Trade-offs of saline irrigation on crop productivity across China: A meta-analysis
Saline water irrigation has been widely recognized as a promising agricultural management strategy to mitigate freshwater scarcity in China. Yet, the consensus on its impacts on crop productivity remains elusive due to the significant heterogeneity in experimental conditions and influencing factors....
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2025-09-01
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| Series: | Agricultural Water Management |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378377425004044 |
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| author | Zhenjiang Jia Yangyang Wu Wangcheng Li Zixuan Jia Yahao Huang Haowen Xu Guangxing Zhao Xiaocui Yao |
| author_facet | Zhenjiang Jia Yangyang Wu Wangcheng Li Zixuan Jia Yahao Huang Haowen Xu Guangxing Zhao Xiaocui Yao |
| author_sort | Zhenjiang Jia |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Saline water irrigation has been widely recognized as a promising agricultural management strategy to mitigate freshwater scarcity in China. Yet, the consensus on its impacts on crop productivity remains elusive due to the significant heterogeneity in experimental conditions and influencing factors. This study therefore conducted a meta-analysis synthesizing 78 publications comprising 1682 paired field observations in China to reveal the differential responses of crop yield, water productivity (WP), and irrigation water productivity (IWP) to saline water irrigation at a regional scale, focusing specifically on soil and water properties, agronomic management practices, and environmental variables. Results showed that saline water irrigation significantly reduced crop yield (15.81 %), WP (7.85 %), and IWP (14.65 %) within China compared to freshwater irrigation. All three indicators exhibited pronounced sensitivity to both irrigation water quality and site-specific conditions. Implemented agronomic optimizations could effectively alleviate the adverse impacts induced by saline water irrigation practices. Both random forest and structural equation modeling demonstrated that crop productivity was co-determined by irrigation water parameters, initial soil attributes, cultivation practices, and regional environments. Therefore, we recommend using of neutral, low-quality brackish water for short-term irrigation combined with cultivating cash crops in low-density, medium-textured, low-salinity neutral soils with high organic matter content, integrated with management practices comprising chemical fertilization, conventional irrigation, and surface mulching. This integrated approach demonstrates enhanced potential for simultaneously maintaining yield, WP and IWP, particularly in semi-humid regions with deep groundwater tables. Our findings underscore the importance of location-specific optimization of agricultural management practices for the application of saline water irrigation in China. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-c00eb928173a4ba2af8d985313eb7e15 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1873-2283 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-09-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Agricultural Water Management |
| spelling | doaj-art-c00eb928173a4ba2af8d985313eb7e152025-08-20T03:32:08ZengElsevierAgricultural Water Management1873-22832025-09-0131810969010.1016/j.agwat.2025.109690Trade-offs of saline irrigation on crop productivity across China: A meta-analysisZhenjiang Jia0Yangyang Wu1Wangcheng Li2Zixuan Jia3Yahao Huang4Haowen Xu5Guangxing Zhao6Xiaocui Yao7School of Civil and Hydraulic Engineering, Ningxia University, Yinchuan 750021, ChinaSchool of Civil and Hydraulic Engineering, Ningxia University, Yinchuan 750021, ChinaSchool of Civil and Hydraulic Engineering, Ningxia University, Yinchuan 750021, China; Engineering Research Center for Efficient Utilization of Modern Agricultural Water Resources in Arid Regions, Ministry of Education, Yinchuan 750021, China; State Key Laboratory of Land Degradation and Ecological Restoration in Northwest China, Yinchuan 750021, China; Key Laboratory of the Internet of Water and Digital Water Governance of the Yellow River in Ningxia, Yinchuan 750021, China; Corresponding author at: School of Civil and Hydraulic Engineering, Ningxia University, Yinchuan 750021, China.College of Agriculture, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing 210095, ChinaSchool of Civil and Hydraulic Engineering, Ningxia University, Yinchuan 750021, ChinaSchool of Civil and Hydraulic Engineering, Ningxia University, Yinchuan 750021, ChinaXinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi 830011, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Tree Genetics and Breeding, Co-Innovation Center for Sustainable Forestry in Southern China, Key Laboratory of Forest Genetics and Biotechnology of Ministry of Education, International Joint Laboratory on Forest Genetics and Germplasm Innovation, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, ChinaSaline water irrigation has been widely recognized as a promising agricultural management strategy to mitigate freshwater scarcity in China. Yet, the consensus on its impacts on crop productivity remains elusive due to the significant heterogeneity in experimental conditions and influencing factors. This study therefore conducted a meta-analysis synthesizing 78 publications comprising 1682 paired field observations in China to reveal the differential responses of crop yield, water productivity (WP), and irrigation water productivity (IWP) to saline water irrigation at a regional scale, focusing specifically on soil and water properties, agronomic management practices, and environmental variables. Results showed that saline water irrigation significantly reduced crop yield (15.81 %), WP (7.85 %), and IWP (14.65 %) within China compared to freshwater irrigation. All three indicators exhibited pronounced sensitivity to both irrigation water quality and site-specific conditions. Implemented agronomic optimizations could effectively alleviate the adverse impacts induced by saline water irrigation practices. Both random forest and structural equation modeling demonstrated that crop productivity was co-determined by irrigation water parameters, initial soil attributes, cultivation practices, and regional environments. Therefore, we recommend using of neutral, low-quality brackish water for short-term irrigation combined with cultivating cash crops in low-density, medium-textured, low-salinity neutral soils with high organic matter content, integrated with management practices comprising chemical fertilization, conventional irrigation, and surface mulching. This integrated approach demonstrates enhanced potential for simultaneously maintaining yield, WP and IWP, particularly in semi-humid regions with deep groundwater tables. Our findings underscore the importance of location-specific optimization of agricultural management practices for the application of saline water irrigation in China.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378377425004044Saline waterCrop productivityField managementInfluencing factorsMeta-analysis |
| spellingShingle | Zhenjiang Jia Yangyang Wu Wangcheng Li Zixuan Jia Yahao Huang Haowen Xu Guangxing Zhao Xiaocui Yao Trade-offs of saline irrigation on crop productivity across China: A meta-analysis Agricultural Water Management Saline water Crop productivity Field management Influencing factors Meta-analysis |
| title | Trade-offs of saline irrigation on crop productivity across China: A meta-analysis |
| title_full | Trade-offs of saline irrigation on crop productivity across China: A meta-analysis |
| title_fullStr | Trade-offs of saline irrigation on crop productivity across China: A meta-analysis |
| title_full_unstemmed | Trade-offs of saline irrigation on crop productivity across China: A meta-analysis |
| title_short | Trade-offs of saline irrigation on crop productivity across China: A meta-analysis |
| title_sort | trade offs of saline irrigation on crop productivity across china a meta analysis |
| topic | Saline water Crop productivity Field management Influencing factors Meta-analysis |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378377425004044 |
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