Climate-Smart Tillage Practices with Straw Return to Sustain Crop Productivity

Abstract

Climate change seriously threatens global crop production. However, there are few reports on field crop yield and yield components based on long-term different climate conditions. The objectives of this study were to identify and compare the differences in crop yield and yield components in long-term tillage and straw returning under different climate regions. Conventional tillage (CT) and rotary tillage (RT) in combination with no straw return and whole straw return (S) were conducted under a wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)–maize (Zea mays L.) cropping system in cool-wet and warm-dry regions from 2010 to 2019. We hypothesized that long-term suitable tillage under warm-dry or cool-wet regions can increase the yield and components of wheat and maize, and temperature and precipitation had significant effects on crop yield and yield components. Conventional tillage with straw return (CTS) in the warm-dry region and rotary tillage with straw return (RTS) in the cool-wet region can increase the yield and yield components of wheat and maize, respectively, compared with CT. The yield stability of wheat was higher than that of maize under the two climate conditions. Compared with tillage practices, the effects of experimental sites and straw return on crop yield and yield components were more remarkable. The combination of mean temperature, annual precipitation, and yield components explained 75% and 100% of the variance in the wheat yield and maize yield, respectively. The thousand-kernel weight was the key factor in regulating wheat yield, and kernel number was the key factor in regulating maize yield. In conclusion, the combination of rotary tillage in cool-wet regions or conventional tillage in warm-dry regions with straw return is a good technique for increasing crop security.