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Chinese Agricultural Science Bulletin ›› 2026, Vol. 42 ›› Issue (12): 1-7.doi: 10.11924/j.issn.1000-6850.casb2025-0669

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Impact of Water and Fertilizer Management on Maize Dry Matter Accumulation and Yield in Hilly Areas of Central Sichuan

DU Xue1(), LIU Yonghong2,3(), YANG Qin1,3(), LIU Yuchi1,3, YUE Lijie1,3, CHEN Yufeng1,3, LI Yingzheng1,4, KE Guohua1   

  1. 1 Crop Research Institute of Sichuan Academy of Agricultural Sciences (Sichuan Germplasm Resource Center), Chengdu 610066
    2 Sichuan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Chengdu 610066
    3 Sichuan Provincial Key Laboratory of South Hilly Area Water-saving Agriculture Research, Chengdu 610066
    4 Sichuan Provincial Key Laboratory of Grain and Oil Crops Germplasm Resources Innovation and Genetic Improvement, Chengdu 610066
  • Received:2025-08-04 Revised:2026-03-11 Online:2026-06-25 Published:2026-06-23

Abstract:

This study investigated the effects of different water and fertilizer application methods on dry matter accumulation, partitioning and yield of maize in the hilly region of central Sichuan, to elucidate the synergistic regulation mechanism of water and fertilizer, thereby providing a theoretical basis for alleviating drought stress during the early grain-filling stage and establishing a high-yield mechanized cultivation model. Using the maize cultivar ‘Chengdan 716’ as the test material, three treatments were implemented: integrated water and fertilizer management (YT), separate water and fertilizer application (FL) and a control group (CK). Parameters including dry matter accumulation, leaf area index (LAI), SPAD values, population photosynthetic potential, and yield components were measured to analyze the regulatory effects of different water and fertilizer management strategies. The results demonstrated that compared with CK, the YT treatment significantly increased maize yield by 23% (P<0.05). The 1000-kernel weight increased by 11%, ear diameter and kernel number per row increased by 3.1% and 23.1%, respectively. Moreover, the bald tip rate decreased by 45.7%. The YT treatment also resulted in higher dry matter accumulation, translocation, and contribution to grain yield from pre-silking vegetative organs compared to the FL treatment, with increases of 8.8%, 2.3%, and 1.7%, respectively (P<0.05). During the R1 to R(1+30 d) period, the population photosynthetic potential under YT was 21.2% higher than that of CK. At the milk stage, the LAI of YT was significantly greater than that of FL and CK. The peak grain-filling rate under YT occurred earlier, at 23 days after silking (milk stage), with a maximum grain-filling rate 66.3% higher than that of CK (P<0.05). In summary, integrated water and fertilizer management significantly enhanced kernel weight and yield by optimizing dry matter partitioning, improving population photosynthetic potential, and accelerating the grain-filling process. This study provided technical support for stress-resistant high-yield maize production and efficient water and fertilizer management in the hilly areas of central Sichuan.

Key words: maize, water and fertilizer application methods, dry matter accumulation and partitioning, population photosynthetic potential, yield

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