SUMMARYUnderstanding the physiological mechanisms of biomass accumulation and partitioning in the grain, and the nitrogen (N) uptake associated with different plant densities and N management strategies, is essential for achieving both high yield and N use efficiency (NUE) in maize plants. A field experiment was conducted in 2013 and 2014, using five rates of N application and three plant densities (6·0, 7·5 and 9·0 plants/m2) in Quzhou County on the North China Plain (NCP). The objective was to evaluate whether higher plant density can produce more biomass allocated to the grain to achieve higher grain yield and to determine the optimal N management strategies for different plant densities. The highest grain yield and NUE were achieved in the 7·5 plants/m2 treatment; both the sub-optimal (6·0 plants/m2) and supra-optimal (9·0 plants/m2) plant densities resulted in diminished yield and NUE. Compared to 6·0 plants/m2, the 7·5 plants/m2 treatment displayed higher biomass accumulation during the grain-filling period and also exhibited more biomass allocated to kernels with similar total biomass accumulation compared with the 9·0 plants/m2 treatment, which contributed to its higher grain yield. The N uptake in the 7·5 plants/m2 treatment was similar to that in the 9·0 plants/m2 treatment up to pre-silking. However, the post-silking N uptake of the 7·5 plants/m2 treatment was 66·4 kg/ha, which was 29·1% higher than that of the 9·0 plants/m2 treatment. Furthermore, the highest maize grain yield was achieved in the 0·7 × optimal N rate (ONR × 0·7), ONR and ONR × 1·3 treatments for 6·0, 7·5 and 9·0 plants/m2, respectively, which suggests that different N management strategies are needed for different plant densities. In conclusion, selecting a planting density of 7·5 plants/m2 with an in-season root zone N management is a potentially effective strategy for achieving high grain yield and high NUE for maize production on the NCP.

Nitrogen (N) is often the most limiting mineral nutrient for taro growth. Two experiments were carried out under hydroponics conditions to determine the effects of varying solution N levels and N form on taro (Colocasia esculenta L. Schott cv. Bun Long) growth and foliar nutrient concentrations for 42 days. In the first experiment, taro plants were grown at six NH4NO3 levels (0, 0.25, 0.5, 1.0, 2.0, and 4.0 mm N). In the second experiment, taro plants were grown at a total N level of 3 mm with five nitrate (NO3-): ammonium (NH4+) percent molar ratios (100:0, 75:25, 50:50, 25:75, and 0:100). In the N level experiment, dry matter and leaf area increased up to 2 mm N and then decreased at the highest N level. The reduced growth of taro at the highest N level was attributed in part to a high NH4+ level that reduced uptake or translocation of cations, such as Ca2+, Mg2+, and Mn2+. Nitrogen concentration in leaf blades increased with increasing N levels. The critical foliar N concentration that coincided with 95% of maximum growth based on a quadratic model was 40.4 g·kg-1 (dry weight basis). In the N form experiment, NO3-: NH4+ ratios of 75:25 or 100:0 favored greater plant growth compared to other treatments. Taro plants grown in NH4+-rich solutions drastically acidified the solution pH, and had retarded growth and smaller leaf area compared to those grown in NO3--rich solutions.

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Little information is available about the changes of the proton charge of goethite in the presence of phosphate (P) and humic acid (HA). The objectives of this study were to systematically measure the proton charge of the ternary mixture and adsorption of HA and P on goethite. The potentiometric titration method was used to measure proton charges in single, binary, and ternary mixtures of goethite, HA, and P as a function of pH and ionic strengths. Results showed that proton charge in the ternary mixture became more negative with increasing pH and the loadings of HA and P. The point of zero charge (PZC) decreased linearly with the initial concentrations of HA and P. At low to intermediate pH, little variation was observed in adsorption of P on goethite in the presence of HA. A small reduction in the adsorption of P in the presence of HA was observed when compared with the control (without HA loading) at high pH. In 2008, Weng et al. developed a model describing the electrostatic interaction between HA and P at the 1‐plane of the compact part of the electrical double layer (EDL). In this study, Weng et al.'s model was used to interpret the effect of adsorbed HA on the adsorption of P on goethite as well as the nonsignificant interaction of PZC between HA and P.