Temporal and Spatial Dynamics of Soil Salinity after Different Durations of Plastic Film-based Mulching in a Drip-irrigated Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) Field in Southern Xinjiang,China

[Objective] Plastic film-based mulching is widely used to improve water harvesting and crop productivity in semiarid areas. It is also extensively used for cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) production in inland northwestern China, especially in temperature-and rainfall-limited areas. However, it is unclear whether the technology can sustainably maintain the soil water level and salt balance. The primary objectives of this study were as follows: (i) to determine whether different durations of plastic film-based mulching influenced temporal and spatial variations in soil salinity in drip-irrigated cotton fields; and (ii) to determine the optimum duration for plastic film-based mulching. [Method] We imposed six treatments, plastic film-based mulching continuously for 40, 55, 70, 85, and 100 d, as well as a control (CK) for the whole growth period, in drip-irrigated cotton fields in the oasis of southern Xinjiang. [Result] The mean soil water content in the 0–80-cm layers increased as the plastic film-based mulching duration increased. Compared with CK, the soil water content decreased from 14.5% to 7.5% from 40 d to 85 d, and the soil water content of the 100-d film mulching treatment was 4.4% greater than that of the CK. The average soil salt content increased as the plastic film-based mulching duration decreased, and there was a greater influence on the 0–40-cm soil layer than on the 60–80-cm soil layer. The longer the film mulching duration, the greater the salt suppression effect. However, after a plastic film-based mulching duration of more than 100 d, the moisture preservation and salt suppression began to decline. [Conclusion] The 85-d to 100-d period in which salt suppression was associated with plastic film-based mulching approximately covers the whole cotton growth period. These results provide a theoretical basis for the control of soil salinization and for maintaining high yields in the cotton fields of Xinjiang.     

Orchard floor management effects on nitrogen fertility and soil biological activity in a newly established organic apple orchard

This study addresses the often-competing goals of organic fertility and weed control by evaluating alternative orchard floor management strategies for their impact on N cycling, tree performance, and soil biological activity in a newly established apple (Malus domestica Borkh.) orchard. The standard tillage weed control practice resulted in satisfactory tree growth with desirable levels of leaf N and most other nutrients; however, soil biological activity did not improve. Maintenance of a living cover understory increased soil N concentration and availability and improved soil biological activity; however, tree growth was less than in other treatments likely in response to competition with the living cover understory for space and water. Application of wood chip mulch resulted in exceptional tree growth which may have resulted from greater water availability, but available soil N was lower, and consequently, tree leaf N concentration was low; in addition, soil biological activity was not improved. Clove oil organic herbicide provided poor weed control resulting in lower leaf N and tree growth and did not improve soil biological activity. Brassicaceae seed meal applications enhanced N availability and soil nematode abundance, but leaf N and many other nutrients were below desirable levels, and additional research is needed to optimize this treatment. We conclude that meeting the multiple objectives of weed control, optimal tree health, and increased soil biological activity may require employment of different orchard floor management strategies at different times during the life of the orchard.     

民勤县沙漠边缘玉米覆膜穴播栽培试验研究

研究了沙漠边缘玉米覆膜穴播栽培效益,结果表明:覆膜要比当地不覆膜常规栽培增产1586.2kg/hm2,增产率为24.5%,净产值增长16.64%,节水1950～2925m3/hm2,可缓解当地水资源缺乏问题;覆膜栽培具有抑蒸保墒、膨软土壤等多种生态效应;在风大沙多的气候条件下,覆膜穴播栽培中要注意几项技术措施的应用。     

Comparison of Sugar Beet Cropping Systems with Dead and Living Mulch using a Glyphosate-resistant Hybrid

The aim of this study was to evaluate new options for sugar beet mulch systems, using a glyphosate‐resistant hybrid. In four field trials – conducted in 2002 and 2003 at two sites in a major sugar beet‐growing region in the central Germany – three different mulch systems (straw, non‐winterhardy and winterhardy cover crop) and an alternative seedbed preparation method (rotary band tillage) have been tested in comparison with a control treatment (plough, no mulch, broadcast seedbed preparation) representing the common German practice. In all systems, a set of eight different weed control programmes, including two reference treatments, one with selective conventional herbicides and five exclusively using glyphosate, has been evaluated for efficacy. It could be shown that the integration of winterhardy cover crops into sugar beet mulch systems reduced the risk of nitrogen loss by leaching. The changes in the nitrogen dynamics neither influence the yield nor the technical quality of the sugar beet. The field emergence of sugar beet decreased while using a winterhardy cover crop, but was not altered by the seedbed preparation method. Compared with the conventional broadcast seedbed preparation, the rotary band tillage did reduce the weed density. The lowest weed density was observed in the straw mulch system. It was not possible to control the remaining plants of the winterhardy cover crops completely with selective herbicides. If glyphosate was used until the four‐leaf stage of the sugar beet, a regulation of the winterhardy cover crop was achievable. With glyphosate it was also feasible to control older weeds together with the newly emerging ones with post‐emergence applications only. For most of the mulch systems tested, the sugar beet was very sensitive to weed competition between the four‐ and 10‐leaf stage. If the weeds within the sugar beet rows were controlled during this sensitive period with an early glyphosate band application, the remaining weeds between the rows could be left uncontrolled until the 10‐leaf stage of the sugar beet without any yield loss. Only in the combination of winterhardy cover crop × rotary band seedbed preparation, the weeds and cover crop had to be controlled directly after emergence of the sugar beet.     

The effects of alley cropping withLeucaena leucocephala and of different management practices on the productivity of maize and soil chemical properties in lowland coastal Kenya

The effects of leucaena hedgerows, mulching with leucaena foliage (0,50 and 100% of harvested foliage), cowpea intercropping and adition of dairy cattle slurry (55 t ha^–1 per maize crop) on the yield of maize from a sandy soil were assessed. The four-year results from five maize crops are reported.Except in the first year, yields of maize grain and stover were significantly reduced by 30% in the presence of leucaena hedgerows. Use of leucaena mulch eliminated this effect; application of all the harvested leucaena mulch (100%) increased the total maize grain yield of the five crops by 44% over sole maize. Hedgerow and mulching management required an additional 36 mandays labour ha^–1 which was more than compensated by the increased maize yields. Furthermore leucaena hedgerows substantially depressed the growth of weeds between cropping seasons.Intercropping with cowpea significantly depressed yields of maize grain and stover when both crops were sown together, but not in later seasons when cowpea was sown four weeks after the maize. Application of slurry increased the total yields of maize grain and stover by 35 and 37%, respectively. The grain yield of maize in leucaena hedgerow treatments fertilized with slurry did not respond to application of more than 50% of leucaena foliage, which suggested that half of the foliage could be spared for feeding to livestock. The cumulative yield of maize grain from the highest yielding organic system was 85% of the yield from the fertilizer treatment.The study, which is continuing, demonstrates that large increases in agricultural productivity are possible through the intercropping of maize with woody forage and grain legumes and the integration of dairy cattle production into the system. It thus shows the importance of exploiting crop/livestock interactions.     

Simulated Study on Effects of Ground Managements on Soil Water and Available Nutrients in Jujube Orchards

Soil erosion is a key factor affecting sustainable agriculture on Chinese Loess Plateau. A 2‐year study was conducted on jujube trees in a controlled study to compare effects of clean cultivation (CC) with jujube branch mulch (WJBM), strip white clover cover (SWC), strip shallow tillage (ST), jujube branch mulch under tree canopy + strip white clover cover (JBM + SWC) and jujube branch mulch under tree canopy + strip shallow tillage (JMB + ST). The study was on sloping soil (26·7%) in mesocosms (2·0 m × 0·8 m × 0·8 m) using a rainfall simulator. Runoff volume and sediment yield were significantly larger under CC than other treatments (p < 0·05), and were least under WJBM. Water infiltration under CC was significantly less than other treatments (p < 0·05), while it was the largest under WJBM. The available nitrogen (AN) and available phosphorus (AP) runoff loss under CC were significantly larger than others (p < 0·05), and least under WJBM. No differences in soil AN, AP and water‐soluble organic carbon (WSOC) concentrations were detected among all treatments. The soil AN and WSOC concentration under all treatments decreased during the growing season and slightly increased during fallow, while AP concentrations fluctuated but decreased slowly. The WJBM was the best management in this sloping jujube orchard study. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Properties of paper mill sludge-wood fiber-HDPE composites after exposure to xenon-arc weathering

We used paper mill sludge(PMS) to substitute for part of the wood fibers(WF) used to reinforce high density polyethylene(HDPE).The resulting composites were subjected to xenon-arc weathering.The composite filled with limited PMS(under 10 %) had mechanical properties and aging resistance similar to those without PMS.The composites containing more PMS faded and cracked more readily than those without PMS.Based on the carbonyl index,crystallinity,and wood index,PMS appeared to accelerate the degradation of composites during weathering.Adding PMS to WF–HDPE composites reduced the weathering resistance,and this reduction was not significant if the PMS content did not exceed 20 % of the wood fibers.Therefore,PMS could be used as a reinforcement in wood-plastic composites at levels less than20 % of the wood fiber content.     

新疆棉花膜下滴灌技术的应用与发展的思考

棉花膜下滴灌技术是将滴灌技术与覆膜植棉技术的集成，覆膜减少水分蒸发而滴灌控制灌溉可减少深层渗漏。该文重点对膜下滴灌技术的形成与发展及其在新疆棉花能够迅速推广应用的原因进行了详细探讨，最后提出了膜下滴灌在其它地区推广时应注意的问题，切不可生搬硬套新疆棉花膜下滴灌模式。为中国膜下滴灌技术的发展提供参考。     

Effect of Drip Fertigation With and Without Mulch on Soil Hydrothermal Regimes,Growth, Yield,and Quality of Apple (Malus domestica Borkh)

Studies were undertaken to investigate the effect of drip fertigation and conventional fertilizations with and without mulch on the productivity of apple. Soil moisture under fertigation remained greater in the upper 0–30 cm of soil, whereas under conventional surface irrigation, deeper layers registered greater values. Mulch application resulted in 2–4% greater moisture and raised the minimum but lowered the maximum soil temperatures, especially during later growth periods. Available nitrogen (N) and potassium (K) contents under fertigation closely followed the moisture distribution pattern. Irrespective of treatments, available phosphorus (P) remained confined within upper 0- to 20-cm soil depth. Fertigation resulted in 35% greater growth and yield over conventional fertilization with irrigations besides saving 25% in irrigation water. Joint use of fertigation and mulch resulted in comparable growth and yield as unmulched condition and saved 20% in fertilizers and 15% in irrigation water.     

《晨报》的文化空间

现代报业史上,<晨报>是与<申报>、<大公报>并立的著名报纸.晨报社开创的文化空间肇端自清末民众启蒙的理念,它充分展示了现代文化在媒介形式里的表现.<晨报>副刊展示了新文化运动从同人期刊到更为大众的传播时所产生的变化和转折.在这样一个特殊的转型时代,<晨报>所开辟的文化空间里,关乎民众的通俗教育与现代艺术实践并行不悖,而启蒙的话语也散落在报刊、戏剧等多种媒介当中.