Applying geostatistics to determine the soil quality improvement by Jerusalem artichoke in coastal saline zone

Abstract

a b s t r a c tThe plant growth characteristics are spatially variable due to inherent variability in soil properties and other parameters of the landscape. In the study, the plot size in the field was 670 m in length (south-north direction), and 70 m in width. The stem height and diameter were measured in October, and tuber yield was evaluated in December 2012. The salt content of 0-5, 5-10 and 10-20 cm depth of soil was measured. The morphological characteristics and normal distribution test were analyzed by descriptive statistics using Matlab. The collaborative kriging interpolation and the distribution of spatial heterogeneity of related parameters were analyzed using GS+ software. Soil salt content increased with increasing soil depth. At the same soil depth, the salt content was higher in the north than the south part. The root fresh weights, tuber number, stem height and diameter of Jerusalem artichoke were relatively larger in the north than the south. The distributions of tuber fresh weight and tuber number in space were similar. The Pearson correlation coefficient between tuber fresh weight and tuber number was up to 0.70. Jerusalem artichoke's morphological characteristics were directly related to soil salt content. Inherent variability of position and soil properties could strongly influence the morphological characteristics of Jerusalem artichoke.

Balance between salt stress and endogenous hormones influence dry matter accumulation in Jerusalem artichoke

“…Soil salinity decreases the soil resource value, causes huge losses to the production agriculture and poses a threat to the environment, thus representing the economic and environmental hazards (Long et al, 2014). The degree of soil salinization in China is generally high, making it difficult for crops to survive.…”

The endogenous plant hormones and ratios regulate sugar and dry matter accumulation in Jerusalem artichoke in salt-soil

“…Tubers can also be used as animal feed, for producing purified inulin and high fructose syrup, or for fermentation into bioethanol or other biochemicals by suitable microorganisms (Li et al, 2013;Long et al, 2016). However, Jerusalem artichoke can be considered a non-food crop due to poor digestibility of inulin and its low calorific value compared to other carbohydrate sources (Gunnarsson et al, 2014;Baldini et al, 2004); in contrast, it appears to be a potential feedstock candidate in view of large biomass production, particularly on poor soils and in extreme environments (Kays and Nottingham, 2007;Long et al, 2014). A sufficiently high level of carbohydrate accumulation is essential for tuber formation.…”

Carbon sequestration and Jerusalem artichoke biomass under nitrogen applications in coastal saline zone in the northern region of Jiangsu, China

“…Compared with the traditional agricultural crops, Jerusalem artichoke has advantages in high growth rate, good tolerance to salt, frost, drought and infertile soils, strong resistance to pests and diseases, and the minimal-to-zero fertilizer requirements (Afoakwah et al, 2015). Jerusalem artichoke could produce large biomass and is a potentially useful crop for producing biofuel, such as bioethanol (Long et al, 2014;Krivorotova and Sereikaite, 2014). It produces high yield of edible tubers, which are rich in inulin (10-20% of fresh tuber weight) (Gunnarsson et al, 2014;Panchev et al, 2011).…”

“…However, very few studies have been performed to characterize the effects of nitrogen fertilizer on biological carbon sequestration by Jerusalem artichoke and soil carbon storage in coastal saline zone. In order to fully utilize saline soils, we hereby propose to grow Helianthus tuberosus, which could be of particular importance in countries with scarce arable land and fresh water resources (Long et al, 2014). The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of different N fertilization rates on biomass, carbon density and carbon sequestration of Jerusalem artichoke together with soil carbon storage, thus providing a basis for research on optimizing fertilizer management of Jerusalem artichoke in coastal saline zone.…”