Grain yield and nitrogen use efficiency of an ultrashort-duration variety grown under different nitrogen and seeding rates in direct-seeded and double-season rice in Central China

Nitrogen(N) and seeding rates are important factors affecting grain yield and N use efficiency(NUE) in directseeded rice. However, these factors have not been adequately investigated on direct-seeded and double-season rice(DDR) in Central China. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of various N and seeding rates on the grain yield and NUE of an ultrashort-duration variety grown under DDR. Field experiments were conducted in 2018 in Wuxue County and 2019 in Qichun County, Hubei Province, China with four N rates and three seeding rates.The results showed that the grain yield of the ultrashort-duration variety ranged from 6.32 to 8.23 t ha–1with a total growth duration of 85 to 97 days across all treatments with N application. Grain yield was increased significantly by N application in most cases, but seeding rate had an inconsistent effect on grain yield. Furthermore, the response of grain yield to the N rates was much higher than the response to seeding rates. The moderate N rates of 100–150 and 70–120 kg N ha–1in the early and late seasons, respectively, could fully express the yield potential of the ultrashort-duration variety grown under DDR. Remarkably higher N responses and agronomic NUE levels were achieved in the early-season rice compared with the late-season rice due to the difference in indigenous soil N supply capacity(INS) between the two seasons. Seasonal differences in INS and N response should be considered when crop management practices are optimized for achieving high grain yield and NUE in ultrashort-duration variety grown under DDR.

Comparison of yield performance between direct-seeded and transplanted double-season rice using ultrashort-duration varieties in central China

Labor scarcity requires double-season rice to be planted by direct seeding as an alternative to transplanting. Only ultrashort-duration varieties can be used in direct-seeded, double-season rice(DSD) in central China where thermal time is limited. Whether ultrashort-duration varieties grown in DSD can be as productive and efficient in nitrogen(N) use as transplanted double-season rice(TPD) remains unclear. Field experiments were conducted in Hubei province, central China with two establishment methods(DSD,TPD) and three N rates in the early and late seasons of 2017 and 2018. Nitrogen treatments included zero-N control(N0), total N rate of 60 kg N ha;with equal splits at basal, midtillering, and panicle initiation(N1), and weekly N application at 15 kg ha;from seeding/transplanting to heading(N2). Both early-and late-season rice under DSD matured within 95 days, on average 9 days shorter than rice under TPD. The grain yield of DSD was comparable to or higher than that of TDP in both seasons, although the daily yield was significantly higher under DSD than under TDP. Before heading, DSD had higher leaf area,stem number, intercepted radiation, and radiation use efficiency than TPD, which compensated for the negative effect of short growth duration on biomass production. Total dry weight and harvest index under DSD were comparable to or higher than those under TDP. In general, the recovery efficiency of fertilizer-N under DSD was higher than that under TPD, but the reverse was true for physiological N use efficiency. Thus, there was no significant difference in agronomic N use efficiency between DSD and TPD. These results suggested that DSD with ultrashort-duration varieties is a promising alternative to TPD in central China for maintaining high grain yield and N fertilizer use efficiency with less labor input.

Grain yield and lodging-related traits of ultrashort-duration varieties for direct-seeded and double-season rice in Central China

Lodging is the most common constraint on grain yield of direct-seeded rice.There is limited information about lodging resistance and its related plant traits in direct-seeded and double-season rice(DDR)in Central China.This study aims to identify the plant traits that achieve high lodging resistance in ultrashort-duration varieties(about 95 days)of DDR.Field experiments were conducted in 2017 and 2018 in Wuxue County,Hubei Province,China,with four ultrashort-duration varieties grown under two nitrogen(N)rates.Lodging-related traits were measured on the 15 th day after heading,and yield and yield attributes were measured at maturity.The grain yield of the four varieties ranged from 4.59 to 7.61 t ha^(-1)across the two N rates,with a total growth duration of 85 to 97 days.Varietal differences in lodging index were mainly explained by the bending moment,which was closely related to plant height.Breaking resistance did not affect the lodging index significantly.Shortening plant height from 95.4 to 80.5 cm decreased the lodging index by 22.4%but did not reduce grain yield.Our results suggested that reducing plant height was effective in improving the lodging resistance of ultrashort-duration varieties of DDR.Lodging resistance should be enhanced by improving breaking resistance rather than reducing plant height to increase DDR grain yield further.

Formula for Determining Number of Basic Seedlings at Scattered-Planting with Seedling Dry-Raised on Plastic Trays in Double-Season Rice

The tiller emergence in seedling nursery beds and field, and panicle formation in the field were investigated under scattered-planting with seedling dry-raised on plastic trays in double-season rice. A significant difference was noted in the non-synchronously-emerged tillers （the tillers that formed from latent buds and did not emerge following the normal tillering law on seedling nursery beds and recovered to grow after scattered-planting or transplanting） as well as the percentage of the available synchronously-emerged tillers between seedlings raised on plastic trays under dry-land conditions （DPT） and seedlings raised on nursery beds under wetland conditions （WB）. The seedlings under DPT had some non-synchronously-emerged tillers, but those under WB had not. Therefore, the traditional formula for determining the number of rice seedlings was improved, and the formula for determining the number of basic seedlings under scattered planting with DPT in double-season rice was introduced. For early rice, it was X=Y/{（I＋t1r1）[1＋（N-n-SN）Rr2]＋（SN-3-t1）R2r5}, and for late rice, it was X=Y/{（1＋t1r1）[1＋（N-n-SN）Rr2]＋（N-n-SN-3）Rr2R1r3＋（SN-3-t1）R2r5}. Where, X represents reasonable number of basic seedlings per unit area at scattered-planting; Y, number of fitting panicles per unit area; t1, total number of tillers per plant; r1, percentage of the total available tillers; N, total number of leaves of the main culm; n, total number of elongated internodes in the main culm; SN, seedling leaf ages at scattered-planting; R, percentage of the primary tillers emerged in available node-position; r2, percentage of the available primary tillers; R1, percentage of the secondary tillers in the field （except the secondary tillers of the seedlings）; r3, percentage of the available secondary tillers; R2, percentage of the asynchronously-emerged tillers after scattered-planting; r5, percentage of the available non-synchronously-emerged tillers after scattered-planting.