Abstract
We used a constant total N application base rate to conduct a two-year field experiment comparing the effects of three organic fertilizers (rapeseed meal (RSM), soybean meal (SBM), and cattle manure (CM)) on the crop yield, economic growth, and soil quality of a winter wheat-summer maize rotation system. Winter wheat and summer maize in rapeseed meal treatment (RSMT), soybean meal treatment (SBMT), and cattle manure treatment (CMT) showed yield increases of 161%, 299%, and 256%, respectively, when compared to no organic fertilizer treatment (CK) (P < 0.05). The annual net incomes of SBMT and CMT were 1.46 and 1.42 times higher, respectively, than RSMT. Compared to the results of the CK group, RSM, SBM, and CM stimulated the soil physically, chemically, and biologically. We found the highest soil macroaggregate proportions, soil organic matter (SOM) levels, total N (TN) levels, and phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) levels in SBMT. The highest soil pH, microbial biomass carbon (MBC) levels, and microbial biomass nitrogen (MBN) levels were observed in CMT. We used a soil quality index (SQI) to evaluate soil quality. After the two-year fertilization treatments, we calculated the SQI using a minimum data set (MDS). We used SOM levels and actinomycete quantity for the MDS properties. The SQI values were significantly different across the four treatments, with the highest values occurring in SBMT, then CMT and RSMT. In conclusion, SBM and CM were more effective than RSM at maintaining crop yield, economic growth, and soil quality.
Highlights
The world population has reached 7.6 billion people and is expected to reach 8.6 billion by 2030, 9.8 billion by 2050, and 11.2 billion by 2100 (Gerliani, Hammami & Aïder, 2019; Tripathi et al, 2019)
We found that soil pH in rapeseed meal treatment (RSMT), soybean meal treatment (SBMT), and cattle manure treatment (CMT) was significantly higher than in the CK group (P < 0.05), indicating that organic fertilizers, cattle manure (CM), can alleviate the soil acidification caused by long-term chemical fertilizer application (Guo et al, 2010; Zhu et al, 2018)
Our results clearly demonstrated that organic fertilizers significantly increased microbial biomass carbon (MBC) and microbial biomass nitrogen (MBN) levels, which was consistent with the findings of Kaur, Kapoor & Gupta (2005), who found that MBC levels tended to be lower in unfertilized soil compared to soil treated with organic fertilizers
Summary
The world population has reached 7.6 billion people and is expected to reach 8.6 billion by 2030, 9.8 billion by 2050, and 11.2 billion by 2100 (Gerliani, Hammami & Aïder, 2019; Tripathi et al, 2019). To meet the global anticipated food demand caused by this population growth, various agricultural practices have been proposed and tested (Godfray et al, 2010), including the excessive application of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides (Ju et al, 2007); large-scale utilization of water resources (Tilman et al, 2002); and intensive plowing (Koch & Stockfisch, 2006). High-efficiency organic fertilizers can increase crop yield without depleting soil quality, making their application a means of supporting both long-term food security and environmental preservation
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