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Effects of reduced nitrogen fertilizer application rates on grain yield and rice quality of early- and late-season dual-use rice in South China

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2025

Jinsong Liu ,
Taotao Yang Open the ORCID record for Taotao Yang [Opens in a new window] ,
Jixiang Zou ,
Longmei Wu ,
Xiaozhe Bao  and
Bin Zhang
Jinsong Liu
Affiliation:
Rice Research Institute, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510640, China
Taotao Yang*
Affiliation:
Rice Research Institute, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510640, China
Jixiang Zou
Affiliation:
Rice Research Institute, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510640, China
Longmei Wu
Affiliation:
Rice Research Institute, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510640, China
Xiaozhe Bao
Affiliation:
Rice Research Institute, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510640, China
Bin Zhang
Affiliation:
Rice Research Institute, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510640, China
*
Corresponding author: Taotao Yang; Email: [email protected]
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Abstract

Reducing nitrogen (N) fertilizer application is a sustainable practice in rice production. The effects of reducing N fertilizer input on grain yield and rice quality of early- and late-season dual-use rice (ELDR) in South China remain uncertain. Therefore, a short-term field trial was conducted with a high-yielding ELDR cultivar (Yuehesimiao, YHSM) and a low-yielding ELDR cultivar (Meixiangzhan 2, MXZ). The rice was cultivated with a 20% reduced N application rate (RN2), a 10% reduced rate (RN1) and the conventional N application rate (CN). In the early season, compared to CN, RN2 reduced the grain yield of YHSM and MXZ by an average of 16.1 and 6.6%, respectively, while RN1 lowered YHSM grain yield by 11.2% on average and had no effect on MXZ yield. In addition, RN2 decreased the milling and eating qualities of the two cultivars in the early season, while RN1 did not alter their milling, appearance or eating qualities. In the late season, neither RN2 nor RN1 affected grain yield or rice quality for both cultivars. Therefore, short-term reductions of 10 and 20% in N application could maintain grain yield and rice quality at current N fertilizer application rates in the late season. However, the early-season results only recommended a 10% reduced N fertilizer application rate for low-yielding ELDR cultivars to sustain grain yield and rice quality. The findings of this study can provide a theoretical basis for N management of ELDR in South China.

Keywords

double-cropping riceeating qualitymilling qualitynitrogen reductionrice yield
Type
Crops and Soils Research Paper
Information
The Journal of Agricultural Science , First View , pp. 1 - 11
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Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2025. Published by Cambridge University Press

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