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Agriculture
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Agronomic Management of Crops in Arid and Semi-arid Environments
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Agronomic Management of Crops in Arid and Semi-arid Environments

A special issue of Agriculture (ISSN 2077-0472). This special issue belongs to the section "Crop Production".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (10 July 2023) | Viewed by 10635

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Peng Zhang

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Guest Editor
1. College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China
2. Institute of Water Saving Agriculture in Arid Areas of China, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China
Interests: soil fertility; soil and water conservation; crop yield; dryland farming; biochar/straw returning; film mulching; crop production; CO2; CH4; N2O; global warming; nitrogen cycling; nitrate leaching; carbon cycling; soil carbon sequestration; agriculture management practices
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Wenyi Dong

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Guest Editor
Institute of Environment and Sustainable Development in Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China
Interests: dry-land agriculture; soil nutrient cycling; soil-plant interaction; soil microbial ecology; carbon and water footprint
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The global arid and semi-arid area accounts for about 36% of the total land area, hosting more than 80 countries and 40% of the global population. Abundant soil and photothermal resources are found in arid and semi-arid areas, which are the main food production regions. However, the agricultural production in these areas is limited by drought, infertility, soil erosion, etc. Traditional agronomic management approaches (including excessive application of chemical fertilizers, shallow ploughing and monoculture) have greatly affected the agroecosystems in arid and semi-arid areas through soil degradation, soil nutrient loss, water pollution, etc. The imbalance between agricultural production and the environment seriously hinders the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals related to agriculture in arid and semi-arid regions. Recently, many agronomic management approaches have been proposed to promote crop production and improve farmland environments in arid and semi-arid regions, i.e., film mulching, organic matter application, fertilizer reduction, straw return, intercropping, water-efficient irrigation and conservation tillage. Thus, we need to reveal the mechanisms of these management approaches on crop production and the environment, and to explore the synergistic effect on production and ecological functioning in arid and semi-arid areas. For this reason, we welcome high-quality interdisciplinary studies on the agronomic management of crops to address the contradiction between production and the environment in arid and semi-arid areas.

Dr. Peng Zhang
Dr. Wenyi Dong
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Agriculture is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • arid and semi-arid area
  • agronomic management
  • crop production
  • dryland
  • environment
  • soil quality

Published Papers (7 papers)

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Research

10 pages, 444 KiB  
Article
Effects of Nitrogen Fertilization and Plant Density on Proso Millet (Panicum miliaceum L.) Growth and Yield under Mediterranean Pedoclimatic Conditions
by Enrico Palchetti, Michele Moretta, Alessandro Calamai, Marco Mancini, Matteo Dell’Acqua, Lorenzo Brilli, Paolo Armanasco and Alberto Masoni
Agriculture 2023, 13(9), 1657; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture13091657 - 22 Aug 2023
Viewed by 970
Abstract
In recent years, the dry-land cereal proso millet has become an interesting crop for cultivation in the Mediterranean environment due to the consequences of climate change. It can be considered a resilient crop because it is particularly successful in extreme drought and high-temperature [...] Read more.
In recent years, the dry-land cereal proso millet has become an interesting crop for cultivation in the Mediterranean environment due to the consequences of climate change. It can be considered a resilient crop because it is particularly successful in extreme drought and high-temperature conditions. The goals of this research study were to compare different plant densities (D) and nitrogen fertilization rates (N) in millet (Panicum miliaceum), evaluating morphological, productive, and phenological traits. A 2-year field experiment was carried out in Italy, and millet (var. Sunrise) was subjected to four nitrogen fertilization rates (0, 50, 100, and 150 kg N ha−1) in interaction with three plant densities (55, 111, and 222 plants m2). Significant differences were found in all the investigated plant traits. The highest grain yield data (i.e., 3.211 kg ha−1 and 3.263 kg ha−1) and total biomass (i.e., 11.464 kg ha−1 and 11.760 kg ha−1) were obtained with the N rate of 150 kg ha−1 and density of 222 plants m2. Regarding protein content, the highest values were observed using N50, N100, and N150 (ranging from 10.03% to 10.14%) and with D55 (10.43%). Phenological parameters were affected by both plant density and nitrogen amount and decreased when higher levels of these two factors were employed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Agronomic Management of Crops in Arid and Semi-arid Environments)
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12 pages, 1062 KiB  
Article
Growth, Physiology, and Productivity of Bouteloua gracilis and Cenchrus ciliaris Using Moisture Retainers under Different Planting Methods
by Luis Gerardo Yáñez-Chávez, Aurelio Pedroza-Sandoval, Ignacio Sánchez-Cohen, Miguel Agustin Velásquez-Valle and Ricardo Trejo-Calzada
Agriculture 2023, 13(6), 1134; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture13061134 - 28 May 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1168
Abstract
The extensive raising of livestock on grasslands is a relevant economic activity in northern Mexico. These are regions of high climatic uncertainty and have extreme weather events, which requires the exploration of technological innovation to mitigate the negative impacts on these agroecosystems. The [...] Read more.
The extensive raising of livestock on grasslands is a relevant economic activity in northern Mexico. These are regions of high climatic uncertainty and have extreme weather events, which requires the exploration of technological innovation to mitigate the negative impacts on these agroecosystems. The aim of this study was to evaluate two grass species using two planting methods and two types of soil moisture retainers and to determine their response based on growth and some physiological and productive attributes. A randomized complete block design (RCBD) was used in a split–split plot arrangement with six replications. The main plots were planted with two grass species: Bouteloua gracilis and Cenchrus ciliaris; the subplots were differentiated by two grass planting methods: seeding and seedling transplanting; the sub-subplots were differentiated by the soil moisture retainers used: (1) application on the soil of 10 t ha−1 of corn harvest residue (CHR) as organic cover on the soil surface, (2) application of hydrogel at 20 kg ha−1 mixed in the soil rhizosphere because it must be in contact with the root and soil due to its chemical composition, and (3) control, no application of any type of input. The seedling transplant method with the application of CHR significantly increased (p < 0.05) the plant survival percentage, on average by 31.5% in both grasses, in relation to the direct method seeding and the control. C. ciliaris showed a higher photosynthetic rate and, therefore, higher forage productivity than B. gracilis. The hydrogel only showed a moisture retention effect in the soil during the first 20 days after the transplant or sowing of the grass seed; after this period, there was no longer any effect as a water retainer in the soil. The soil cover with CHR was confirmed as a good moisture retainer with greater productivity of rangeland forage in degraded soils in arid areas. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Agronomic Management of Crops in Arid and Semi-arid Environments)
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11 pages, 2467 KiB  
Article
Self-Regulation of Soil Enzyme Activity and Stoichiometry under Nitrogen Addition and Plastic Film Mulching in the Loess Plateau Area, Northwest China
by Meixia Liu, Menglu Wang, Congwei Sun, Hui Wu, Xueqing Zhao, Enke Liu, Wenyi Dong and Meiling Yan
Agriculture 2023, 13(5), 938; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture13050938 - 25 Apr 2023
Viewed by 1239
Abstract
Soil extracellular enzyme activity (EA) and its eco-enzyme stoichiometric ratio (ES) are extremely sensitive to environmental change. This study aimed to clarify the change law of EA and ES in soil with different nitrogen addition levels under plastic film mulching, and to optimize [...] Read more.
Soil extracellular enzyme activity (EA) and its eco-enzyme stoichiometric ratio (ES) are extremely sensitive to environmental change. This study aimed to clarify the change law of EA and ES in soil with different nitrogen addition levels under plastic film mulching, and to optimize the application amount of nitrogen fertilizer that was used. Based on the location experiment of plastic film mulching fertilization that has been ongoing since 2015, soil samples were collected from different depths (0–10 cm, 10–20 cm and 20–30 cm) during the harvest period of spring maize in October 2021. Four soil extracellular enzyme activities (β-1,4 glucosidase (βG), β-1, 4-N-acetylglucosidase (NAG), leucine aminopeptidase (LAP) and alkaline phosphatase (AP)) involved in soil carbon (C), nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) cycling at different nitrogen application levels (0, 90, 150, 225 and 300 kg·hm−2) were studied under two planting patterns of no plastic film mulching (LD) and plastic film mulching (PM). The latest discovery of this study is that the activities of soil EA involved in the cycling of soil carbon C, N and P are similar in different soil depths (0–10 cm, 10–20 cm and 20–30 cm). Both EC:P and EC:P in the soil in this area are less than 1:1, indicating that the soil is limited by N and P. Comprehensive analysis showed that a nitrogen application level of 225 kg·hm−2 was beneficial to the balance of soil nutrients and the improvement of soil EA at harvest. At the same time, PM can effectively improve the soil EA and is more conducive to the balance of soil nutrients. Redundancy analysis (RDA) showed that EA and ES were strongly correlated with pH, soil organic carbon (SOC), total nitrogen (TN) and total phosphorus (TP). Most importantly, this study revealed that the activity of extracellular enzymes in arid and semi-arid areas was constantly self-regulated with the addition of nitrogen, which provided theoretical and technical support for the efficient use of nitrogen under the condition of plastic film mulching. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Agronomic Management of Crops in Arid and Semi-arid Environments)
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14 pages, 3781 KiB  
Article
Regulation of Density and Fertilization on Crude Protein Synthesis in Forage Maize in a Semiarid Rain-Fed Area
by Hongli Wang, Xucheng Zhang, Guoping Zhang, Yanjie Fang, Huizhi Hou, Kangning Lei and Yifan Ma
Agriculture 2023, 13(3), 715; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture13030715 - 20 Mar 2023
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1245
Abstract
Density and fertilization mode are the key factors regulating crude protein synthesis in forage maize; however, there is a lack of systematic understanding of the regulation mechanism. Here, the nitrogen/potassium ratio (N/K), free amino acid (AA) content, crude protein synthesis key enzyme activities [...] Read more.
Density and fertilization mode are the key factors regulating crude protein synthesis in forage maize; however, there is a lack of systematic understanding of the regulation mechanism. Here, the nitrogen/potassium ratio (N/K), free amino acid (AA) content, crude protein synthesis key enzyme activities (nitrate reductase (NR), glutamine synthetase (GS) and glutamic pyruvic transaminase (GPT)) and crude protein content and yield in leaves, stems, and grain of forage maize, as well as the relationships among them, were explored. The results showed that the N/K of DL-40 (60,000 plants per ha−1, 40% N topdressing at large trumpet stage) and DH-50 (75,000 plants per ha−1, 50% N topdressing at large trumpet stage) significantly increased in leaves, stems, and grain, and correspondingly, NR, GS, and GPT activities in leaves, NR activities in stems, NR and GPT activities in grain, and delayed the decline in AA content. After tasseling, for DL-40 and DH-50 the crude protein content increased by 74.1% and 39.8% in leaves, respectively, 19.9% and 25.6% in grain, respectively, and crude protein yield increased by 16.7% and 35.2% in leaves, respectively, and 23.5% and 25.9% in grain, respectively. There were significant quadratic parabolic relationships of NR, GS, and GPT activities with proportion of topdressing. There was a significant relationship of crude protein content with NR activity in leaves, with NR, GS, and GPT activities in stems and with GPT activity in grain. Regulating the key enzyme activity by adjusting the density and fertilization can significantly improve the crude protein yield of forage maize. Treatments DL-40 and DH-50 significantly increased crude protein content and yield by increasing plant N/K, NR activity in leaves, NR activity in stems, and GPT activity in grain, but slowed the decrease in AA content in leaves, stems, and grain. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Agronomic Management of Crops in Arid and Semi-arid Environments)
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9 pages, 1060 KiB  
Article
Different Response of Soil Microbial Carbon Use Efficiency in Compound of Feldspathic Sandstone and Sand
by Yao Zhang, Junqi Wang, Lan Chen, Sha Zhou, Lu Zhang and Fazhu Zhao
Agriculture 2023, 13(1), 58; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture13010058 - 24 Dec 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1823
Abstract
The stoichiometry of efficient soil microbial carbon use is a sensitive index for measuring changes in soil quality and plays a crucial role in research on ecological stoichiometry in the soil nutrient cycle. To further understand the effect of feldspathic sandstone and sand [...] Read more.
The stoichiometry of efficient soil microbial carbon use is a sensitive index for measuring changes in soil quality and plays a crucial role in research on ecological stoichiometry in the soil nutrient cycle. To further understand the effect of feldspathic sandstone and sand compound ratios on microbial carbon use efficiency (CUE), we simulated the field conditions of the feldspathic sandstone-sand compound layer in the Mu Us sandy land and analyzed the soil C:N:P ratio, microbial biomass, extracellular enzyme activity, and microbial carbon use efficiency in soils with different compound ratios. The results demonstrated that an increase in the feldspathic sandstone content had insignificant effects on the soil C:N:P ratio. The maximum values for microbial biomass nitrogen (MBN) and microbial biomass phosphorus (MBP) were observed at compound ratios of 1:5 and 1:2, respectively. Calculations of microbial carbon use efficiency and vector analysis revealed that the microbial carbon use efficiency increased as the feldspathic sandstone content increased, P limitation existed in all compound soils, and soil with a 1:1 compound ratio may be substantially less limited. In conclusion, our research indicated that adding feldspathic sandstone to sand improved soil quality, and the compound ratio affected soil microorganisms; nevertheless, it did not significantly change soil nutrient restriction. Our study provides a theoretical basis for the development and utilization of desert land resources. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Agronomic Management of Crops in Arid and Semi-arid Environments)
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12 pages, 2247 KiB  
Article
Fall Straw Incorporation with Plastic Film Cover Increases Corn Yield and Water Use Efficiency under a Semi-Arid Climate
by Zhe Zhang, Na Li, Zhanxiang Sun, Guanghua Yin, Yanqing Zhang, Wei Bai, Liangshan Feng and John Yang
Agriculture 2022, 12(12), 2151; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture12122151 - 14 Dec 2022
Viewed by 1377
Abstract
Corn straw incorporation in soil has been regarded as an environment-friendly approach for straw utilization. However, straw incorporation has been a challenge under a cold and dry climate due to slow decomposition. This field study was to use a novel approach to incorporate [...] Read more.
Corn straw incorporation in soil has been regarded as an environment-friendly approach for straw utilization. However, straw incorporation has been a challenge under a cold and dry climate due to slow decomposition. This field study was to use a novel approach to incorporate corn straw into the soil during the fall season with a plastic film cover in an effort to enhance the straw degradation, soil water use efficiency, and corn growth and yield. Two-year field experiments were conducted in northeast China to investigate the effects of four treatments on soil properties and corn growth: (1) straw incorporation with film cover, (2) straw incorporation only, (3) film cover only, and (4) control. Soils and corn plants were collected during the growing season and analyzed for soil temperature and moisture, straw degradation, corn biomass, grain yield, and water use efficiency. Results indicated that straw incorporation with film cover increased grain yield by 53% as compared to straw incorporation only and by 102% to control. The straw decomposition under film cover was 20% faster, significantly higher than that of the straw incorporation treatment. In all cases, soil water content before planting, corn water uptake, and corn water use efficiency under straw incorporation with film cover were significantly higher than straw incorporation and control. Surface film cover resulted in 10-day earlier corn tasseling in compared to treatments without film cover. This field study demonstrated that straw incorporation with film cover would enhance straw degradation in soil, improve soil properties, and increase corn yield and water use efficiency, which could be potentially used as a sustainable soil management practice in northeast China. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Agronomic Management of Crops in Arid and Semi-arid Environments)
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21 pages, 3820 KiB  
Article
N Addition Mitigates Water Stress via Different Photosynthesis and Water Traits for Three Native Plant Species in the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau
by Ningning Zhao, Xingrong Sun, Shuai Hou, Guohao Chen, He Zhang, Yuxin Han, Jie Zhou, Xiangtao Wang and Zhixin Zhang
Agriculture 2022, 12(11), 1873; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture12111873 - 08 Nov 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1272
Abstract
Reseeding with native plants to rebuild alpine meadow has become a popular way of ecological restoration. However, the harsh environment poses a great challenge to the establishment of native plants due to poor management of water and nutrients. How water–fertilizer interaction influences dominant [...] Read more.
Reseeding with native plants to rebuild alpine meadow has become a popular way of ecological restoration. However, the harsh environment poses a great challenge to the establishment of native plants due to poor management of water and nutrients. How water–fertilizer interaction influences dominant grass species is still unclear, and reasonable water and fertilizer conditions are still not determined. Our results showed that addition of nitrogen could mitigate the photosynthetic and water-use traits caused by water stress, i.e., a reduction in Pn and water use results from fewer and thinner leaves, weak stomatal traits, etc. Compared to the control, the peak Pn values of Poa crymophila, Festuca coelestis, and Stipa purpurea increased significantly (71.2%, 108.4%, and 25.4%, respectively). Under drought stress, Pn tended to decrease due to reduced stomatal conductance (Gs). However, appropriate fertilization buffered against Pn decreases by altering the stomatal size and regulating the Gs. Based on reduced water consumption, the water-use efficiency of P. crymophila and F. coelestis decreased whereas that of S. purpurea increased. WHFH for P. crymophila and F. coelestis and WHFL for S. purpurea growth were suitable for the alpine region. WHFH for P. crymophila and F. coelestis and WHFL for S. purpurea were suitable for their establishment in the alpine region. A reasonable water–fertilizer combination could effectively reduce the risk of establishment failure in ecological restoration. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Agronomic Management of Crops in Arid and Semi-arid Environments)
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