Gao et al. (2025) Integrating Infiltration Holes into Ridge–Furrow Systems Enhances Drought Resilience and Yield of Maize in Semi-Arid China

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Identification

• Journal: Agronomy
• Year: 2025
• Date: 2025-12-14
• Authors: Jin Gao, Ke Wang, Xiaoyuan Zhang, Gaoliang Li, Guogang Wang, Zitong Zhang, Jiyong Zheng
• DOI: 10.3390/agronomy15122871

Research Groups

Not explicitly mentioned in the provided text.

Short Summary

This study aimed to optimize the double ridge–furrow mulching system (DRFM) by incorporating infiltration holes to enhance its infiltration capacity and mitigate soil water deficits under heavy rainfall on the Loess Plateau. The optimized system (DWCR) significantly improved deep soil water storage, maize growth, yield, and water use efficiency, particularly under drought conditions.

Objective

• To evaluate the effects of incorporating infiltration holes into the double ridge–furrow mulching system (DRFM) on soil water storage, maize growth, and water use efficiency (WUE) to address limited infiltration capacity and mid-summer soil water deficits under heavy rainfall in semi-arid rainfed areas.

Study Configuration

• Spatial Scale: Field experiment on the Loess Plateau.
• Temporal Scale: Two-year field experiment (2021–2022), representing a normal precipitation year (2021, 410 mm) and a dry year (2022, 270 mm).

Methodology and Data

• Models used: Not explicitly mentioned in the provided text.
• Data sources: Field experiment with four treatments: conventional flat planting (CK), traditional ridge-furrow system (CWC), double ridge-furrow system (DWC), and double ridge-furrow system with infiltration holes (DWCR). Measurements included soil water storage, plant height, aboveground dry matter (ADM), yield, water use efficiency (WUE), and root weight density.

Main Results

• The DWCR treatment established preferential flow pathways, significantly enhancing deep soil water storage and its utilization efficiency during critical phenological stages, especially under drought.
• Improved deep water availability accelerated crop growth and boosted yield.
• Compared to CK, CWC, and DWC treatments, DWCR significantly increased plant height, aboveground dry matter, yield, and water use efficiency.
• Specifically, DWCR improved yield by 0.24–20.04% and water use efficiency by 2.75–26.27%.
• In the dry year, the yield increase for DWCR was 19.18%, which was greater than the 12.72% increase observed for the DWC treatment compared to their respective yields in the normal year.
• Root analysis confirmed that DWCR significantly increased root weight density in the 20–60 cm soil layer under drought, optimizing root spatial distribution and thereby enhancing deep water uptake and drought resistance.

Contributions

• This study demonstrates that incorporating infiltration holes into the double ridge–furrow mulching system is an effective strategy for optimizing soil water distribution, improving crop drought tolerance and water use efficiency, and promoting sustainable semi-arid rainfed agriculture. It provides a practical solution to enhance the performance of an existing water-saving agricultural system.

Funding

Not explicitly mentioned in the provided text.

Citation

@article{Gao2025Integrating,
  author = {Gao, Jin and Wang, Ke and Zhang, Xiaoyuan and Li, Gaoliang and Wang, Guogang and Zhang, Zitong and Zheng, Jiyong},
  title = {Integrating Infiltration Holes into Ridge–Furrow Systems Enhances Drought Resilience and Yield of Maize in Semi-Arid China},
  journal = {Agronomy},
  year = {2025},
  doi = {10.3390/agronomy15122871},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy15122871}
}