Improve Land Quality Research Articles

Kajian Waktu Irigasi pada Tanaman Selada (Lactuva Sativa) Organik Untuk Budidaya Tanaman dengan Naungan dan Tanpa Naungan di Yayasan Bina Sarana Bakti Cisarua Bogor

The Bina Sarana Bakti Foundation (YBSB) implements an organic farming system, which is an agricultural management system with a terrace design with permanent beds that can ecologically (environmentally) improve land quality, provide stable and sustainable yields and income into the future. To provide water for plants so that organic farming can take place throughout the season, both in the rainy season and in the dry season, water reservoirs are built using existing water sources. Utilization of water in the cultivation of organic lettuce at the Bina Sarana Bakti Foundation is carried out with 2-level irrigation hose treatment, namely the interval of providing irrigation water for 3 days and 4 days. Data analysis used t test at 5% real level. The results showed that the theoretical amount of water for lettuce at the Bina Sarana Bakti Foundation was 714 l/bed/season which was almost the same as the actual water use of lettuce with an interval of 3 days of irrigation water including additional liquid fertilizer from rabbit urine. + water in open land in shade is 720 l/bed/season, however, it is much lower than the interval of providing irrigation water for 4 days in open land without shade, namely 4,980 l/bed/season. The production of lettuce in shade with an interval of 3 days of 30.4 kg/bed/season was much greater than the production of lettuce without shade with an interval of 4 days of irrigation water, which was only 24.7 kg/bed/season. The productivity of irrigation water for shaded lettuce with the provision of irrigation water at an interval of 3 days of irrigation is 42.22 kg/m³, much higher and more effective than lettuce without shade with an interval of 4 days of irrigation which is only 4.96 kg/m³.
 Keywords: irrigation time interval, lettuce plants, no shade, shade, and water productivity.

Composition and diversity of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi spore associated with different land-use types in tropical gold mine

Understanding the composition and diversity of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) is imperative for potentially enhancing their ecological role in different terrestrial ecosystems. Land use can have substantial effects on AMF species composition and diversity, but such effects have been explored less in tropical landscapes. In this study, we assessed the effects of disturbances on AMF species richness, observed the potential development of AMF types to produce mycorrhizal biofertilizer bioinoculants. This study was conducted identifying and selecting AMFs was for the purpose of managing post-mining land in Bombana District, Southeast Sulawesi, Indonesia. AMF spores collected from the field and trap culture were directly isolated and morphologically identified. A total of 15 AMF species were identified, including 11 species from field samples and 9 species from trap cultures. We noted that five AMF species were unique to field conditions and 5 AMF species were uniquely isolated from trap culture. It appears that Glomeraceae family contributed the highest number of species in all land-use types. Glomus sp. 1 was the most frequent species found in all land-use types. The Simpson’s index, Shannon index and evenness ranged from 1.60 ± 0.51 to 2.40 ± 0.40; 0.41 ± 0.17 to 0.62 ± 0.17; 0.25 ± 0.10 to 0.39 ± 0.11, respectively. In this study, we found three new records of AMF species including Entrophospora colombiana , Sclerocystis microcarpa and Glomus coronatum for Indonesia, i.e. from this study, it is clear that different land-use types affected AMF spore composition and species diversity. All AMF species found in this study were then applied to the land to improve land quality.

Earthworm Diversity and Biomass in Different Fallow System in The Kelimutu National Park Areas

Earthworms have a role as bioindicators so that their existence is very sensitive to changes in the environment. The decreasing of land quality caused by continuous use (horticultural agriculture) will also decrease the diversity of earthworms. To anticipate degradation of land quality, the land needs to be rested (bero) so that it will facilitate natural recovery. Indicators of land restoration include the diversity and importance index of earthworms. Therefore, the research aim was to determine the diversity of earthworm in the fallow system lands at Kelimutu National Park areas. The monolith random sampling method at three soil depths was applied to several fields with different fallow periods (5, 10, 15 and 20 years) to measure importance value index, diversity index, evenness, density, and earthworm biomass. The results showed that there were 4 types of earthworms found in the land given, namely Pontoscolex, Megascolex, Lumbricus and Perithima. Pontoscolex dominates which is indicated by the highest importance value index. While the diversity of earthworms was higher in fallow land with a duration period of 5 and 20 years. The duration of the fallow period is also shown to affect populations of earthworms but has no effect on its biomass. For soil depths not seen no effect at each depth. The results of this study further strengthen the evidence that the application of the bero period can improve land quality by increasing the earthworm population so that land productivity can be maintained.

The effectiveness of liquid organic fertilizer (LOF) Bio M2 on the growth and production of corn (Zea mays L.)

The organic fertilizers have more advantages to improve the quality of land. One of the organic fertilizers products is Liquid Organic Fertilizer (LOF) BIO M2. It can be used in food crops. However, the effectiveness test must be carried out for LOF so that it can be developed. The objective of this study is to examine the effectiveness of Liquid Organic Fertilizer (LOF) beside inorganic fertilizer on the growth and production of corn. The research was conducted in Bone, South Sulawesi, on August-December 2017. The experimental design used completely randomized design that consist of nine treatments which were the level of LOF combined dosage of inorganic fertilizer and replicated three times, so there were 27 experiment plots. The results of the study indicate that the use of organic fertilizer can improve land quality by increasing several elements in the soil and the shell of corn was highest in the treatment of LOF 100% and itis recommended fertilizer 75%, for 7,17 tons/ha with RAE 233,33 %.

Analysis of critical land degradation and development processes and their driving mechanism in the Heihe River Basin.

In arid regions, land development and degradation (LDD) is sustained by the undesirable land development, human production and living, and climate change. Therefore, the understanding of LDD processes and their driving mechanism in the arid or semi-arid regions is significant to guarantee the sustainable development of ecological environment. This study explored the critical LDD processes in the Heihe River Basin (HRB) during 1990-2010 with the spatio-temporal evaluation of critical land use dynamics and its land quality changing trends. Then, the driving mechanism of cultivated land development process, grassland degradation process and water resource change process were analyzed by a simultaneous equations model which took the interaction of three processes into account. The results showed that the mutual transfers of cultivated land were primarily gathered in the middle reaches from 1990 to 2010. Its area grew by 13.5% and the average dynamic degree remained at 0.61%. The transfers between grassland and cultivated land, unused land were more remarkable, which led to the decline of grassland quality and even grassland degradation. Water area maintained a dynamic balance with almost unchanged area, but its dynamic trend was initially increasing and then decreasing. However, the average degradation of land quality in the whole study area is continuously alleviated. These changes were mainly due to the interaction of the LDD processes above, as well as socio-economic and climate change. Among them，agricultural research investments could restrain the unordered expansion of cultivated land resource for a relatively short period of time. Meanwhile, the variable of whether it is the main grain producing county is the main driver of grassland and water resource degradation in this region. These conclusions will provide scientific references for ecological land restoration and land quality improvement in the HRB.

Decision Support System for Determining Critical Land in Klaten Regency

Critical land has become a problem in the world. Critical land is very detrimental to the health of the land. Several factors cause the land to become critical. One of them is the use of land that is not by the capabilities of the land. If no repairs made, the land will be physically, chemically, and biologically damaged. Klaten Regency is one of the regencies in Central Java Province, which has quite extensive critical land. It is necessary to monitor and improve land quality regularly to avoid critical land problems. Data and information on critical land obtained from Klaten Regency processed into a decision support system. Decision Support System uses a combination of Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) and Technique For Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) methods. In this research, a Web-based Decision Support System created to determine the critical land area in Klaten Regency. The information system created has an alternative menu and criteria that determine the potential of critical land in Klaten Regency, making it easier for users to obtain information.

Cultivated land quality improvement to promote revitalization of sandy rural areas along the Great Wall in northern Shaanxi Province, China

The sandy area along the Great Wall in northern Shaanxi Province of China, is located in the transition zone between the Maowusu Desert and the loess hills and gullies region, with a vast territory and large per capita of cultivated agricultural land. However, the cultivated land quality is generally poor due to the local natural conditions. It is of practical significance to find ways to improve the quality of agricultural land and put forward targeted measures for its improvement. Through the analysis of farmland gradation results in the study area, we calculated an improvement potential index with a model to determine the primary limiting factors of agricultural land quality in the study area. The results indicate that both singe-factor and combined-factor limitations exist in the region. The single-factor limiting types include soil thickness, organic content, irrigation, salinization, etc., while the combined-factor limiting types include the combinations of the irrigation water source and irrigation firm probability, soil structure and organic matter, soil thickness and soil texture, and so on. Through the analysis of the potential index model results, we determined the main limiting factors in agricultural production, which vary spatially throughout the region, and suggested targeted measures to improve the cultivated land quality. These measures will then promote revitalization of sandy rural areas along the great wall in northern Shaanxi Province, China.

The classification and zoning of cultivated land quality improvement based on limiting factors: A case study of Jiutai District in Changchun City, China

The classification and zoning of cultivated land quality improvement based on limiting factors: A case study of Jiutai District in Changchun City, China

Rural land engineering and poverty alleviation: Lessons from typical regions in China

Poverty is a key issue restricting rural sustainable development; concurrently, regional land degradation impedes agricultural development and rural revitalization. China faces severe land degradation and deepening rural poverty under the context of rapid urbanization. To address these challenges, sustainable land use is an important tool in our society’s economic development. Rural engineering, including rural land consolidation, reclamation, restoration, reallocation, improvement, and development, is the most direct and effective way to achieve rural sustainable poverty alleviation. This study clarifies the framework between land engineering and rural poverty alleviation, and introduces land engineering technologies, newly created land utilization practices, and the contributions to poverty alleviation in representative degraded land regions. Land engineering can increase land quantity, improve land quality, enhance land ecological function, and promote man-land system coupling. Further, it can erase rural poverty by increasing county revenue and households’ income, lead to industrial development, and improve living environment. Specifically, degraded sandy land, gully land, hollowed construction land, and barren hilly land are transformed into productive land by improving the land structure. Innovated land engineering technologies and sustainable land utilization modes can provide the basic theories and reference approaches for rural poverty alleviation. Identifying obstacles to effective land and corresponding engineering practices are crucial to regional land exploitation and development, improving quality of life and alleviating rural poverty.

Land engineering and its role for sustainable agriculture in the agro-pastoral ecotone: A case study of Yulin, Shaanxi Province, China

With global climate change, the agricultural light-temperature potential productivity in the agro-pastoral ecotone has increased. This offers a good opportunity to develop agriculture in the agro-pastoral ecotone. However, the agro-pastoral ecotone is also an ecologically fragile area in which land degradation challenges agricultural development. As population grows and the need for food increases, the land carrying capacity of the agro-pastoral ecotone becomes insufficient, and the human–land relationship is not harmonious. Such conditions have limited the agricultural and rural development in the ecotone. The paper demonstrates how land engineering may improve land quality and support agricultural development in the ecotone based on studies at a research station established in 2015 in Yulin, Shaanxi Province, China. The studies target three factors: soil improvement, crop selection, and field management. The results show that: (1) The highest yield of crops planted on improved land is close to or even higher than that achieved under previous crop growth conditions. For instance, the corn yields can exceed 25%. (2) The potatoes grown on the improved land yield the highest gross income, reaching 67,200 yuan/ha. By way of land engineering, input costs can be balanced in 3–5 years. (3) As a result of land engineering, some villages in Yulin City have realized sustainable agricultural and even rural development, and promotion of this model will support the sustainable development of agriculture in the agro-pastoral ecotone.

Study on the potential of cultivated land quality improvement based on a geological detector

The restrictive factors of cultivated land are key to the improvement of cultivated land quality, scientific implementation of the land consolidation projects, and the efficiency of remediation. On the basis of the provincial plots of cultivated land quality in Shaanxi Province, this paper analysed the improvement potential of cultivated land quality from the perspective of restrictive factors. First, the potential exponential model was used to determine the distribution of various combinations of restrictive factors at the provincial scale. Second, a geological detector was used to determine the influences of different combinations of restrictive factors on cultivated land quality. Finally, through the investigation of cultivated land consolidation projects that have been implemented in the study area, the improvement potential level of different combinations of restrictive factors was determined. The degree of influence of the single restrictive factor or combinations of restrictive factors on the quality of cultivated land was improved, and the difference of the quality of cultivated land in different index areas could be revealed as well. The results showed that there were 12 single‐factor restrictions and 34 double‐factor restrictions. The area under single‐factor restrictions reached 76.77% of the total land. The quality of cultivated land in the southern and central areas of Shaanxi Province was relatively good. The quality of cultivated land in the northern region was under significant influence of restrictive factors whereas that in southern and middle areas was less affected. From the perspective of improvement potential of restrictive factors, Shaanxi was relatively low with huge internal diversity, whereas the improvement potential in northern Shaanxi had huge advantage.

Effects of Short-Term Set-Aside Management Practices on Soil Microorganism and Enzyme Activity in China.

Set-aside farmland can effectively improve the self-rehabilitation of arable soil. Long-term set-asides however cannot satisfy provisionment, therefore the use of short-term set-asides to restore cultivated soil is a better option. Few studies have compared short-term set-aside patterns, and the effects of set-asides on soil microbial community and enzyme enzymes. We analyzed the bacterial structure, microbial biomass carbon/nitrogen and enzyme activity of farmland soil under different set-aside regimes in the Yellow River Delta of China. Bacterial alpha diversity was relatively lower under only irrigation, and farmyard manure applications showed clear advantages. Set-asides should consider their influence on soil organic carbon and nitrogen, which were correlated with microbial community structure. Nitrospira (0.47–1.67%), Acidobacteria Gp6 (8.26–15.91%) and unclassified Burkholderiales (1.50–2.81%) were significantly altered (p < 0.01). Based on functions of these genera, some set-aside patterns led to a relative balance in nitrogen and carbon turnover. Partial treatments showed a deficiency in organic matter. In addition, farmyard manure may lead to the increased consumption of organic matter, with the exception of native plants set-asides. Conventional farming (control group) displayed a significant enzyme activity advantage. Set-aside management practices guided soil microbial communities to different states. Integrated soil microbiota and the content of carbon and nitrogen, native plants with farmyard manure showed an equilibrium state relatively, which would be helpful to improve land quality in the short-term.

Landscape approach to assess key soil functional properties in the highlands of Cameroon: Repercussions of spatial relationships for land management interventions

Understanding spatial variability of soil properties is essential to support land management decisions. However, despite the growing worldwide emphasis on integrated landscape management, soil variations resulting from land use changes have rarely been documented. The study used the land health surveillance concept in combination with simple geostatistical approaches to describe key soil properties among land use types and characterize their spatial variability in the highlands of Cameroon. A total of 320 soil samples were collected in two sites with contrasting land uses (agricultural and pasture) and were analyzed for granulometric fraction, soil organic carbon (SOC), nitrogen (N), soil reaction (pH), phosphorous (P), calcium (Ca), potassium (K), magnesium (Mg), aluminum (Al) and zinc (Zn). The spatial correlations between the soil properties revealed the factors responsible for the observed differences and showed that wide ranges were obtained in agricultural site as opposed to pasture. SOC and N decreased in the order of forest>grassland>fallow>croplands>pasture due to inherent soil properties, anthropogenic activities, land cover/land use and topographic factors. Kriged maps provided detailed visualization of soil properties at landscape scale, and helped to identify critical areas for targeted land management interventions to improve land quality. The spatial distribution of selected soil properties showed a well-defined pattern of higher concentrations in the lowlands and valleys and areas with permanent vegetation cover in both sites. These results are useful for improving the efficient use of inputs such fertilizers. Context-specific land management based on spatial variability of soil properties is highly recommended and more research is required to generalize our knowledge about spatial variability of soil health indicators and the casual factors in the highlands of Cameroon.

Farmer Perceptions and Responses to Soil Degradation in Swaziland.

Soil degradation is globally concerning due to its adverse effects on the environment and agricultural production. Much of Swaziland is at risk from degradation. This paper assesses farmer perceptions and responses to soil degradation in 2002 and 2014, focusing on two land uses that underpin rural livelihoods: arable land and rangeland areas. It uses repeat household surveys and semi‐structured interviews, in two case study chiefdoms in the country's middleveld (KaBhudla and Engcayini) in the first longitudinal study of its kind. We find that observations of land degradation are perceived mainly through changes in land productivity, with chemical degradation occurring predominantly on arable land and physical degradation and erosion mainly in rangeland areas. Changes in rainfall are particularly important in determining responses. While perceptions of the causes and impacts of degradation largely concur with the scientific literature, responses were constrained by poor land availability, shorter and more unpredictable cropping seasons because of changing rains and low awareness, access to or knowledge of agricultural inputs. We suggest that sustainable arable land management can be enhanced through improved access to alternative sources of water, use of management practices that retain soil and moisture and greater access to agricultural inputs and capacity building to ensure their appropriate use. We suggest collaborative management for settlement planning that integrates soil conservation and livestock management strategies such as controlled stocking levels and rotational grazing could improve land quality in rangeland areas. Together, these approaches can help land users to better manage change. © 2016 The Authors. Land Degradation & Development published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Factors Affecting Adoption of Agroforestry and Evergreen Agriculture in Southern Africa

This paper examines the factors that affect adoption of agroforestry and integrated soil fertility management (ISFM) practices in Southern Africa. Agroforestry practices, especially evergreen agriculture and conservation agriculture with trees have emerged as sustainable measures of addressing land degradation and loss of soil fertility. Although agroforestry is known to be beneficial to farmers and the environment, its adoption rate falls far behind the projected goals. The present study reviewed several publications on adoption of agroforestry in Southern Africa and complemented the review with household and key informant interviews to obtain evidence from farmers and promoters of the technologies on the factors affecting adoption. The study revealed that the major factors affecting adoption of agroforestry fall into two main categories of socioeconomic and biophysical factors. The factors are high initial costs of agroforestry practices (75%), low extension knowledge (69%); unavailability of agroforestry germplasm (69%) for economic, social and biophysical categories respectively. Up to 84% of the key informants indicated that awareness of the connection between agroforestry and land quality improvement could lead to wide scale adoption of the technology. We conclude that Government policies will strongly influence adoption of agroforestry technologies. There is need to institutionalise sustainable agricultural land management practices through policy formulation, budgetary allocation for extension officers and farmer training and starter up inputs. Promotion of agroforestry should be coupled with investment in awareness creation, farmer-centered approaches in selection of technology and provision of inputs in the initial stages. Strong collaboration among policy makers, researchers and extension providers will be required to harmonise messages to be delivered to farming communities.

HUBUNGAN ANTARA KARAKTERISTIK AGROEKOLOGI PERKEBUNAN KARET (Hevea brassiliansis L) DENGAN HASIL KARET DI LAMPUNG

The productivity of rubber (Hevea brassiliansis L) are determined by agro-ecological conditions in which the commodity is developed. Lampung province is one of the producers of the commodity. To determine the relationship between the characteristics of agroecology with rubber yield, the study of correlation of agroecological characteristics of the rubber yield was conducted in Lampung. The study was conducted at three locations, namely Tulang Bawang, Central Lampung and Way Kanan regency. The study used a survey method to collect rubber yield, as well as the character of agroecology including soil properties and climate data especially the rainfall based on the land evaluation guidelines for agricultural commodities. The results showed that the character of rubber plantations agroecology in Lampung belongs to a class of suitable (S2). Soil fertility of rubber plantation in all locations generally at the level of low to moderate, except for potential K in Way Kanan and Tulang Bawang is high and available P is high in all locations. Low soil pH and levels exchangeable Al at moderate to a high level in the depth of 20-40 cm soil surface potentially to fix P, therefore, making it unavailable to plants. There was a strong correlation between soil properties and yield of rubber in Tulang Bawang and Way Kanan, but in Central Lampung, the relationship is very weak. Recommended land quality improvement technology in rubber plantations through liming and the use of organic materials to eliminate/prevent fixation of P in the soil due to low soil pH and the levels of exchangeable Al at a medium and high level in the layer 20-40 cm below the soil surface. Keywords: Character agroecology, Hevea brassiliansis L, land suitability

PRODUKSI DAN KUALITAS HIJAUAN PAKAN PADA LAHAN PASCA TAMBANG DI KABUPATEN KARANGASEM

The side-effect of sand mining was disappearing of biomass which caused of land degradation. A study has been carried out to obtain the model legume association with superior grass plants that are adaptive to repair post-mining land on dry land. This research was desgined in association patern between grasses and legumes with manure application, using 8 combination of grasses herbaceous and tree legumse with 3 replications. This research was conducted at Sebudi village, Karangasem district. Panicum maximum var. Trichoglum, Paspalum atratum, Centrocema pubescens, and Clitoria ternatea were used for grasses and legumes respectively. Observed variables were quality and forage production. The results of this research showed that almost all association can be implemented at dryland, and association patern between Panicum and Paspalum with Clitoria gave extra biomass. This association also showed great potential to improve land quality. The quality and production of grasses were greatly influenced by the association of legumes. Panicum and Paspalum associated with both Clitoria or Centrocema gave highest yield. Various of manure showed a non significant difference on quality and production of grass associated with tree legumes, although it tend to increase both of growth and production of grasses.

Farmland tenure in China: Comparing legal, actual and perceived security

This paper examines the magnitudes of legal security, actual security and perceived security of farmland tenure, and the causes of currently prevailing land tenure insecurity in rural China. Two farm household surveys conducted in the northwest of Gansu province in 2010 and in the northeast of Jiangxi province in 2011 are used as case studies. Although recent land tenure reforms have significantly improved legal tenure security, we find that farm households still experience substantial insecurity of actual and perceived land tenure. We argue that social security considerations, ambiguous formulations of laws, and village self-governance rules are three important underlying causes. Actual and perceived land tenure security is lowest in the case study region in Jiangxi province even though the share of off-farm income in rural household incomes is much larger in that region. We explain this finding from investments in land quality improvement made by rural households in the Gansu case study region, the larger per capita land resources in that region, and the limited social security provided by off-farm employment.

Influence of Climate and Socio-Economic Factors on the Spatio-Temporal Variability of Soil Organic Matter: A Case Study of Central Heilongjiang Province, China

For the scientific management of farmland, it is significant to understand the spatio-temporal variability of soil organic matter and to study the influences of related factors. Using geostatistical theory, GIS spatial analysis, trend analysis and a Geographically Weighted Regression (GWR) model, this study analyzed the response of soil organic matter to climate and socio-economic factors in central Heilongjiang Province during the past 25 years. Second soil survey data of China for 1979–1985, 2005 field sampling data, climate observations and socio-economic data for 1980–2005 were analyzed. First, soil organic matter in 2005 was spatially interpolated using the Co-Kriging method along with auxiliary data sets of soil type and pH. The spatio-temporal variability was then studied by comparison with the 1980s second soil census data. Next, the temporal trends in climate and socio-economic factors over the past 25 years were investigated. Finally, we examined the variation of the response of soil organic matter to climate and socio-economic factors using the GWR model spatially and temporally. The model showed that 53.82% area of the organic matter content remained constant and 29.39% has decreased during the past 25 years. The impact of precipitation on organic matter content is mainly negative, with increasing absolute values of the regression coefficient. The absolute value of regression coefficient of annual average temperature has decreased, and more areas are now under its negative effects. In addition, the areas of positive regression coefficient of annual sunshine hours have northward shifted, with the increasing absolute value of positive coefficient and decreasing absolute value of negative coefficient. The areas of positive regression coefficient of mechanized farming as a socio-economic factor have westward shifted, with the increasing absolute value of negative coefficient and decreasing absolute value of positive coefficient. The area of regions with the positive regression coefficient of irrigation has expanded. The regions with positive regression coefficient of fertilizer use have shrinked. The positive regression coefficient of mulch film consumption has significantly increased. The regression coefficient of pesticide consumption was mainly positive in the west of the study area, while it was negative to the east. Generally, GWR model is capable to investigate the influence of both climatic and socio-economic factors, avoided the insufficiency of other research based on the single perspective of climatic or socio-economic factors. Therefore, we can conclude that GWR model could provide methodological support for global change research and serve as basic reference for cultivated land quality improvement and agricultural decision making.

Land tenure security and land investments in Northwest China

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of perceived land tenure security in China on farmers' decisions to invest in relatively long‐term land quality improvement measures, taking into account the potential endogeneity of tenure security.Design/methodology/approachData from a survey held in 2008 and 2010 among 259 households in Minle County, Gansu province, covering the years 2007 and 2009, are used to estimate the factors affecting land levelling investments, irrigation canal investments and perceived land tenure security. The authors use the 2SCML technique and the IVLS method to estimate a selection model and a non‐limited regression model, respectively, and use IVP methods to examine the robustness of the results.FindingsThe authors' results indicate that perceived land tenure security significantly affects self‐governed investments but does not affect individual investments in land quality improvements. In particular, the authors find that households that consider land certificates as important for protecting land rights invest significantly more in irrigation canals construction and maintenance. The authors' results further provide evidence that individual investments in land quality improvement contribute to higher perceived land tenure security.Originality/valueThe paper contributes to the available literature on the relationship between land tenure security and land investments by examining the role of perceived (instead of formal) land tenure security and by making a distinction between individual household investments and self‐governed land investments. The authors' results provide an explanation for the phenomenon that land readjustments still take place in some parts of China, but not in others.