The response of wheat yield, water productivity, and partial factor productivity of nitrogen to straw return and biochar application: a global meta-analysis
4 affiliations
- 1College of Resources and Environment, Henan Agricultural University
- 2Yellow River Institute of Hydraulic Research, Yellow River Conservancy Commission
- 3State Key Laboratory of Soil Erosion and Dryland Farming on the Loess Plateau, Northwest A&F University
- 4Postdoctoral station of Crop science, Henan Agricultural University
Abstract
Straw return (SR) and biochar application (BA) are widely used organic amendments with potential to improve wheat productivity and resource-use efficiency. However, their responses across environmental and field-management conditions remain poorly synthesized. We conducted a global multilevel meta-analysis of 2,242 yield, 1,239 water productivity (WP), and 1,988 partial factor productivity of nitrogen (PFPN) observation pairs from 385 publications. SR increased wheat yield, WP, and PFPN by 8.31%, 8.76%, and 8.28%, respectively, whereas BA increased them by 10.34%, 11.48%, and 9.96%. Subgroup and Random Forest analyses showed that the magnitude of these benefits was mainly associated with soil properties and field management. Lower nitrogen inputs favored the yield and PFPN responses to SR, whereas increasing biochar application rate strengthened yield and PFPN responses to BA. Water supply was an important predictor of WP under both amendments. These results demonstrate that SR and BA can simultaneously enhance wheat productivity and water and nitrogen use. Their agronomic benefits can be further improved by matching amendment practices with local soil fertility, water availability, and nutrient-management conditions.
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BibTeX
@article{yang2026response,
title = {{The response of wheat yield, water productivity, and partial factor productivity of nitrogen to straw return and biochar application: a global meta-analysis}},
author = {Zhihao Yang and Weiwei Chen and Mingan Lu and Penghui Ma and Xing Yu and Ling Li and Shufang Wu and Yajin Hu},
journal = {Frontiers in Plant Science},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.3389/fpls.2026.1923733},
url = {https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpls.2026.1923733/full},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - The response of wheat yield, water productivity, and partial factor productivity of nitrogen to straw return and biochar application: a global meta-analysis
AU - Zhihao Yang
AU - Weiwei Chen
AU - Mingan Lu
AU - Penghui Ma
AU - Xing Yu
AU - Ling Li
AU - Shufang Wu
AU - Yajin Hu
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/30
JO - Frontiers in Plant Science
DO - 10.3389/fpls.2026.1923733
UR - https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpls.2026.1923733/full
AB - Straw return (SR) and biochar application (BA) are widely used organic amendments with potential to improve wheat productivity and resource-use efficiency. However, their responses across environmental and field-management conditions remain poorly synthesized. We conducted a global multilevel meta-analysis of 2,242 yield, 1,239 water productivity (WP), and 1,988 partial factor productivity of nitrogen (PFPN) observation pairs from 385 publications. SR increased wheat yield, WP, and PFPN by 8.31%, 8.76%, and 8.28%, respectively, whereas BA increased them by 10.34%, 11.48%, and 9.96%. Subgroup and Random Forest analyses showed that the magnitude of these benefits was mainly associated with soil properties and field management. Lower nitrogen inputs favored the yield and PFPN responses to SR, whereas increasing biochar application rate strengthened yield and PFPN responses to BA. Water supply was an important predictor of WP under both amendments. These results demonstrate that SR and BA can simultaneously enhance wheat productivity and water and nitrogen use. Their agronomic benefits can be further improved by matching amendment practices with local soil fertility, water availability, and nutrient-management conditions.
SN - 1664-462X
ER -