Abstract:
Objective This study mainly investigated the effects of straw returning in different seasons and nitrogen fertilizer application on productivity of saline-sodic rice fields, clarified the optimal season of straw returning and the optimal level of nitrogen application under straw returned in saline-sodic areas, and provided theoretical basis for improving the productivity of saline-sodic fields as well as large-scale popularization of straw returning in saline-sodic areas.
Method Through a two-year field experiment using a split-zone design, the main plots were two residue management treatments: spring straw returning treatment, and autumn straw returning treatment. The amount of straw returned to the field was 8 t hm−2. Subplots were five different nitrogen levels of 0, 90, 180, 270 and 360 kg hm−2, respectively. Soil aggregates mean weight diameter, geometric mean diameter, saturated conductivity, exchangeable sodium, organic matter and rice yield were measured.
Result Compared with spring straw returning, autumn straw returning significantly increased the percentage of aggregates of ≥ 2 mm particle size by 7.96% and 7.90% in 2020 and 2021, respectively. Meanwhile, autumn straw returning significantly increased the total soil nitrogen and organic matter, and also significantly decreased the soil saturated conductivity, exchangeable sodium and alkalinity. Under the same straw returning condition, the application of nitrogen fertilizer significantly increased the percentage of > 0.25 mm grain-size aggregates and decreased the percentage of < 0.053 mm grain-size aggregates. In addition, nitrogen application significantly increased the soil organic matter, total nitrogen, mean weight diameter and geometric mean diameter of soil aggregates, but under the same straw returning condition, there was no significant difference between the nitrogen application rates of 270 kg hm−2 and 360 kg hm−2. Rice yield significantly increased by 4.76% (2020) and 6.62% (2021) under autumn straw returning compared to spring straw returning. Under the same straw returning treatment, rice yield showed an increasing and then decreasing trend with nitrogen application, reaching the maximum at 270 kg hm−2, which were 7.77 t hm−2 (spring) and 8.01 t hm−2 (autumn) respectively.
Conclusion In saline-sodic rice area, autumn straw returning had better effects on soil structure improvement, soil fertility and paddy productivity enhancement. Under the condition of autumn straw returning, 270 kg hm−2 of nitrogen fertilizer was suitable for rice growing season.