Phosphorus (P) deficiency often occurs in paddy fields due to its high fixation, and low solubility and mobility in soils, especially under water stress. Available soil P and plant P uptake could be improved through the application of zeolite. However, little is known about the impact of zeolite on P uptake in rice under water stress. A two-year lysimetric experiment using a split-split plot design investigated the effects of zeolite (0 or 15 t ha⁻¹) and P (0 or 60 kg ha⁻¹) applications on water use, P uptake, and grain yield in rice under two irrigation management systems (continuous flooding irrigation (CF) and improved alternate wetting and drying irrigation (IAWD)). Both irrigation systems produced equivalent effective panicles and grain yield. Compared with CF, IAWD reduced water use and aboveground P uptake and improved water-use efficiency (WUE) in rice. The applications of zeolite or P alone increased grain yield, WUE, soil available P, and stem, leaf, and panicle P concentration, and aboveground P uptake, but had no significant effect on water use. The enhanced grain yield induced by zeolite was related to the increase in aboveground P uptake. The zeolite application enhanced NH₄⁺–N retention in the topsoil and prevented NO₃⁻–N from leaching into deeper soil layers. Moreover, Zeolite made lower rates of P fertilizer possible in paddy fields, with benefits for remaining P supplies and mitigating pollution due to excessive P. These results suggest that the combined application of zeolite and P under improved AWD regime reduced water use, improved P uptake and grain yield in rice, and alleviated environment risk.

The addition of zeolite (Z) to soils is increasingly being recognised as a way to enhance agricultural production and decrease fertilisation requirements and, hence, environmental costs. Meanwhile, the alternate wetting and drying irrigation (AWD) has become widely applied to reduce the water requirements of rice cultivation. However, limited information is available on their impacts on rice’s physicochemical properties. This study investigated an integrated irrigation, nitrogen (N) and Z rice production system and assessed its effects on the milling, appearance, nutrition, taste and cooking qualities of the rice grain produced. Compared with conventional flooding irrigation (CF), AWD-grown rice had slightly decreased milling and appearance qualities. Addition of Z increased rice protein content and slightly decreased eating quality without affecting milling, appearance and cooking qualities. The highest yields achieved under AWD (9.8 t ha⁻¹) and CF (8.9 t ha⁻¹) were achieved using 105 kg N and 10 t Z ha⁻¹, and 105 kg N and 5 t Z ha⁻¹, respectively. Compared with the flooding untreated control (using 157.5 kg N ha⁻¹ and no Z), these two treatment regimens required 27.8% and 8.1% less water, 33.3% less N fertiliser and increased yields by 10.6% and 0.6%, respectively, without measurably affecting rice grain quality.

Introduction: Maize and peanut intercropping can optimize allocation of rainfall through crop canopies, enhancing crop resilience to drought. However, the mechanisms underlying this process remain unclear.Methods: This study investigates the impact of strip width on rainfall redistribution to the soil in maize (MS) and peanut (PS) monoculture systems, as well as in intercropping systems with strip configurations of 2:2 (M2P2), 4:4 (M4P4), and 8:8 (M8P8).Results and discussion: Results showed that maize/peanut intercropping consistently improved system water use efficiency (WUE) over the three-year experiment, with the M4P4 treatment maintaining the highest WUE throughout. Strip width significantly influenced stemflow and throughfall in maize rows, as well as throughfall in peanut rows, with maize plant height and leaf area playing key roles. Among the 17 rainfall events studied, maize rows in the M2P2, M4P4, and M8P8 treatments obtained 17.4%, 10.8%, and 5.4% more rainfall, respectively, compared to the MS. However, compared to PS, water captured by intercropped peanut rows decreased by 20.6%, 13.2%, and 7.1%, respectively. An edge effect was observed in the intercropping treatments, with stemflow in maize rows increasing by 23.7%, 17.8%, and 14.6%, and throughfall by 12.2% (M2P2), 10.6% (M4P4), and 8.6% (M8P8) compared to MS. Conversely, the M2P2, M4P4, and M8P8 treatments decreased throughfall in peanut by 20.6%, 18.0%, and 16.0%, respectively, compared with PS. Overall, our findings suggest that optimizing strip width in intercropping systems can improve both crop productivity and water management, offering insights for sustainable agricultural practices in regions with limited water resources.

Field experiments were carried out in Western Liaoning Province to investigate the effects of biochar on peanut nitrogen accumulation (NA) and soil properties in aeolian sandy soil and the relationship between NA parameters regulated by biochar and peanut quality. A split-plot design was adopted. Drip irrigation and mulched drip irrigation were used in the main plot, and three biochar application rates of B0 (0 t/ha), B1 (24 t/ha), and B2 (48t/ha) were used in the sub-plots. The results showed that different irrigation methods and biochar application significantly increased NA of peanuts, and NA of peanuts was in line with a logistic growth function (R²༞0.97). In 2020 and 2021, the pod NA of MB1 compared with MB0 treatment increased by 52.28% and 32.58% at pod filling stage, respectively. B2 treatment increased soil organic matter by 109.66%, cation exchange capacity by75.94%, total N content by 5% (P༞0.05), and pH by 15.24% compared with no biochar. The correlation coefficient between soil total N and protein content was 0.73, and that between soil pH and oil was 0.83. Compared with MB2 and DB0, MB1 treatment increased yield by 62.50% and 38.30%, respectively. In conclusion, applying biochar (B1) to a peanut cultivation system in aeolian sandy soil area increased peanut NA, improved soil properties related to peanut quality, broke through environmental barriers and improved peanut quality, which is important for peanut N fixation and improving quality in the semi-arid aeolian sandy soil area of western Liaoning Province.