Effects of Water and Nitrogen on Grain Filling Characteristics, Canopy Microclimate with Chalkiness of Directly Seeded Rice

Abstract

In order to determine how to reduce the chalkiness of rice grains through irrigation modes and nitrogen (N) fertilizer management. The experiment was designed using three irrigation modes (flooding (W1), dry–wet alternating (W2), and dry alternating (W3)), three N application strategies (under 150 kg ha−1, the application ratio of base:tiller:panicle fertilizer (30%:50%:20% (N1), 30%:30%:40% (N2), and 30%:10%:60% (N3)), and zero N as the control (N0) in 2019 and 2020. The results revealed that water–nitrogen interactions had a significant or extremely significant effect on the chalkiness characteristics of the superior and inferior grains. Compared with W1 and W3 treatments, W2 coupled with the N1 application strategy can further optimize grain filling characteristics and canopy microclimate parameters, thereby reducing grain chalkiness. Correlation analysis revealed that increasing grain filling parameters (Gmax or Gmean) and mean grain filling rates (MGRs) during the mid-filling stage in superior grains of the primary branches and inferior grains of the secondary branches, which were important factors in water–nitrogen interaction effects, could further reduce chalkiness. Improving the canopy microclimate (daily average temperature difference and daily average light intensity difference) during the early-filling stage for inferior grains and the mid-filling stage for superior grains could be another important method to reduce chalkiness.