Search Results (4)

Sugarcane yield in China is low because of the shallow A-horizon soil layer, or as it is commonly called by farmers, the “plow soil layer”, as well as low soil organic matter and fertilizer utilization efficiency. Fenlong-ridging deep tillage (FT), also called vertical rotary tillage, and amendment with biochar have been shown to improve soil quality and crop yield. In this study, field trials were conducted with newly planted and ratoon sugarcane to evaluate the effectiveness of FT, together with amendment with biochar and nitrogen fertilization, to improve sugarcane yield. The treatments were conventional tillage with chemical fertilizer without biochar (CT-CF, which was the control of this experiment), FT with chemical fertilizer without biochar (FT-CF), conventional tillage with chemical fertilizer mixed with biochar (CT-CFB), and FT with chemical fertilizer mixed with biochar (FT-CFB). FT-CFB treatment presented higher soil porosity, as well as higher contents of available N, P, K, total N, and organic matter, and lower soil bulk density. Similarly, results showed that FT-CFB presented higher sugarcane root fresh and dry weights, higher germination percentage, higher tiller number, and higher yield with statistically significant differences among treatments for both newly planted and ratoon sugarcane plants. Significant interactions between biochar and FT were observed for these crop traits. The interactions of FT and amendment with biochar improved the soil’s physical and chemical properties and increased the available nutrients, resulting in improved root growth and sugarcane yield. The statistical results of the present study imply that Fenlong-ridging deep tillage combined with chemical fertilizer mixed with biochar (FT-CFB) application is a new promising farm management practice for improving the soil’s physical and chemical properties and root growth, increasing total yield in China’s sugarcane belt area. Full article

Fenlong-ridging (FL) is a new type of conservation tillage. In many crops, FL increases crop yield and quality; however, the cytology and molecular mechanisms of crops under FL is not completely understood. This study investigated soil physical and chemical properties under FL and conventional tillage (CK) during 2018–2019 (plant cane) and 2019–2022 (first stubble), and analyzed the agronomic trait, physiology, leaf anatomical structure, and gene expression related to photosynthesis between FL and CK of sugarcane (Guitang 42). Soil bulk density significantly increased, and soil porosity, water storage, and content of available nitrogen and phosphorus under FL were significantly higher than those under CK. Plant height, stem diameter, single stem weight, effective stem number and yield significantly increased under FL compared to under CK. Sugar content significantly increased in plant cane under FL. Chlorophyll content and the photosynthetic rate increased, with significantly higher activity of photosynthetic enzymes including NADP-malate dehydrogenase (NADP-MDH), phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase (PEPC), and ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase (RuBPC) under FL compared to CK. Fenlong-ridging cytology results showed that the mesophyll cells were large and arranged well, the Kranz anatomy was noticeable, and there were a high number of large chloroplasts in mesophyll cell and in the vascular bundle sheath. Furthermore, the bundle sheath in FL was larger than that in CK. Transcriptomics results showed that 19,357 differentially genes (DEGs) were up-regulated and 28,349 DEGs were down-regulated in sugarcane leaves under FL vs. CK. The Gene Ontology and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes enrichment analysis revealed that abundant DEGs were enriched in photosynthesis, photosynthesis-antenna protein, carotenoid biosynthesis, and other pathways associated with photosynthesis. Most expression was up-regulated, thus, facilitating photosynthesis regulation. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction analysis revealed the up-regulation of genes related to photosynthesis (PsaH and PsbS) under FL. Overall, this study provides insights into the role of FL in increased sugarcane yield by integrating physiology, cytology, and proteomics analysis. These findings could be used to further improve its application and promotion. Full article

Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) is mainly cultivated in marginal land in the south of China where seasonal drought stress occurs frequently and the soil becomes more compact year by year. The study aimed to explore the effect of Fenlong tillage (FLT) combined with nitrogen applications on cassava rhizosphere soil particle composition and fungal community diversity. Conventional tillage (CT) was set as the control. The results indicated that the contents of clay and silt of the cassava rhizosphere soil were influenced by the tillage method, nitrogen (N), and their interaction. There was no difference in the richness and diversity of rhizosphere soil fungal communities among all treatments in 2019, while the richness of FLT was lower than that of CT in 2020. FLT caused a stronger influence on the community structure of rhizosphere fungi than N applications in the first year. The differences in the community structure of all treatments were reduced by continuous cropping of cassava in the second year. The top 10 dominant rhizosphere fungi at the class level of cassava found in 2019 and 2020 were Sordariomycetes, Dothideomycetes, Eurotiomycetes, Agaricomycetes, Intramacronucleata, norank_p__Mucoromycota, unclassified_p__Ascomycota, unclassified_k__Fungi, Pezizomycetes, and Glomeromycetes, which had an important relationship with soil pH, activity of urease, available nitrogen, available phosphorus, organic matter, and clay. These results indicated that FLT created a better soil environment for cassava growth than CT, thus promoting the formation of more stable rhizosphere fungal community structures. Full article

Fenlong-ridging (FL) is a recently proposed conservation tillage technology which has dramatic differences to traditional ones. Previous studies have demonstrated in many crops that FL has yield-increasing effects without additional inputs. However, little is known about the role that microbes play in mediating the growth-promoting effects of FL, which restricts its further application and improvement. Here, we characterized variation in the soil and root microbial diversity of sugarcane (GT44) under FL and traditional turn-over plough tillage (CK) by conducting 16S rRNA and ITS metabarcoding surveys. We also measured several phenotypic traits to determine sugarcane yields and analyzed the chemical properties of soil. We found that: (i) plant height (PH) and total biomass weight (TW) of sugarcane plants were 9.1% and 21.7% greater under FL than those under CK, indicating\increased biomass yield of the sugarcane in FL operation; (ii) contents of organic matter, total nitrogen, available phosphorus, and available potassium were lower in soil under FL than those under CK, which indicates the utilization of soil nutrients was greater in FL soil; (iii) FL promoted the activity of endophytic microbes in the roots, and these diverse microbial taxa might have an effect on sugarcane yield and soil chemical properties; and (iv) Sphingomonas, Rhizobium, and Paraburkholderia and Talaromyces, Didymella, and Fusarium were the top three most abundant genera of bacteria and fungi, respectively, in soil and root samples. In addition, strains from Rhizobium and Talaromyces were isolated to verify the results of the metabarcoding survey. Overall, our study provides new insights into the role of microbes in mediating the growth-promoting effects of FL. These findings could be used to further improve applications of this novel conservation tillage technology. Full article