Economic and Soil Environmental Benefits of Using Controlled‐Release Bulk Blending Urea in the North China Plain

• Published in: Land degradation & development Vol. 28; no. 8; pp. 2370 - 2379
• Main Authors: Zhou, Zijun, Shen, Yazhen, Du, Changwen, Zhou, Jianmin, Qin, Yusheng, Wu, Yuejin
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Chichester Wiley Subscription Services, Inc 01.11.2017
• Subjects: adverse effects; aggregate stability; Aggregates; Agricultural economics; Bacteria; Blending; Cereal crops; China; Communities; Community composition; community structure; Controlled release; controlled‐release urea; Corn; Crop production; Crop yield; Cropping sequence; Cropping systems; Crops; economic benefit; Economics; ecosystem services; edaphic factors; Environmental impact; field experimentation; financial economics; food availability; Food supply; functional diversity; Impact analysis; income; labor; Leaching; Microbial activity; mixing; Moisture content; Nitrogen; nitrogen content; Nutrient release; nutrient use efficiency; Soil aggregates; soil bacteria; Soil environment; soil microbial community; Soil microorganisms; soil minerals; Soil stability; Soil water; soil water‐stable aggregate; split application; summer; Triticum aestivum; Urea; Weight reduction; Wheat; Winter wheat; World population; Zea mays; China

Crop production must be increased in order to ensure a sustainable food supply for the growing world population. Controlled‐release urea (CRU) improves nutrient use efficiency and saves labor, but its use in crop production is limited due to its high cost. Bulk blending urea (BBU) consists of both C...