Research on Regulating the Effect of Different Mulching Measures on Root Spatial Distribution and the Root-Shoot Ratio of Maize

Abstract

The effects of four types of mulching models (surface tillage with straw mulching, no-tillage with straw mulching on furrow, no-tillage with stubble mulching, and no-tillage with straw mulching on ridge and furrow) on the root spatial distribution and the relationship between the roots and shoots of maize were investigated using stratified digging methods, with maize as the test crop. The distribution of maize roots was cone shaped and gradually extended from 20 cm to 40 cm below the surface during the elongation stage. Under the different mulch tillage models, the effects on maize root growth were positive. The mulching measures significantly affected the control and support of the early and later stages of maize growth. The maize significantly differed in the root weight density (P=0.026<0.05) and the root surface area (P =0.005<0.01) with different mulching measures. No-tillage with straw mulching on the ridge and furrow was the only mulching model in which the growth of the roots and leaves of maize was limited. However, the other maize growth measures were better than conventional tillage. In addition, no-tillage with straw mulching on the ridge and furrow had an advantage in terms of the growth of the surface roots, while stubble mulching and strip mulching had advantages in terms of the growth of deep roots and radial roots, respectively. Surface tillage with straw mulching was an ideal cultivation method for the cold and arid regions of North China and had significant advantages in terms of the growth of the root weight, root surface area and root-shoot ratio.