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A special issue of Plants (ISSN 2223-7747). This special issue belongs to the section "Crop Physiology and Crop Production".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 July 2023) | Viewed by 13997

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Dr. Xiaolong Wang

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Guest Editor

College of Agriculture, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
Interests: low-carbon farming system; integrated crop-livestock farming system

Dr. Jian-Ying Qi

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Guest Editor

College of Agriculture, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
Interests: conservation agriculture; agro-ecosystem; soil carbon sequestration
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Georgios Koubouris

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Olive Cultivation Lab, Institute of Olive Tree, Subtropical Crops and Viticulture, Hellenic Agricultural Organization ELGO-DIMITRA, (NAGREF), 73134 Chania, Greece
Interests: climate change; agricultural sustainability; circular economy; soil, water and biodiversity conservation; remote sensing; plant breeding; ecosystem services; olive growing
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Dr. Iker Aranjuelo

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Agrobiotechnology Institute (IdAB-CSIC)-Gobierno de Navarra, Campus de Arrosadia, E-31192 Mutilva, Baja, Spain
Interests: climate change; cereals; N2 fixers; resource use efficiency; photosynthesis; stable isotopes; sustainable agriculture; yield and quality traits
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The journal Plants will be publishing a Special Issue on Crop Cultivation and Low Carbon Agriculture. Agricultural production potentially contributes to increasing global warming due to substantial amounts of greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs), mainly including CO₂, CH₄, and N₂O. From fertilizer production to food storage and packaging, the global food system is responsible for about one-third of anthropogenic GHGs. Croplands are often intensively managed, thus offering many opportunities to improve practices that can reduce GHGs emissions by optimizing tillage practice, fertilizer application, irrigation, biochar application, and straw management. Mitigating carbon emissions in agriculture by improving crop cultivation technology has garnered massive interest at the environmental science and even industrial levels. Thus, considering the high interest in climate change mitigation and food security, this Special Issue aims to contribute to the sustainable agricultural intensification and will cover a wide variety of areas, mainly including the assessment of agricultural carbon emissions from the whole progress or a critical link in the production chain at field scale or regional scale. Also of interest are the strategies and management of crop cultivation that contribute to low carbon production and increased soil carbon sequestration.

Dr. Xiaolong Wang
Dr. Jian-Ying Qi
Dr. Georgios Koubouris
Dr. Iker Aranjuelo
Guest Editors

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Keywords

sustainable agriculture
carbon footprint
greenhouse gases emissions
soil carbon sequestration

Published Papers (9 papers)

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Research

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17 pages, 461 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Ratoon Rice Cropping Mitigates the Greenhouse Effect by Reducing CH₄ Emissions through Reduction of Biomass during the Ratoon Season

by Xiaojian Ren, Kehui Cui, Zhiming Deng, Kaiyan Han, Yuxuan Peng, Jiyong Zhou, Zhongbing Zhai, Jianliang Huang and Shaobing Peng

Plants 2023, 12(19), 3354; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants12193354 - 22 Sep 2023

Viewed by 746

Abstract

The ratoon rice cropping system (RR) is developing rapidly in China due to its comparable annual yield and lower agricultural and labor inputs than the double rice cropping system (DR). Here, to further compare the greenhouse effects of RR and DR, a two-year field experiment was carried out in Hubei Province, central China. The ratoon season showed significantly lower cumulative CH₄ emissions than the main season of RR, the early season and late season of DR. RR led to significantly lower annual cumulative CH₄ emissions, but no significant difference in cumulative annual N₂O emissions compared with DR. In RR, the main and ratoon seasons had significantly higher and lower grain yields than the early and late seasons of DR, respectively, resulting in comparable annual grain yields between the two systems. In addition, the ratoon season had significantly lower global warming potential (GWP) and greenhouse gas intensity-based grain yield (GHGI) than the main and late seasons. The annual GWP and GHGI of RR were significantly lower than those of DR. In general, the differences in annual CH₄ emissions, GWP, and GHGI could be primarily attributed to the differences between the ratoon season and the late season. Moreover, GWP and GHGI exhibited significant positive correlations with cumulative emissions of CH₄ rather than N₂O. The leaf area index (LAI) and biomass accumulation in the ratoon season were significantly lower than those in the main season and late season, and CH₄ emissions, GWP, and GHGI showed significant positive correlations with LAI, biomass accumulation and grain yield in the ratoon and late season. Finally, RR had significantly higher net ecosystem economic benefits (NEEB) than DR. Overall, this study indicates that RR is a green cropping system with lower annual CH₄ emissions, GWP, and GHGI as well as higher NEEB. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Crop Cultivation and Low Carbon Agriculture)

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16 pages, 3291 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Increasing Planting Density and Reducing N Application Improves Yield and Grain Filling at Two Sowing Dates in Double-Cropping Rice Systems

by Wentao Zhou, Lingling Yan, Zhiqiang Fu, Huijuan Guo, Wei Zhang, Wen Liu, Yumeng Ye and Pan Long

Plants 2023, 12(12), 2298; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants12122298 - 12 Jun 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1019

Abstract

Grain filling plays an important role in achieving high grain yield. Manipulating planting densities is recognized as a viable approach to compensate for the reduced yield caused by nitrogen reduction. Understanding the effects of nitrogen fertilization and planting density on superior and inferior grain filling is crucial to ensure grain security. Hence, double-cropping paddy field trials were conducted to investigate the effect of three nitrogen levels (N1, conventional nitrogen application; N2, 10% nitrogen reduction; N3, 20% nitrogen reduction) and three planting densities (D1, conventional planting density; D2, 20% density increase; D3, 40% density increase) on grain yield, yield formation, and grain-filling characteristics at two sowing dates (S1, a conventional sowing date, and S2, a date postponed by ten days) in 2019–2020. The results revealed that the annual yield of S1 was 8.5–14% higher than that of S2. Reducing nitrogen from N2 to N3 decreased the annual yield by 2.8–7.6%, but increasing planting densities from D1 to D3 significantly improved yield, by 6.2–19.4%. Furthermore, N2D3 had the highest yield, which was 8.7–23.8% higher than the plants that had received the other treatments. The rice yield increase was attributed to higher numbers of panicles per m² and spikelets per panicle on the primary branches, influenced by superior grain filling. Increasing planting density and reducing nitrogen application significantly affected grain-filling weight, with the 40% density increase significantly facilitating superior and inferior grain filling with the same nitrogen level. Increasing density can improve superior grains while reducing nitrogen will decrease superior grains. These results suggest that N2D3 is an optimal strategy to increase yield and grain filling for double-cropping rice grown under two sowing-date conditions. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Crop Cultivation and Low Carbon Agriculture)

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17 pages, 1014 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effects of Combined Use of Olive Mill Waste Compost and Sprinkler Irrigation on GHG Emissions and Net Ecosystem Carbon Budget under Different Tillage Systems

by Damián Fernández-Rodríguez, David Paulo Fangueiro, David Peña Abades, Ángel Albarrán, Jose Manuel Rato-Nunes, Carmén Martín-Franco, Jaime Terrón-Sánchez, Luis Andrés Vicente and Antonio López-Piñeiro

Plants 2022, 11(24), 3454; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11243454 - 09 Dec 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1373

Abstract

Traditional rice (Oryza sativa L.) production by flooding is a source of greenhouse gases (GHG), especially methane. The high consumption of water, as well as the chemical and physical degradation caused by these traditional practices in rice soils, is promoting a decrease in rice production in the Mediterranean area. The aim of this study was to monitor GHG emissions and the net ecosystem carbon balance (NECB) from rice produced with sprinkler irrigation techniques and also assess the impact of olive mill waste compost (C-OW) application and tillage on GHG emissions and the NECB. A field experiment for irrigated rice production was implemented by considering four different treatments: (1) tillage (T); (2) no tillage—direct seeding techniques (DS); (3) application of C-OW followed by tillage (TC); and (4) application of C-OW followed by direct seeding (DSC). The C-OW was only applied in the first year at a dose of 80 Mg ha⁻¹. GHG emissions were monitored over three years in these four treatments in order to estimate the direct (first year) and residual (third year) effects of such practices. The application of C-OW caused an increase of 1.85 times the emission of CO₂-C in the TC-DSC compared to the T-DS in the first year. It is noteworthy that the TC treatment was the only one that maintained an emission of CO₂-C that was 42% higher than T in the third year. Regardless of the treatments and year of the study, negative values for the cumulative CH₄ were found, suggesting that under sprinkler irrigation, CH₄ oxidation was the dominant process. A decrease in N₂O emissions was observed under direct seeding relative to the tillage treatments, although without significant differences. Tillage resulted in an increase in the global warming potential (GWP) of up to 31% with respect to direct seeding management in the third year, as a consequence of the greater carbon oxidation caused by intensive tillage. DS presented a positive NECB in the accumulation of C in the soil; therefore, it provided a greater ecological benefit to the environment. Thus, under Mediterranean conditions, rice production through a sprinkler irrigation system in combination with direct seeding techniques may be a sustainable alternative for rice crops, reducing their GWP and resulting in a lower carbon footprint. However, the use of C-OW as an organic amendment could increase the GHG emissions from rice fields irrigated by sprinklers, especially under tillage conditions. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Crop Cultivation and Low Carbon Agriculture)

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16 pages, 1430 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Co-Responses of Soil Organic Carbon Pool and Biogeochemistry to Different Long-Term Fertilization Practices in Paddy Fields

by Young-Nam Kim, Ji-Hyun Lee, Han-Ryul Seo, Jeong-Woo Kim, Young-Sang Cho, Danbi Lee, Bo-Hyun Kim, Jung-Hwan Yoon, Hyeonji Choe, Yong Bok Lee and Kye-Hoon Kim

Plants 2022, 11(23), 3195; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11233195 - 22 Nov 2022

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1468

Abstract

Long-term application of soil organic amendments (SOA) can improve the formation of soil organic carbon (SOC) pool as well as soil fertility and health of paddy lands. However, the effects of SOA may vary with the input amount and its characteristics. In this work, a descriptive field research was conducted during one cropping season to investigate the responses of various SOC fractions to different long-term fertilization practices in rice fields and their relationships with soil biogeochemical properties and the emission of greenhouse gases (GHG). The field sites included two conventional paddies applied with chemical fertilizer (CF) or CF + rice straw (RS) and six organic agriculture paddies applied with oilseed cake manure (OCM) + wheat straw (WS), cow manure (CM) + WS, or CM + RS. The two paddy soils treated with CM + RS had significantly higher concentrations of recalcitrant to labile C forms, such as loss-on-ignition C (LOIC; 56–73 g kg⁻¹), Walkley–Black C (WBC; 20–25 g kg⁻¹), permanganate oxidizable C (POXC; 835–853 mg kg⁻¹), and microbial biomass carbon (MBC; 133–141 mg kg⁻¹), than soils treated with other SOA. Likewise, long-term application of CM + RS seemed to be the best for regulating soil fertility parameters, such as ammonium (11–141 mg kg⁻¹); phosphate (61–106 mg kg⁻¹); and soluble Ca, K, and Mg (7–10, 0.5–1.2, and 1.9–3.8 mg kg⁻¹, respectively), although the results varied with the location and soil properties of rice fields. Additionally, the two paddy sites had the largest cumulative methane emission (754–762 kg ha⁻¹), seemingly attributed to increased microbial biomass and labile C fractions. The significant correlations of most SOC fractions with soil microbial biomass, trophic factors, and methane emissions were confirmed with multivariate data analysis. It was also possible to infer that long-term SOA application, especially with CM + RS, enhanced interaction in belowground paddy fields, contributing to soil fertility and rice production sustainability. Based on our findings, we suggest the need for analysis of various types of SOC fractions to efficiently manage soil fertility and quality of paddy fields, C sequestration, and GHG emissions. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Crop Cultivation and Low Carbon Agriculture)

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19 pages, 1900 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Early Bolting, Yield, and Quality of Angelica sinensis (Oliv.) Diels Responses to Intercropping Patterns

by Lucun Yang, Jingjing Li, Yuanming Xiao and Guoying Zhou

Plants 2022, 11(21), 2950; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11212950 - 01 Nov 2022

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1160

Abstract

Intercropping is a sustainable method for cultivating medicinal herbs since it requires lower dependence on chemical fertilizers than a sole cropping system. In this study, we compared the effects of sole cropping and intercropping on early bolting, yield, and the chemical composition of Angelica sinensis (Oliv.) Diels. Field experiments were conducted, in 2018 and in 2019, using different cropping systems including sole cropping of A. sinensis (AS), sole cropping of Vicia faba (VF), and intercropping (without fertilization) at three ratios: one row of A. sinensis + three rows of V. faba, AS/VF (1:3), two rows of A. sinensis + two rows V. faba, AS/VF (2:2), three rows of A. sinensis + one row V. faba, AS/VF (3:1). The effect of each cropping system was evaluated by measuring the dry biomass of V. faba and the dry biomass, ferulic acid content, and essential oil content and composition of A. sinensis. The early bolting rate of A. sinensis was significantly lower in the intercropping system as compared with that in a sole cropping system. The AS/VF (3:1) intercropping pattern resulted in an optimal yield and the highest ferulic acid content of A. sinensis, highest dry biomass of V. faba, and highest land equivalent ratio (LER). Additionally, the A. sinensis was more aggressive (the aggressivity value of A. sinensis was positive, and its competitive ratio was >1) under AS/VF (3:1) intercropping pattern, and it dominated over V. faba (which had negative aggressivity values and a competitive ratio of <1) under AS/VF (3:1) intercropping pattern. Ligustilide was the most dominant component of the essential oil of A. sinensis, regardless of the cropping system; however, the chemical component of essential oil was not influenced by intercropping patterns. Overall, the AS/VF (3:1) intercropping pattern without fertilization was the most productive, with the highest LER and ferulic acid content. These data indicate that intercropping can serve as an alternative for reducing the use of chemical fertilizers and intercropping also decreases the early bolting rate of A. sinensis, thus, enabling its sustainable production. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Crop Cultivation and Low Carbon Agriculture)

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12 pages, 1371 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Response of Canopy Photosynthesis, Grain Quality, and Harvest Index of Wheat to Different Nitrogen Application Methods

by Xiangqian Zhang, Shizhou Du, Yunji Xu, Yuqiang Qiao, Chengfu Cao and Wei Li

Plants 2022, 11(18), 2328; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11182328 - 06 Sep 2022

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1404

Abstract

To fully explore the effects of N on enhancing photosynthesis, grain quality, and yield of wheat (Ningmai 13), experiments with four nitrogen levels 0 (N0), 120 (N1), 180 (N2), and 240 (N3) kg N ha⁻¹ and four ratios of basal to topdressing R0 (0:0), R1 (7:3), R2 (6:4), and R3 (5:5) were conducted. The basal N was applied to soil before sowing and the topdressing N was applied at jointing stage. The effect of N topdressing ratio on improving leaf area of photosynthetic efficiency was insignificant under the same N level. The effect of N fertilization level on increasing chlorophyll content was more significant than that of N topdressing ratio. Within the same N level, the canopy photosynthetically active radiation in R2 was higher than that in R1 and R3, and increasing N by 60 kg ha⁻¹ significantly enhanced canopy photosynthetically active radiation. The effect of N topdressing ratio on photosynthetic rate, stomatal conductance, and transpiration rate were consistently R2 > R3 > R1; compared to N1, N3 could significantly increase photosynthetic rate. Increasing 120 kg N ha⁻¹ significantly enhanced grain protein content, wet gluten, and sedimentation value, while the effect of N topdressing ratio was insignificant. Increasing N dose from 120 kg ha⁻¹ to 180 kg ha⁻¹ significantly enhanced yield, and the yields and harvest indexes in 2019, 2020, and 2021 were consistently R2 > R3 > R1. The findings suggested that the effect of increasing N dose (60 kg ha⁻¹) was more considerable than that of N topdressing ratio, N3R2 (within the range of N application in this experiment) was more conducive to improving canopy photosynthesis, yield, and harvest index, and R3 was more conducive to increasing grain protein content, wet gluten, and sedimentation value. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Crop Cultivation and Low Carbon Agriculture)

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13 pages, 1353 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

Responses of Soil Carbon Pools and Carbon Management Index to Nitrogen Substitution Treatments in a Sweet Maize Farmland in South China

by Zekai Chen, Fangdan Liu, Guangyuan Cai, Xiaoshan Peng and Xiaolong Wang

Plants 2022, 11(17), 2194; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11172194 - 24 Aug 2022

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1530

Abstract

In China, excessive nitrogen fertilizer application in sweet maize fields contributes to greenhouse gas emissions. This study used maize straw (MS), cow dung (CD), biogas residue (BR), and straw-based biochar (CB) to substitute the mineral nitrogen fertilizer at 20% and 50% ratios in the Pearl River Delta in China. In comparison with a conventional amount of mineral nitrogen fertilizer (CK), the soil organic carbon (SOC) storages of the different treatments increased by 6.5–183.0%. The CB treatment significantly improved the inert organic carbon pool in the soil, while other types of organic materials promoted the formation of activated carbon pools. The treatments increased the soil carbon pool management index by 21.1–111.0% compared to the CK. Moreover, the CB treatments increased the soil carbon sequestration index by 78.3% and 155.8% compared to the CK. In general, substituting the mineral N fertilizer with BR, CB, and CD could improve the SOC accumulation in sweet maize farmland in South China. The CB at the high substitution level was the best measure for stabilizing carbon sequestration in the sweet maize cropping system. This experiment provides valuable information for ensuring the clean production of sweet maize in a typical subtropical area in East Asia. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Crop Cultivation and Low Carbon Agriculture)

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15 pages, 1461 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Nitrogen Footprint of a Recycling System Integrated with Cropland and Livestock in the North China Plain

by Hailun Du, Jixiao Cui, Yinan Xu, Yingxing Zhao, Lin Chen, Zhejin Li, Peng Sui, Wangsheng Gao and Yuanquan Chen

Plants 2022, 11(7), 842; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11070842 - 22 Mar 2022

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2008

Abstract

Nitrogen-based pollution from agriculture has global environmental consequences. Excessive use of chemical nitrogen fertilizer, incorrect manure management and rural waste treatment are key contributors. Circular agriculture combining cropland and livestock is an efficient channel to reduce the use of chemical nitrogen fertilizers, promote the recycling of livestock manure, and reduce the global N surplus. The internal circulation of organic nitrogen resources in the cropland-livestock system can not only reduce the dependence on external synthetic nitrogen, but also reduce the environmental impacts of organic waste disposal. Therefore, this study tried to clarify the reactive nitrogen emissions of the crop-swine integrated system compared to the separated system from a life cycle perspective, and analyze the reasons for the differences in nitrogen footprints of the two systems. The results showed that the integrated crop production and swine production increased the grain yield by 14.38% than that of the separated system. The nitrogen footprints of crop production and swine production from the integrated system were 12.02% (per unit area) and 19.78% lower than that from the separated system, respectively. The total nitrogen footprint of the integrated system showed a reduction of 17.06%. The reduction was from simpler waste manure management and less agricultural inputs for both chemical fertilizer and raw material for forage processing. In conclusion, as a link between crop planting and pig breeding, the integrated system not only reduces the input of chemical fertilizers, but also promotes the utilization of manure, increases crop yield, and decreases environmental pollution. Integrated cropland and livestock is a promising model for agriculture green and sustainable development in China. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Crop Cultivation and Low Carbon Agriculture)

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Review

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17 pages, 2413 KiB

Open AccessReview

Lemnaceae as Novel Crop Candidates for CO₂ Sequestration and Additional Applications

by Marina López-Pozo, William W. Adams III and Barbara Demmig-Adams

Plants 2023, 12(17), 3090; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants12173090 - 28 Aug 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1799

Abstract

Atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO₂) is projected to be twice as high as the pre-industrial level by 2050. This review briefly highlights key responses of terrestrial plants to elevated CO₂ and compares these with the responses of aquatic floating plants of the family Lemnaceae (duckweeds). Duckweeds are efficient at removing CO₂ from the atmosphere, which we discuss in the context of their exceptionally high growth rates and capacity for starch storage in green tissue. In contrast to cultivation of terrestrial crops, duckweeds do not contribute to CO₂ release from soils. We briefly review how this potential for contributions to stabilizing atmospheric CO₂ levels is paired with multiple additional applications and services of duckweeds. These additional roles include wastewater phytoremediation, feedstock for biofuel production, and superior nutritional quality (for humans and livestock), while requiring minimal space and input of light and fertilizer. We, furthermore, elaborate on other environmental factors, such as nutrient availability, light supply, and the presence of a microbiome, that impact the response of duckweed to elevated CO₂. Under a combination of elevated CO₂ with low nutrient availability and moderate light supply, duckweeds’ microbiome helps maintain CO₂ sequestration and relative growth rate. When incident light intensity increases (in the presence of elevated CO₂), the microbiome minimizes negative feedback on photosynthesis from increased sugar accumulation. In addition, duckweed shows a clear propensity for absorption of ammonium over nitrate, accepting ammonium from their endogenous N₂-fixing Rhizobium symbionts, and production of large amounts of vegetative storage protein. Finally, cultivation of duckweed could be further optimized using hydroponic vertical farms where nutrients and water are recirculated, saving both resources, space, and energy to produce high-value products. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Crop Cultivation and Low Carbon Agriculture)

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