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A special issue of Agronomy (ISSN 2073-4395). This special issue belongs to the section "Farming Sustainability".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 June 2025 | Viewed by 6414

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Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Dongmei Qiao

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Guest Editor

Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Institute of Irrigation Research, Chinese Academy of Agriculture Sciences, Xinxiang 453003, China
Interests: study on the coordinated interaction of crop water, fertilizer, and yield in irrigation systems; research on water-saving irrigation, brackish water irrigation, reclaimed water irrigation, and other technologies; soil salinization control, soil quality improvement, and soil pollution remediation

Dr. Qingfeng Miao

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Guest Editor

1. High Efficiency Water-Saving Technology and Equipment and Soil and Water Environment Effect, Engineering Research Center of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Hohhot 010018, China
2. College of Water Conservancy and Civil Engineering, Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, Hohhot 010018, China
Interests: irrigation district; irrigation strategy; irrigation decision-making; transport of water, fertilizer, and salt; coordinated control of irrigation and drainage
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Prof. Dr. Hao Liu

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Guest Editor

Key Laboratory of Crop Water Use and Regulation, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Institute of Irrigation Research, Chinese Academy of Agriculture Sciences, Xinxiang 453003, China
Interests: water-saving irrigation; evapotranspiration; efficient use of water and fertilizer; crop-water relations; soil water and salt stress; exogenous substances regulating crop water use
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

A burgeoning global population and strains on finite resources represent challenges for the sustainability of agricultural production. Water and fertilizer stewardship are paramount in determining the yield and quality of crops. However, mismanaged practices of irrigation and fertilization—such as erratic watering schedules and the excessive use of chemical fertilizers—result in substantial wastage of these precious resources and increased salinization. Moreover, these practices can trigger a number of issues, including soil degradation and environmental contamination, which can severely compromise the yield and quality of crops. In the context of carbon peak and carbon neutrality, the optimal use of water and fertilizer is essential to both enhance the output and quality of crops and to promote soil health and environmental sustainability.

This Special Issue focuses on the synergy between water and fertilizer management, precision irrigation, and the technological and theoretical aspects of crop water and nutrient regulation. It also delves into improving crop varieties, water conservation agriculture, the strategic optimization of crop planting structures, and the enhancement of ecological environments of farmland. Additionally, it explores the application of cutting-edge technologies such as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), satellite remote sensing, artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things (IoT), and big data analytics to monitor and manage water and fertilizer practices.

Prof. Dr. Dongmei Qiao
Dr. Qingfeng Miao
Dr. Hao Liu
Guest Editors

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Keywords

water and fertilizer
agronomy
physiology
yield
quality
drought
salinity
artificial intelligence
remote sensing

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

25 pages, 5932 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Synergistic Effects of Mineralization Degree and Sodium Adsorption Ratio on the Rhizosphere Bacterial Community and Soil Nutrients of Upland Cotton Under Saline Water Irrigation

by Chenfan Zhang, Guang Yang, Huifeng Ning, Yucai Xie, Yinping Song and Jinglei Wang

Agronomy 2025, 15(4), 895; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy15040895 - 3 Apr 2025

Viewed by 433

Abstract

In global drought-prone cotton-growing (Gossypium hirsutum L.) areas, saline water irrigation has become a key strategy to alleviate the shortage of freshwater resources. Against this backdrop, the synergistic effect of mineralization degree (MD) and sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) on the rhizosphere microecological regulation mechanism remains unclear. To address this issue, this study constructed an experimental framework of the interaction between MD and SAR, aiming to explore their effects on the bacterial community structure in the rhizosphere of cotton and the soil environment. The soil type in the study area is saline–sodic sandy loam. In the experimental design, three MD levels (3 g/L, 5 g/L, 7 g/L) were set, and under each mineralization condition, three SAR levels (10 (mmol/L)^1/2, 15 (mmol/L)^1/2, 20 (mmol/L)^1/2) were arranged. In addition, local freshwater irrigation was used as the control group (CG), resulting in a total of 10 treatment schemes. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of varying levels of irrigation water MD and SAR on the structure of bacterial communities in cotton rhizosphere soil and the soil environment. The results indicated that saline water irrigation could enhance the diversity and richness of the bacterial community in the rhizosphere soil of cotton and alter its community structure. Under treatment with the MD of 3 g/L and the SAR of 10 (mmol/L)^1/2, the diversity and richness of the bacterial community in the cotton rhizosphere reached their peak levels. Compared with the CG, the Chao1 index significantly increased by 260 units, while the Shannon index increased by 0.464. When the MD does not exceed 5 g/L, reducing SAR can enhance the diversity and network stability of the rhizosphere bacterial community, thereby synergistically promoting the accumulation of soil nutrients. The key soil environmental factors driving changes in the rhizosphere bacterial community structure mainly include soil moisture content, total nitrogen, nitrate nitrogen, and total organic carbon. The concentrations of total nitrogen, nitrate nitrogen, available phosphorus, and available potassium significantly increased by 19.66%, 26.10%, 89.41%, and 49.76% respectively (p < 0.05). This study provides a theoretical basis for sustainable irrigation and microbial regulation strategies in saline–alkali cotton fields at the theoretical level, and offers a new perspective for revealing the mutual feedback mechanism between bacterial community assembly and soil environment under saline conditions. From a practical perspective, this research offers valuable hands-on experience for optimizing agricultural ecological management in saline–alkali sandy loam soils, thereby contributing to the sustainable development of agriculture on such lands. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Water and Fertilizer Regulation Theory and Technology in Crops)

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17 pages, 1786 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Efficiency of 3,4-Dimethylpyrazole Phosphate in Mitigating N₂O Emission Varied with Irrigation Regime in Drip-Irrigated Wheat Field

by Yueping Liang, Yingying Zhang, Tianyu Liu, Zhuanyun Si and Yang Gao

Agronomy 2024, 14(12), 3052; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy14123052 - 20 Dec 2024

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 775

Abstract

Agricultural soils are major anthropogenic sources of N₂O emissions. The application of nitrification inhibitor 3,4-dimethylpyrazole phosphate (DMPP) has been proved to be an effective management measure to mitigate N₂O emissions. However, the influence mechanism of DMPP on the mitigation of soil N₂O emissions under different irrigation regimes remains unclear. Therefore, a lysimeter experiment was conducted to study the effects of irrigation level (lower irrigation limits of 75%, 65%, and 55% of field capacity (FC), signed as WH, WM, and WL) and DMPP addition (0% and 1% of N application, signed as D0 and D1) on N₂O emissions, soil environmental factors such as ammonium nitrogen (NH₄⁺-N), nitrate nitrogen (NO₃⁻-N), water-filled pore space (WFPS), soil temperature, and the abundances of N₂O-related genes (AOA amoA, AOB amoA, nirS, and nirK). The results showed that soil N₂O emissions increased with the increasing of irrigation level. The efficiency of DMPP mitigating N₂O emissions varies depending on irrigation regime. Compared to D0, D1 strongly decreased cumulative N₂O emissions by 11.27%, 18.96%, and 15.05% in the WL, WM, and WH conditions, respectively. Meanwhile, D1 caused an obvious reduction in the AOB amoA gene by 29.73%, 47.02%, and 22.41%, respectively, but there was no significant effect on the AOA amoA gene. D1 was effective in decreasing nirS and nirK genes except in the WL condition; the percentages of reduction were 48.45%, 40.84% and 37.18%, 44.97% in the WM and WH conditions, respectively. In addition, D1 caused an increase in NH₄⁺-N content and a decrease in NO₃⁻-N content, WFPS, and soil temperature in all irrigation regimes. A higher significant correlation was observed between N₂O emissions and NH₄⁺-N and AOB amoA in the WL and WM conditions, while a significant correlation was observed between N₂O emissions and NO₃⁻-N, nirK, and nirS in the WH condition. It was revealed that with the increase in irrigation level, the main source of N₂O emissions might change from nitrification to denitrification. Overall, our study indicated that in the WL and WM conditions, the mitigation of N₂O emissions by DMPP was primarily attributable to the inhibition of the AOB amoA gene, whereas the inhibition of nirS and nirK genes was likely the dominant mechanism in the WH condition. The findings of this study will provide a theoretical basis for the application of a nitrification inhibitor for drip-irrigated winter wheat fields in the North China Plain. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Water and Fertilizer Regulation Theory and Technology in Crops)

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21 pages, 5279 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effects of Combined Application of Organic and Inorganic Fertilizers on Physical and Chemical Properties in Saline–Alkali Soil

by Dandan Yu, Qingfeng Miao, Haibin Shi, Zhuangzhuang Feng and Weiying Feng

Agronomy 2024, 14(10), 2236; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy14102236 - 27 Sep 2024

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2585

Abstract

To mitigate the issues of severe farmland soil salinization, the environmental degradation stemming from the overuse of chemical fertilizers, and suboptimal soil composition, a study was conducted to investigate the influence of different types and ratios of organic fertilizers on the physical and chemical attributes of saline–alkali soil. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between different types and proportions of organic fertilizers, soil moisture, organic fertilizer application rates, organic carbon molecular structure, and the soil environment in saline–alkali soils. Reducing the application of chemical fertilizers and substituting them with organic fertilizers can improve the soil quality of saline–alkali lands. The results indicated that replacing a part of the urea with organic fertilizer in saline–alkali farmland reduced the soil salinity by 11.1 to 22.8% in the 0–60 cm soil layer, decreased the soil pH by 0.11 to 1.52%, and increased the soil redox potential (Eh) values by 2.5 to 4.3% in the 0–20 cm layer of the mild and moderate saline–alkali soils. It also decreased the accumulation of the soil organic matter (OM) during the growing season. Compared to commercial organic fertilizers, natural organic fertilizers increased the accumulation of the soil soluble carbon (DOC) and nitrogen (DON), resulting in less soil salinity accumulation. When commercial organic fertilizer was applied in a 1:1 ratio with inorganic fertilizer, the salt accumulation was minimized. Compared to conventional fertilization, organic fertilizer reduced the accumulation of the NH₄⁺-N (ammonium nitrogen) and NO₃⁻-N (nitrate nitrogen) in the soil by 3.1 to 22.6%. In comparison to conventional chemical fertilizers, the application of organic fertilizer in the mild and moderate saline–alkali soils increased the accumulation of the DOC, DON, microbial biomass carbon (MBC), microbial biomass nitrogen (MBN), and microbial quotient during the grain-filling stage. Specifically, it increased the DOC, DON, and DOC/DON by 12.7 to 26.7%, 12 to 59.3%, and 15.2 to 35.5%, respectively. The application of commercial organic fertilizer in the mild saline–alkali soils increased the MBC, MBN, MBC/SOC, and MBN/TN by 37.1, 65.6, 36.7, and 4.7%, respectively. Through analyzing the relative proportions of soil surface organic carbon functional groups during the grain filling period, we observed that, after the application of organic fertilizer, the OM in the mildly salinized soils primarily originated from terrestrial plant litter, whereas, in moderately salinized soils, the OM was mainly derived from microbial sources. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Water and Fertilizer Regulation Theory and Technology in Crops)

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18 pages, 5043 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effect of Nitrogen Management Practices on Photosynthetic Characteristics and Grain Yield of Wheat in High-Fertility Soil

by Zhentao Ma, Zhen Zhang, Xizhi Wang, Zhenwen Yu and Yu Shi

Agronomy 2024, 14(10), 2197; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy14102197 - 24 Sep 2024

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 941

Abstract

The uneven soil fertility made it difficult to implement the recommended nitrogen (N) management practices in the North China Plain (NCP). In order to clarify the effect of N managements in high-fertility soil with a perennial wheat yield of 10,500 kg ha⁻¹ on photosynthetic characteristics, grain yield, N agronomic efficiency (NAE), and water use efficiency (WUE), a trial was conducted from 2022 to 2024. Main plots were N rates of 0 (N1), 150 (N2), 210 (N3), and 270 (N4) kg N ha⁻¹; The sub-plots adopted fertigation (F) and traditional fertilization method (T). The results showed that, compared with T, F increased the intercept rate of photosynthetic effective radiation of canopy, net photosynthetic rate, stomatal conductance, and transpiration rate of flag leaves, as well as the activity of phosphate sucrose synthase and sucrose content. It enhanced dry matter transport and contribution to grain. Under N2, the time required to reach the maximum grain filling rate, duration of grain filling and active grain-filling period of F were improved. Grain yield of N2 was increased by 27.81% and 6.75% compared to N1 and N3, respectively. NAE was improved by 48.63% and 51.47%, and WUE was improved by 20.71% and 9.85%. Therefore, the best effect was achieved by using fertigation and the N rate of 210 kg ha⁻¹ in high-fertility soil. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Water and Fertilizer Regulation Theory and Technology in Crops)

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37 pages, 12671 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effect of Water and Nitrogen Coupling Regulation on the Growth, Physiology, Yield, and Quality Attributes of Isatis tinctoria L. in the Oasis Irrigation Area of the Hexi Corridor

by Yucai Wang, Xiaofan Pan, Haoliang Deng, Mao Li, Jin Zhao and Jine Yang

Agronomy 2024, 14(10), 2187; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy14102187 - 24 Sep 2024

Viewed by 922

Abstract

To address the prevailing problems of high water and fertilizer input and low productivity in Isatis tinctoria L. production in the Hexi Corridor in China, the effects of different irrigation amounts and nitrogen application rates on growth characteristics, photosynthetic physiology, root yield, and quality of I. tinctoria plants were studied with the aim of obtaining the optimal irrigation level and nitrogen application rate. From 2021 to 2023, we established a two-factor split-plot experiment in the oasis irrigation area with three irrigation amounts (sufficient water, medium water, and low water are 100%, 85%, and 70% of the typical local irrigation quota) for the main zone; three nitrogen application rates (low nitrogen, 150 kg ha⁻¹, medium nitrogen, 200 kg ha⁻¹, and high nitrogen, 250 kg ha⁻¹) for the secondary zone; and three irrigation amounts without nitrogen as the control to explore the response of these different water and nitrogen management patterns for I. tinctoria in terms of growth characteristics, photosynthetic physiology, root yield, and quality. The results showed the following: (1) When the irrigation amount was increased from 75% to 100% of the local typical irrigation quota and the nitrogen application rate was increased from 150 to 250 kg ha⁻¹, while the plant’s height, leaf area index, dry matter accumulation in the stem, leaf, and root, as well as the net photosynthetic rate (Pn), the stomatal conductance (Gs), and the transpiration rate (Tr) of I. tinctoria increased gradually, and the root–shoot ratio decreased. (2) When the irrigation amount increased from 75% to 100% of the local typical irrigation quota, the yield and net proceeds of I. tinctoria increased from 43.12% to 53.43% and 55.07% to 71.61%, respectively. However, when the irrigation quota was 100% of the local typical irrigation quota, and the nitrogen application rate increased from 150 to 200 kg ha⁻¹, the yield of I. tinctoria increased from 21.58% to 23.69%, whereas the increase in nitrogen application rate from 200 to 250 kg ha⁻¹ resulted in a decrease in the yield of I. tinctoria from 10.66% to 18.92%. During the 3-year experiment, the maximum yield of I. tinctoria appeared when treated with sufficient water and medium nitrogen, reaching 9054.68, 8066.79, and 8806.15 kg ha⁻¹, respectively. (3) The effect of different water and nitrogen combination treatments on the root quality of I. tinctoria was significant. Under the same irrigation level, increasing the nitrogen application rate from 150 to 250 kg ha⁻¹ could increase the contents of indigo, indirubin, (R,S)–goitrin, total nucleoside, uridine, and adenosine in the root of I. tinctoria from 3.94% to 9.59%, 1.74% to 12.58%, 5.45% to 18.35%, 5.61% to 11.59%, 7.34% to 11.32%, and 14.98% to 54.40%, respectively, while the root quality of I. tinctoria showed a trend of first increasing and then decreasing under the same nitrogen application level. (4) AHP, the entropy weight method, and the TOPSIS method were used for a comprehensive evaluation of multiple indexes of water–nitrogen coupling planting patterns for I. tinctoria, which resulted in the optimal evaluation of the W3N2 combination. Therefore, the irrigation level was 100% of the local typical irrigation quota, the nitrogen application rate should be appropriately reduced, and controlling the nitrogen application rate at the level of 190.30–218.27 kg ha⁻¹ can improve water–nitrogen productivity yields for I. tinctoria and root quality. The results of this study can provide a theoretical basis and technical support for a more reasonable water and fertilizer management model for the I. tinctoria production industry in the Hexi Corridor in China. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Water and Fertilizer Regulation Theory and Technology in Crops)

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