Soil Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Nitrogen Dynamics: Effects of Maize Straw Incorporation Under Contrasting Nitrogen Fertilization Levels

Straw is widely incorporated into conservation agriculture around the world. However, its effects on greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) and nitrogen dynamics under soils formed by the long-term application of different amounts of nitrogen (N) fertilizer are still unclear. An incubation experiment was c...

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Main Authors: Zhengyu Wang, Jiaxin Shang, Xuelian Wang, Rongqi Ye, Dan Zhao, Xiangyu Li, Yadong Yang, Hongyu Zhang, Xiangwei Gong, Ying Jiang, Hua Qi
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2024-12-01
Series:Agronomy
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/14/12/2996
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author Zhengyu Wang
Jiaxin Shang
Xuelian Wang
Rongqi Ye
Dan Zhao
Xiangyu Li
Yadong Yang
Hongyu Zhang
Xiangwei Gong
Ying Jiang
Hua Qi
author_facet Zhengyu Wang
Jiaxin Shang
Xuelian Wang
Rongqi Ye
Dan Zhao
Xiangyu Li
Yadong Yang
Hongyu Zhang
Xiangwei Gong
Ying Jiang
Hua Qi
author_sort Zhengyu Wang
collection DOAJ
description Straw is widely incorporated into conservation agriculture around the world. However, its effects on greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) and nitrogen dynamics under soils formed by the long-term application of different amounts of nitrogen (N) fertilizer are still unclear. An incubation experiment was conducted on soils collected from a field study after 6 years of contrasting N fertilization of 0 (low N), 187 (medium N), and 337 kg N ha<sup>−1</sup> (high N), with and without maize straw. Straw amendment significantly stimulated both nitrous oxide (N<sub>2</sub>O) and carbon dioxide (CO<sub>2</sub>) fluxes (<em>p</em> < 0.05), and increased cumulative emissions by 0.8 and 19.0 times on average compared to those without straw incorporation. Medium-N soil observably weakened N<sub>2</sub>O emissions (23.8 μg kg<sup>−1</sup>) compared to high-N soil (162.7 μg kg<sup>−1</sup>), and increased CO<sub>2</sub> emissions (1.9 g kg<sup>−1</sup>) compared to low-N soils (2.3 g kg<sup>−1</sup>) with straw amendment. Soil NH<sub>4</sub><sup>+</sup>-N and NO<sub>3</sub><sup>−</sup>-N invariably increased with rising soil N level, whereas straw promoted the turnover of mineral N by enhancing soil N fixation capacity. From the first day until the end of incubation, NH<sub>4</sub><sup>+</sup>-N decreased by 79.0% and 24.7%, while NO<sub>3</sub><sup>−</sup>-N showed a decrease of 58.8% or an increase of 75.2%, depending on whether straw was amended or not, respectively. Moreover, partial least squares path modeling and random forest mean predictor importance were used to find that straw affected GHGs by altering the N turnover capacity. Straw amendment increased GHGs and diminished the risk of losing mineral N by enhancing its turnover. Combining straw with medium-N soil could mitigate the greenhouse effect and improve the N and carbon (C) balance in farming systems compared to low- and high-N soils. This is recommended as a farmland management strategy in Northeast China.
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series Agronomy
spelling doaj-art-d5c541fa011645d1aa2192598f292c8f2024-12-27T14:04:39ZengMDPI AGAgronomy2073-43952024-12-011412299610.3390/agronomy14122996Soil Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Nitrogen Dynamics: Effects of Maize Straw Incorporation Under Contrasting Nitrogen Fertilization LevelsZhengyu Wang0Jiaxin Shang1Xuelian Wang2Rongqi Ye3Dan Zhao4Xiangyu Li5Yadong Yang6Hongyu Zhang7Xiangwei Gong8Ying Jiang9Hua Qi10College of Agronomy, Shenyang Agricultural University, Shenyang 100866, ChinaCollege of Agronomy, Shenyang Agricultural University, Shenyang 100866, ChinaCollege of Agronomy, Shenyang Agricultural University, Shenyang 100866, ChinaCollege of Agronomy, Shenyang Agricultural University, Shenyang 100866, ChinaCollege of Agronomy, Shenyang Agricultural University, Shenyang 100866, ChinaCollege of Agronomy, Shenyang Agricultural University, Shenyang 100866, ChinaCollege of Agronomy and Biotechnology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100091, ChinaFarming and Animal Husbandry Bureau of Tongliao, Tongliao 028005, ChinaCollege of Agronomy, Shenyang Agricultural University, Shenyang 100866, ChinaCollege of Agronomy, Shenyang Agricultural University, Shenyang 100866, ChinaCollege of Agronomy, Shenyang Agricultural University, Shenyang 100866, ChinaStraw is widely incorporated into conservation agriculture around the world. However, its effects on greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) and nitrogen dynamics under soils formed by the long-term application of different amounts of nitrogen (N) fertilizer are still unclear. An incubation experiment was conducted on soils collected from a field study after 6 years of contrasting N fertilization of 0 (low N), 187 (medium N), and 337 kg N ha<sup>−1</sup> (high N), with and without maize straw. Straw amendment significantly stimulated both nitrous oxide (N<sub>2</sub>O) and carbon dioxide (CO<sub>2</sub>) fluxes (<em>p</em> < 0.05), and increased cumulative emissions by 0.8 and 19.0 times on average compared to those without straw incorporation. Medium-N soil observably weakened N<sub>2</sub>O emissions (23.8 μg kg<sup>−1</sup>) compared to high-N soil (162.7 μg kg<sup>−1</sup>), and increased CO<sub>2</sub> emissions (1.9 g kg<sup>−1</sup>) compared to low-N soils (2.3 g kg<sup>−1</sup>) with straw amendment. Soil NH<sub>4</sub><sup>+</sup>-N and NO<sub>3</sub><sup>−</sup>-N invariably increased with rising soil N level, whereas straw promoted the turnover of mineral N by enhancing soil N fixation capacity. From the first day until the end of incubation, NH<sub>4</sub><sup>+</sup>-N decreased by 79.0% and 24.7%, while NO<sub>3</sub><sup>−</sup>-N showed a decrease of 58.8% or an increase of 75.2%, depending on whether straw was amended or not, respectively. Moreover, partial least squares path modeling and random forest mean predictor importance were used to find that straw affected GHGs by altering the N turnover capacity. Straw amendment increased GHGs and diminished the risk of losing mineral N by enhancing its turnover. Combining straw with medium-N soil could mitigate the greenhouse effect and improve the N and carbon (C) balance in farming systems compared to low- and high-N soils. This is recommended as a farmland management strategy in Northeast China.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/14/12/2996straw managementnitrous oxidesoil nitrate dynamicnitrogen turnover capacitysoil nitrogen balance
spellingShingle Zhengyu Wang
Jiaxin Shang
Xuelian Wang
Rongqi Ye
Dan Zhao
Xiangyu Li
Yadong Yang
Hongyu Zhang
Xiangwei Gong
Ying Jiang
Hua Qi
Soil Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Nitrogen Dynamics: Effects of Maize Straw Incorporation Under Contrasting Nitrogen Fertilization Levels
Agronomy
straw management
nitrous oxide
soil nitrate dynamic
nitrogen turnover capacity
soil nitrogen balance
title Soil Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Nitrogen Dynamics: Effects of Maize Straw Incorporation Under Contrasting Nitrogen Fertilization Levels
title_full Soil Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Nitrogen Dynamics: Effects of Maize Straw Incorporation Under Contrasting Nitrogen Fertilization Levels
title_fullStr Soil Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Nitrogen Dynamics: Effects of Maize Straw Incorporation Under Contrasting Nitrogen Fertilization Levels
title_full_unstemmed Soil Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Nitrogen Dynamics: Effects of Maize Straw Incorporation Under Contrasting Nitrogen Fertilization Levels
title_short Soil Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Nitrogen Dynamics: Effects of Maize Straw Incorporation Under Contrasting Nitrogen Fertilization Levels
title_sort soil greenhouse gas emissions and nitrogen dynamics effects of maize straw incorporation under contrasting nitrogen fertilization levels
topic straw management
nitrous oxide
soil nitrate dynamic
nitrogen turnover capacity
soil nitrogen balance
url https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/14/12/2996
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