Evaluation of Future Maize Yield Changes and Adaptation Strategies in China

Abstract

In the past century, climate change has become more significant, which has a great impact on crop growth, especially food security. Based on the regional climate model PRECIS, high-precision grid climate data in China under RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 scenarios were output, and the high-precision amplification and calibration of crop model DSSAT were calibrated and verified in combination with data of maize planting from 2005 to 2015, including observation data of agrometeorological stations, ecological networking experiment data and maize survey data of agricultural demonstration counties. The impact of climate change on maize production in 2030s and 2050s was evaluated; and the effect of main adaptation strategies to climate change is put forward which could support macro strategies of layout adjustment for the maize production system. The results show that if no countermeasures are taken in the future, the risk of maize yield reduction in China will gradually increase, especially under the RCP8.5 scenario. The risk of maize yield reduction in each main production area will be very prominent in the 2050s under the RCP8.5 scenario, which would be between 10–30%. Compared with a delayed sowing date, an early sowing date would be more conducive to maize production, but there would be some differences in different regions. The heat in the growing season of maize would increase significantly. If the growth time of maize from silking to maturity could be prolonged and the accumulated temperature could be raised, the dry matter accumulation of maize would effectively increase, which would have an obvious effect on yield. Improving grain filling rate is also significant, although the effect of yield increase would be smaller. Therefore, sowing in advance, full irrigation and cultivating varieties with a long reproductive growth period could effectively alleviate the yield reduction caused by climate change. Adjusting maturity type and grain harvest strategy would have a more obvious mitigation effect on yield reduction in northeast China and northern China, and plays a positive role in ensuring future maize yield.

Sustainable Food Consumption and Production in the 21st Century

“…These provinces are leading the nation in maize sown area and total maize production (Figure 2), while the total maize production of the 17 provinces studied accounts for 95.08% of China's total maize production in 2022. They were chosen to be more representative of the study and reflect the changes in maize production in China (Kuo et al, 2022;Shuo et al, 2022).…”

Analysis and Closing of the High-Production-Maize Yield Gap in the Semi-Arid Area of Northeast China

“…Maize is the food crop with the highest yield in the world and the largest planting area in China, accounting for about 30 percent of the total planting area in Northeast China, and it plays a crucial role in agricultural production [1][2][3]. At present, there are three main factors restricting the yield of maize in China, one of which is the shortage of agricultural resources.…”