Yield and nutrient uptake dissected through complementarity and selection effects in the maize/soybean intercropping

The dissection of complementarity and selection effects on yield and nutrient uptake in maize/soybean intercropping were applied. Yield and nutrient uptake advantage in the maize/soybean intercropping system were obvious. CE and SE of grain yield were positive over the two ‐year study, which was both the main contributors to grain yield, and complementarity effect was main contribution to N uptake; selection effect was main contribution to P uptake. AbstractThe yield and nutrient uptake advantages in an intercropping system are commonly supposed to be driven by the overall functional complementarity and temporal/space niche differentiation between the species. However, studies on the separation of the complementarity effect (CE) and selection effect (SE) on yield and nutrient uptake to understand the underlying mechanisms of intercropping mediated by N application rates are relatively few. Here, field experiments with four N application rates (maize: 0, 180, 240, and 300  kg N ha−1; soybean: 0, 40, 80, and 120  kg N ha−1) were conducted to study yield and nutrient uptake advantages in the maize/soybean intercropping system in 2017 and 2018. Intercropping significantly enhanced the maize yield and decreased the soybean yield, and yield advantage was observed across all N application rates. Also, the gross profit was significantly affected by N application rates and intercropping, and the maximum increase in intercropped compared to that of monoculture appeared at the N...

Source: Food and Energy Security - March 30, 2021 Category: Food Science Authors: Runzhi Zhang, Lingbo Meng, Ying Li, Xuerong Wang, Abiola O. Ogundeji, Xinrui Li, Ping Sang, Yao Mu, Haolei Wu, Shumin Li Tags: ORIGINAL ARTICLE Source Type: research