Summary
This laboratory study examined how six years of straw incorporation affects nitrous oxide emissions from protected vegetable soils under varying nitrogen fertiliser inputs. Straw incorporation significantly mitigated fertiliser-induced N₂O emissions across all nitrogen rates whilst reducing intermediate nitrogen compound accumulation, though it increased carbon dioxide fluxes and accelerated oxygen depletion. The findings suggest straw incorporation offers a sustainable management practice for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in intensive protected vegetable production systems.
Regional applicability
The study was conducted on Chinese protected vegetable soils and may have limited direct applicability to United Kingdom conditions, which differ in climate, soil type, and cropping systems. However, the mechanistic findings regarding straw incorporation's impact on N₂O emissions could inform UK horticulture and protected cropping systems, though localised field validation would be necessary to confirm transferability.
Key measures
Cumulative N₂O emission fluxes; fertiliser-induced N₂O emission factors; cumulative CO₂ emissions; O₂ depletion rates; soil ammonium, nitrite and nitrate contents
Outcomes reported
The study measured nitrous oxide, carbon dioxide and oxygen dynamics in greenhouse vegetable soils with and without 6-year straw incorporation across five urea-nitrogen application rates using laboratory aerobic incubations. Results showed that straw incorporation significantly reduced cumulative N₂O emissions and fertiliser-induced N₂O emission factors at all nitrogen rates, whilst increasing CO₂ emissions and accelerating oxygen depletion.
Topic tags
Dig deeper with Pulse AI.
Pulse AI has read the whole catalogue. Ask about this record, its theme, or how the findings apply to UK farming and policy — every answer cites the underlying studies.