Journal
FIELD CROPS RESEARCH
Volume 228, Issue -, Pages 195-203Publisher
ELSEVIER
DOI: 10.1016/j.fcr.2018.09.005
Keywords
Summer maize; Critical nitrogen concentration; Leaf area index; Nitrogen nutrition index
Categories
Funding
- National Natural Science Foundation of China [51609247, 51709263]
- Natural Science Foundation of Henan Province [162300410154]
- China Agriculture Research System [CARS-02]
- Agricultural Science and Technology Innovation Program (ASTIP)
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Injudicious nitrogen (N) fertilizer application has increased the risk of environmental pollution and decreased grain yields, farm profits, and N use efficiency. The plant based N diagnostic tools can be used to optimize N management of summer maize production. This study was designed to develop and validate a leaf area index (LAI) based critical N (N-c) dilution curve and to establish a theoretical framework to link the relationship of LAI and plant dry matter (DM) based curves, as well as to compare the differences between LAI, plant DM and growth stage-based N-c curves. Six field experiments were set with a range of N application rates (0-320 kg N ha(-1)) and plant densities (6 to 8 x 10(4) plants ha(-2)) using four summer maize cultivars (Zhengdan958, Denghai605, Xundan20, and Denghai661) in Henan province of China. LAI and plant N concentration (PNC) were determined from V6 to R1 stages in each experiment for the development of the N-c curve. LAI and PNC ranged from 1.28 to 6.12 and 1.34% to 3.31% under different N levels, respectively. Allometric relationships between LAI, plant DM, and critical N uptake (N-uc) were developed under non-N-limiting treatments. The relationship between N-c and LAI during vegetative growth period was described by a power function (N-c = 3.84LAI(-0.45)) N nutrition index (NNI) increased with the increasing N application rate and ranged from 0.56 and 1.23 across different N treatments. Our results validated that plant N uptake was proportional with LAI, and the allometric parameter between LAI and plant DM of summer maize was close to the theoretical value 2/3. The newly developed LAI-based N-c curve could identify plant N status (N-limiting and non-N-limiting) during key N requirement period of summer maize and can be used for precision N management for summer maize grown in China.
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