Nitrogen Reduction Combined with Calcium-Based Amendments Regulates Soil Acidification Buffering and Maize Productivity in Acidified Croplands of Northeast China.
- 1National Engineering Research Center for Efficient Utilization of Soil and Fertilizer Resources, Key Laboratory of Arable Land Conservation in Northeast China, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, College of Land and Environment, Shenyang Agricultural University, Shenyang 110866, China.
- 2School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK.
Abstract
Excessive nitrogen fertilization accelerates soil acidification and threatens soil fertility and crop productivity, highlighting the need for management strategies that reduce nitrogen inputs while maintaining soil function and crop production. This study investigated the effects of nitrogen reduction combined with calcium-based amendments on soil acidity, nutrient availability, and maize productivity in an acidified aquic brown soil. A field experiment was conducted with three nitrogen-reduction levels (10%, 20%, and 30%) and four amendment treatments (no amendment, dolomite, quicklime, and fused calcium-magnesium phosphate fertilizer). The results showed that, under non-amended conditions, greater nitrogen reduction resulted in higher soil pH and measured total exchangeable base cations (TEBC), whereas nitrogen-reduction level had no significant effect on soil pH buffering capacity (pHBC). Among the calcium-based amendments, dolomite and quicklime increased pHBC by 25.3% and 21.4%, respectively, relative to the non-amended treatment, while dolomite generally showed higher measured concentrations of exchangeable Ca²⁺ and Mg²⁺ and higher TEBC. Amendment effects on nutrient availability differed among treatments: fused calcium-magnesium phosphate fertilizer produced the highest available phosphorus, whereas dolomite increased alkali-hydrolyzable nitrogen and generally resulted in higher NH₄⁺-N and available potassium. Maize grain yield was maintained when nitrogen reduction increased from 10% to 20% but declined significantly under 30% nitrogen reduction. Across nitrogen-reduction levels, dolomite was associated with the highest grain yield, exceeding the non-amended and quicklime treatments by 4.1% and 5.4%, respectively. Overall, moderate nitrogen reduction maintained maize productivity, while dolomite showed favorable responses across multiple indicators of soil acidity, exchangeable base-cation status, nutrient availability, and grain yield. These findings highlight the importance of coordinating nitrogen-reduction intensity with amendment-specific effects to balance soil amelioration and maize productivity in acidified croplands.
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BibTeX
@article{liu2026nitrogen,
title = {{Nitrogen Reduction Combined with Calcium-Based Amendments Regulates Soil Acidification Buffering and Maize Productivity in Acidified Croplands of Northeast China.}},
author = {Yiting Liu and Letian Jin and Na Yuan and Mengmeng Bao and Fengzhuo Geng and Dongran Liu and Jiachen Tong and Iseult Lynch and Xiuli Dang},
journal = {Plants (Basel, Switzerland)},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3390/plants15203116},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42943069},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Nitrogen Reduction Combined with Calcium-Based Amendments Regulates Soil Acidification Buffering and Maize Productivity in Acidified Croplands of Northeast China.
AU - Yiting Liu
AU - Letian Jin
AU - Na Yuan
AU - Mengmeng Bao
AU - Fengzhuo Geng
AU - Dongran Liu
AU - Jiachen Tong
AU - Iseult Lynch
AU - Xiuli Dang
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/12
JO - Plants (Basel, Switzerland)
DO - 10.3390/plants15203116
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42943069
AB - Excessive nitrogen fertilization accelerates soil acidification and threatens soil fertility and crop productivity, highlighting the need for management strategies that reduce nitrogen inputs while maintaining soil function and crop production. This study investigated the effects of nitrogen reduction combined with calcium-based amendments on soil acidity, nutrient availability, and maize productivity in an acidified aquic brown soil. A field experiment was conducted with three nitrogen-reduction levels (10%, 20%, and 30%) and four amendment treatments (no amendment, dolomite, quicklime, and fused calcium-magnesium phosphate fertilizer). The results showed that, under non-amended conditions, greater nitrogen reduction resulted in higher soil pH and measured total exchangeable base cations (TEBC), whereas nitrogen-reduction level had no significant effect on soil pH buffering capacity (pHBC). Among the calcium-based amendments, dolomite and quicklime increased pHBC by 25.3% and 21.4%, respectively, relative to the non-amended treatment, while dolomite generally showed higher measured concentrations of exchangeable Ca²⁺ and Mg²⁺ and higher TEBC. Amendment effects on nutrient availability differed among treatments: fused calcium-magnesium phosphate fertilizer produced the highest available phosphorus, whereas dolomite increased alkali-hydrolyzable nitrogen and generally resulted in higher NH₄⁺-N and available potassium. Maize grain yield was maintained when nitrogen reduction increased from 10% to 20% but declined significantly under 30% nitrogen reduction. Across nitrogen-reduction levels, dolomite was associated with the highest grain yield, exceeding the non-amended and quicklime treatments by 4.1% and 5.4%, respectively. Overall, moderate nitrogen reduction maintained maize productivity, while dolomite showed favorable responses across multiple indicators of soil acidity, exchangeable base-cation status, nutrient availability, and grain yield. These findings highlight the importance of coordinating nitrogen-reduction intensity with amendment-specific effects to balance soil amelioration and maize productivity in acidified croplands.
SN - 2223-7747
ER -