Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Quantifying spatial variability of indigenous nitrogen supply for precision nitrogen management in small scale farming

  • Published:
Precision Agriculture Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Understanding spatial variability of indigenous nitrogen (N) supply (INS) is important to the implementation of precision N management (PNM) strategies in small scale agricultural fields of the North China Plain (NCP). This study was conducted to determine: (1) field-to-field and within-field variability in INS; (2) the potential savings in N fertilizers using PNM technologies; and (3) winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) N status variability at the Feekes 6 stage and the potential of using a chlorophyll meter (CM) and a GreenSeeker active crop canopy sensor for estimating in-season N requirements. Seven farmer’s fields in Quzhou County of Hebei Province were selected for this study, but no fertilizers were applied to these fields. The results indicated that INS varied significantly both within individual fields and across different fields, ranging from 33.4 to 268.4 kg ha−1, with an average of 142.6 kg ha−1 and a CV of 34%. The spatial dependence of INS, however, was not strong. Site-specific optimum N rates varied from 0 to 355 kg ha−1 across the seven fields, with an average of 173 kg ha−1 and a CV of 46%. Field-specific N management could save an average of 128 kg N ha−1 compared to typical farmer practices. Both CM and GreenSeeker sensor readings were significantly related to crop N status and demand across different farmer’s fields, showing a good potential for in-season site-specific N management in small scale farming systems. More studies are needed to further evaluate these sensing technology-based PNM strategies in additional farmer fields in the NCP.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7
Fig. 8
Fig. 9

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Bausch, W. C., & Khosla, R. (2010). QuickBird satellite versus ground-based multi-spectral data for estimating nitrogen status of irrigated maize. Precision Agriculture, 11, 274–290.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cambardella, C. A., Moorman, T. B., Nowak, J. M., Parkin, T. B., Karlen, D. L., Turco, R. F., et al. (1994). Field-scale variability of soil properties in central Iowa soils. Soil Science Society of America Journal, 58, 1501–1511.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cui, Z., Chen, X., Miao, Y., Zhang, F., Schrode, J., Zhang, H., et al. (2008a). On-farm evaluation of the improved soil Nmin-based nitrogen management for summer maize in North China Plain. Agronomy Journal, 100, 517–525.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Cui, Z., Zhang, F., Chen, X., Miao, Y., Li, J., Shi, L., et al. (2008b). On-farm evaluation of an in-season nitrogen management strategy based on soil Nmin test. Field Crops Research, 105, 48–55.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cui, Z., Zhang, F., Chen, X., Miao, Y., Li, J., Shi, L., et al. (2008c). On-farm estimation of indigenous nitrogen supply for site-specific nitrogen management in the North China Plain. Nutrient Cycling in Agroecosystems, 81, 37–47.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dao, T. H., Miao, Y. X., & Zhang, F. S. (2011). X-ray fluorescence spectrometry-based approach to precision management of bioavailable phosphorus in soil environments. Journal of Soils and Sediments, 11, 577–588.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Dobermann, A., Witt, C., Dawe, D., Gines, H. C., Nagarajan, R., Satawathananont, S., et al. (2002). Site-specific nutrient management for intensive rice cropping systems in Asia. Field Crops Research, 74, 37–66.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Girma, K., Holtz, S. L., Arnall, D. B., Fultz, L. M., Hanks, T. L., Lawles, K. D., et al. (2007). Weather, fertilizer, previous year yield, and fertilizer levels affect ensuring year fertilizer response of wheat. Agronomy Journal, 99, 1607–1614.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Guo, J. H., Liu, X. J., Zhang, Y., Shen, J. L., Han, W. X., Zhang, W. F., et al. (2010). Significant acidification in major Chinese croplands. Science, 327, 1008–1010.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Han, S., Goering, E. E., & Cahn, M. D. (1994). Cell size selection for site-specific crop management. Transactions of ASAE, 37(1), 19–26.

    Google Scholar 

  • He, C., Wang, X., Liu, X., Fangmeier, A., Christie, P., & Zhang, F. (2010). Nitrogen deposition and its contribution to nutrient inputs to intensively managed agricultural ecosystems. Ecological Applications, 20, 80–90.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hodgen, P. J., Raun, W. R., Johnson, G. V., Teal, R. K., Freeman, K. W., Brixey, K. B., et al. (2005). Relationship between response indices measured in-season and at harvest in winter wheat. Journal of Plant Nutrition, 28, 221–235.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Johnson, G. V., & Raun, W. R. (2003). Nitrogen response index as a guide to fertilizer management. Journal of Plant Nutrition, 26, 249–262.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ju, X. T., Kou, C. L., Zhang, F. S., & Christie, P. (2006). Nitrogen balance and groundwater nitrate contamination: Comparison among three intensive cropping systems on the North China Plain. Environmental Pollution, 143, 117–125.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ju, X. T., Xing, G. X., Chen, X. P., Zhang, S. L., Zhang, L. J., Liu, X. J., et al. (2009). Reducing environmental risk by improving N management in intensive Chinese agricultural systems. Proceedings of National Academy of Sciences USA (PNAS), 106, 3041–3046.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Large, E. C. (1954). Growth stage in cereals. Plant Pathology, 3, 128–129.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lemaire, G., & Gastal, F. (1997). On the critical N concentration in agricultural crops. N uptake and distribution in plant canopies. In L. Gilles (Ed.), Diagnosis of the nitrogen status in crops (pp. 3–44). Heidelberg: Springer.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Lemaire, G., Jeuffroy, M. H., & Gastal, F. (2008). Diagnosis tool for plant and crop N status in vegetative stage. Theory and practices for crop N management. European Journal of Agronomy, 28, 614–624.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Li, F., Miao, Y., Chen, X., Zhang, H., Jia, L., & Bareth, G. (2010a). Estimating winter wheat biomass and nitrogen status using an active crop sensor. Intelligent Automation and Soft Computing, 16(6), 1221–1230.

    Google Scholar 

  • Li, F., Miao, Y., Hennig, S. D., Gnyp, M. L., Chen, X., Jia, L., et al. (2010b). Evaluating hyperspectral vegetation indices for estimating nitrogen concentration of winter wheat at different growth stages. Precision Agriculture, 11, 335–357.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Li, F., Miao, Y., Zhang, F., Cui, Z., Li, R., Chen, X., et al. (2009). In-season optical sensing improves nitrogen use efficiency for winter wheat. Soil Science Society of America Journal, 73, 1566–1574.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lukina, E. V., Freeman, K. W., Wynn, K. J., Thomason, W. E., Mullen, R. W., Stone, M. L., et al. (2001). Nitrogen fertilization of optimization algorithm based on in-season estimates of yield and plant nitrogen uptake. Journal of Plant Nutrition, 24, 885–898.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Miao, Y., Mulla, D. J., Randall, G. W., Vetsch, J. A., & Vintila, R. (2009). Combining chlorophyll meter readings and high spatial resolution remote sensing images for in-season site-specific nitrogen management of corn. Precision Agriculture, 10, 45–62.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Miao, Y., Stewart, B. A., & Zhang, F. (2011). Long-term experiments for sustainable nutrient management in China. A review. Agronomy for Sustainable Development, 31, 397–414.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mullen, R. W., Freeman, K. W., Raun, W. R., Johnson, G. V., Stone, M. L., & Solie, J. B. (2003). Identifying an in-season response index and the potential to increase wheat yield with nitrogen. Agronomy Journal, 95, 347–351.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Parvizi, Y., Ronaghi, A., Maftoun, M., & Karimian, N. A. (2004). Growth, nutrient status, and chlorophyll meter readings in wheat as affected by nitrogen and manganese. Communications in Soil Science and Plant Analysis, 35, 1387–1399.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Peng, S., Buresh, R. J., Huang, J., Zhong, X., Zou, Y., Yang, J., et al. (2010). Improving nitrogen fertilization in rice by site-specific N management. A review. Agronomy for Sustainable Development, 30, 649–656.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Pfeffer, A., Stewart, G., Janovicek, K., & Deen, W. (2010). Evaluation of canopy reflectance technology using a delta yield approach. Agronomy Journal, 102, 1453–1461.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Prost, L., & Jeuffroy, M. H. (2007). Replacing the nitrogen nutrition index by the chlorophyll meter to assess wheat N status. Agronomy for Sustainable Development, 27, 1–10.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Raun, W. R., Solie, J. B., Johnson, G. V., Stone, M. L., Mullen, R. W., Freeman, K. W., et al. (2002). Improving nitrogen use efficiency in cereal grain production with optical sensing and variable rate application. Agronomy Journal, 94, 815–820.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Raun, W. R., Solie, J. B., & Stone, M. L. (2011). Independence of yield potential and crop nitrogen response. Precision Agriculture, 12, 508–518.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Robertson, G. P. (2000). GS+ User’s Guide Version 5. Gamma Design Software. Michigan: Plainwell.

    Google Scholar 

  • Robertson, G. P., Klingensmith, K. M., Klug, M. J., Paul, E. A., Crum, J. R., & Ellis, B. G. (1997). Soil resources, microbial activity, and primary production across an agricultural ecosystem. Ecological Applications, 7, 158–170.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Samborski, S. M., Tremblay, N., & Fallon, E. (2009). Strategies to make use of plant sensors-based diagnostic information for nitrogen recommendations. Agronomy Journal, 101, 800–816.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Scharf, P. C., Brouder, S. M., & Hoeft, R. G. (2006). Chlorophyll meter readings can predict nitrogen need and yield response of corn in the North-Central USA. Agronomy Journal, 98(3), 655–665.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schepers, J. S., Francis, D. D., Vigil, M., & Below, F. E. (1992). Comparison of corn leaf nitrogen concentration and chlorophyll meter readings. Communications in Soil Science and Plant Analysis, 23(7&8), 2173–2187.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Shanahan, J. F., Kitchen, N. R., Raun, W. R., & Schepers, J. S. (2008). Responsive in-season nitrogen management for cereals. Computers and Electronics in Agriculture, 61, 51–62.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Singh, V., Singh, B., Singh, Y., Thind, H. S., & Gupta, R. K. (2010). Need based nitrogen management using the chlorophyll meter and leaf colour chart in rice and wheat in South Asia: A review. Nutrient Cycling in Agroecosystems, 88, 361–380.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Solie, J. B., Raun, W. R., & Stone, M. L. (1999). Sub-meter spatial variability of selected soil and bermudagrass production variables. Soil Science Society of America Journal, 63, 1724–1733.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ulrich, A. (1952). Physiological bases for assessing the nutritional requirements of plants. Annual Review of Plant Physiology, 3, 207–228.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Varvel, G. E., Wilhelm, W. W., Shanahan, J. F., & Schepers, J. S. (2007). An algorithm for corn nitrogen recommendations using a chlorophyll meter based sufficiency index. Agronomy Journal, 99, 701–706.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Zhao, B., Zhang, J. B., Flury, M., Zhu, A. N., Jiang, Q. A., & Bi, J. W. (2007). Groundwater contamination with NO3-N in a wheat-corn cropping system in the North China Plain. Pedosphere, 17, 721–731.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

This research was supported by the National Basic Research Program (973-2009CB118606), Sino-German Cooperative Nitrogen Management Project (2007DFA30850), Special Fund for Agriculture Profession (201103003), and The Innovative Group Grant of NSFC (No. 30821003). The assistance of Mr. Shanchao Yue and Qinping Sun for plant sampling is highly appreciated.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. International Center for Agro-Informatics and Sustainable Development (ICASD), College of Resources and Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing, 100193, China

    Qiang Cao, Zhenling Cui, Xinping Chen & Yuxin Miao

  2. Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA

    Raj Khosla

  3. USDA-ARS, Beltsville, MD, USA

    Thanh H. Dao

Authors
  1. Qiang Cao
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Zhenling Cui
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Xinping Chen
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Raj Khosla
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Thanh H. Dao
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Yuxin Miao
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Yuxin Miao.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Cao, Q., Cui, Z., Chen, X. et al. Quantifying spatial variability of indigenous nitrogen supply for precision nitrogen management in small scale farming. Precision Agric 13, 45–61 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11119-011-9244-3

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11119-011-9244-3

Keywords

Search

Navigation