Source: Agricultural Systems
  • Volume: 129
  • Year: 2014
  • Summary: Biochar's effects on improving soil fertility, enhancing crop productivity and reducing greenhouse gases (GHGs) emission from croplands had been well addressed in numerous short-term experiments with biochar soil amendment (BSA) mostly in a single crop season/cropping year. However, the persistence of these effects, after a single biochar application, has not yet been well known due to limited long-term field studies so far. Large scale BSA in agriculture is often commented on the high cost due to large amount of biochar in a single application. Here, we try to show the persistence of biochar effects on soil fertility and crop productivity improvement as well as GHGs emission reduction, using data from a field experiment with BSA for 5-crop seasons in central North China. A single amendment of biochar was performed at rates of 0 (C0), 20 (C20) and 40 t ha -1 (C40) before sowing of the first crop season. Emissions of CO 2, CH 4 and N 2O were monitored with static closed chamber method throughout the crop growing season for the 1st, 2nd and 5th cropping. Crop yield was measured and topsoil samples were collected at harvest of each crop season. BSA altered most of the soil physico-chemical properties with a significant increase over control in soil organic carbon (SOC) and available potassium (K) content. The increase in SOC and available K was consistent over the 5-crop seasons after BSA. Despite a significant yield increase in the first maize season, enhancement of crop yield was not consistent over crop seasons without corresponding to the changes in soil nutrient availability. BSA did not change seasonal total CO 2 efflux but greatly reduced N 2O emissions throughout the five seasons. This supported a stable nature of biochar carbon in soil, which played a consistent role in reducing N 2O emission, which showed inter-annual variation with changes in temperature and soil moisture conditions. The biochar effect was much more consistent under C40 than under C20 and with GHGs emission than with soil property and crop yield. Thus, our study suggested that biochar amended in dry land could sustain a low carbon production both of maize and wheat in terms of its efficient carbon sequestration, lower GHGs emission intensity and soil improvement over 5-crop seasons after a single amendment.