Intercropping with wheat lowers nutrient uptake and biomass accumulation of maize, but increases photosynthetic rate of the ear leaf

• Published in: AoB plants Vol. 10; no. 1; p. ply010
• Main Authors: Gou, Fang, van Ittersum, Martin K, Couëdel, Antoine, Zhang, Yue, Wang, Yajun, van der Putten, Peter E L, Zhang, Lizhen, van der Werf, Wopke
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: US Oxford University Press 01.02.2018
• Subjects: Agricultural practices; Centre for Crop Systems Analysis; Chlorophyll; Corn; Crop and Weed Ecology; Crop Physiology; Crop yield; Flowering; Intercropping; Leaf area; Leaves; Leerstoelgroep Plantaardige productiesystemen; Nitrogen; Nutrient uptake; PE&RC; Phosphorus; Photosynthesis; Plant Production Systems; Plantaardige Productiesystemen; Sole cropping; Wheat; stomatal conductance; plasticity; nitrogen; SPAD; Acclimation; phosphorus; Zea mays; Triticum aestivum

Maize and wheat are globally important food crops. The two species can be grown as an intercrop, with substantial land sparing in the order of 20 %, as expressed by a land equivalent ratio of ~1.2. Here, we study nutrient uptake and the photosynthesis rate of intercropped maize and show that nutrien...