A meta-analysis of the effects of crop residue return on crop yields and water use efficiency.

ABSTRACT: After harvesting agricultural crops, the residue can be returned to the soil as mulch. This study performed a meta-analysis of previous research to investigate the effects of crop residue return and other factors on crop yields and water use efficiency (WUE). Overall, the results show that crop residue return increases crop yields by 5.0% relative to crops grown without it. The greatest increases in yield for crops grown with returned residue were associated with average annual temperatures < 10 °C (yield increase = 7.6%), rainfall ≥ 800 mm (9.5%), plowing depth ≥ 20 cm (6.5%), corn crops (8.0%), growth of a single crop per year (10.1%), no irrigation (11.9%), nitrogen (N), and potassium (K) fertilization (20.0%), and low nitrogen application rates of 0-100 kg N ha-1 (10.8%). The effects o

SUBMITTER: Lu X 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7185903 | biostudies-literature | 2020

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature