Land use change from paddy rice to sugarcane under long-term no-till conditions: increase P balance, soil organic matter and sugarcane productivity

ABSTRACT

Expanding sugarcane (SC) cultivation at the expense of paddy rice (PRC) areas led to soil nutrient cycling changes. The study hypothesized that SC straw return and fertilizer application after land use change (LUC) from PRC to SC cropping would increase the soil-crop systems nutrient balance, ultimately enhancing growth, yield, and nutrient use efficiency of SC. In a field study involving a 17-year chronosequence of sugarcane 6 (SC6), 13 (SC13), and 17 (SC17) years after LUC, the nutrient balance dynamics of SC were monitored in comparison with those of PRC. A phosphorus (P) balance increase of 62–102% after LUC increased soil available P (P_av) from 5.2 to 13.6–16.0 mg kg⁻¹. A potassium (K) balance decrease of 47–55% after LUC led to a decrease in soil exchangeable K (K_ex) from 102.5 to 96.2–56.8 mg kg⁻¹. Moreover, LUC increased the % sand, soil organic matter (SOM), total mineral nitrogen (N), and total N. In contrast, the % clay, bulk density, cation exchange capacity (CEC_pH7), and exchangeable calcium (Ca_ex) decreased after LUC. An increase in soil nutrients increased cane yield and nutrient use efficiency with time after LUC. However, further research in different locations and management practices is required for the LUC investigation.

HIGHLIGHTS

• LUC in combination with tillage improved soil chemical properties, leading to increased sugarcane yield (SC6 > SC13 > SC17) and nutrient use efficiency.

• In a system without tillage, after land use change (LUC), the percentage of sand, SOM, P_av and mineral N increased, while the percentage of clay, bulk density, CEC_pH7, K_ex, and Ca_ex decreased.

• Sugarcane (SC) had a greater P balance than paddy rice (PRC) after LUC, leading to an increase in soil available P.

• K inputs from rice straw return promoted a greater K balance in PRC than in SC.

KEYWORDS:

• Soil texture
• nutrient use efficiency
• sugarcane straw
• rice straw

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

The data are available upon request from the authors.

Supplementary material

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed online at https://doi.org/10.1080/03650340.2024.2330496.

Additional information

Funding

The study was supported by the Thailand Research Fund through the Royal Golden Jubilee Ph.D. Program [Grant number PHD/0136/2558], Fundamental Fund of Khon Kaen University [fiscal year 2023] grant number 66A103000179, TRF-DAAD Project-Based Personnel Exchange Programme [PPP 2017] and Northeast Thailand Cane and Sugar Research Center, Khon Kaen University.” as “The study was supported by the Thailand Research Fund through the Royal Golden Jubilee Ph.D. Program [Grant number PHD/0136/2558] and Khon Kaen University [fiscal year 2023] has received funding support from the National Science Research and Innovation Fund (NSRF) grant number 66A103000179, TRF-DAAD Project-Based Personnel Exchange Programme [PPP 2017] and Northeast Thailand Cane and Sugar Research Center, Khon Kaen University.