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Legume/Maize Intercropping and N Application for Improved Yield, Quality, and Water and N Utilisation in Forage Crops under Arid Conditions in Northwest China


 Aim

Legume/maize intercropping systems have been used in many developing countries. However, the effects of such systems on crop yield, quality, water-use efficiency (WUE), and N-use efficiency (NUE) were differed with the use of different legume crops and fertilizer application rates.
Methods

In the present study, field experiments were carried out in arid areas of Northwest China from 2019 to 2020 with three planting patterns (LM: lablab bean/silage maize intercropping; FM: forage soybean/silage maize intercropping; M: silage maize monoculture) and four N application levels (N1: 0 kg ha−1; N2: 120 kg ha−1; N3: 240 kg ha−1; N4: 360 kg ha−1).
Results

Compared with N1, the N3 and N4 treatments significantly increased fresh and hay grass yield, crude protein yield, crude protein content, and crude fat content of silage maize, legumes, and the whole system, and decreased the content of neutral detergent fibre (NDF) and acid detergent fibre (ADF). Compared with N1, the 2-year average total hay yield of N3 and N4 increased by 60.38% and 56.45%, respectively, and the total crude protein yield increased by 106.71% and 100.00%, respectively. Compared with N1, the N3 and N4 treatments significantly increased WUEB, N content, N uptake, and NUE, and the 2-year average NUE of N3 was 59.52% higher than that of N4. Compared with M, LM and FM increased crude protein content and decreased NDF and ADF content, and the forage quality of LM was higher than that of FM.
Conclusions

Compared with M, LM and FM increased hay yield by 3.70% and 1.72%, crude protein yield by 32.05% and 22.82%, and WUEB by 10.49% and 6.02%, respectively. Among all treatments, LM-N3 had the highest total fresh and hay yield, crude protein yield, N uptake, WUEB, and NUE in two years.