IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/agiwat/v309y2025ics0378377425000411.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Crop root system phenotyping with high water-use efficiency and its targeted precision regulation: Present and prospect

Author

Listed:
  • Kang, Jian
  • Ding, Risheng
  • Chen, Jinliang
  • Wu, Siyu
  • Gao, Weichen
  • Wen, Zilu
  • Tong, Ling
  • Du, Taisheng

Abstract

Roots are essential to crop survival and productivity, especially under drought conditions where efficient water use efficiency (WUE) is critical for enhancing crop resilience and ensuring food security. This paper explores recent advancements in understanding and optimizing root system architecture (RSA) to enhance WUE, focusing on how genetic, physiological, and environmental factors shape RSA for improved water absorption and drought resilience in major field crops. Root system traits play key roles in accessing water efficiently, and precision manipulation of these traits holds promise for mitigating water scarcity impacts on agriculture. Emerging technologies like multi-omics approaches, which integrate genomics, transcriptomics, and metabolomics, alongside high-throughput imaging techniques, enable comprehensive root phenotyping and real-time monitoring of RSA under varying conditions. These advancements facilitate the identification of key regulatory genes and molecular pathways responsible for efficient water uptake, opening doors to targeted crop breeding and engineering. Additionally, the use of plant growth regulators, plant growth promoting rhizobacteria, and precision irrigation strategies are presented as practical methods to optimize RSA for WUE. The paper also emphasizes the need for interdisciplinary approaches, integrating crop genetics, environmental sciences, and precision agriculture to optimize RSA for sustainable water management. This study highlights the significance of RSA in improving crop productivity under water-limited conditions, offering actionable insights for future research aimed at developing drought-resistant crops and optimizing water resources. By filling the existing research gap, this paper provides a comprehensive framework for advancing field crop resilience through the integration of RSA shaping, advanced technologies, and improved water management practices.

Suggested Citation

  • Kang, Jian & Ding, Risheng & Chen, Jinliang & Wu, Siyu & Gao, Weichen & Wen, Zilu & Tong, Ling & Du, Taisheng, 2025. "Crop root system phenotyping with high water-use efficiency and its targeted precision regulation: Present and prospect," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 309(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:agiwat:v:309:y:2025:i:c:s0378377425000411
    DOI: 10.1016/j.agwat.2025.109327
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378377425000411
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.agwat.2025.109327?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to

    for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Jiao, Fengli & Ding, Risheng & Du, Taisheng & Kang, Jian & Tong, Ling & Gao, Jia & Shao, Jie, 2024. "Multi-growth stage regulated deficit irrigation improves maize water productivity in an arid region of China," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 297(C).
    2. Xiao, Chao & Ji, Qingyuan & Zhang, Fucang & Li, Yi & Fan, Junliang & Hou, Xianghao & Yan, Fulai & Liu, Xiaoqiang & Gong, Kaiyuan, 2023. "Effects of various soil water potential thresholds for drip irrigation on soil salinity, seed cotton yield and water productivity of cotton in northwest China," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 279(C).
    3. Zhang, Jili & Wang, Peng & Long, Huaiyu & Su, Shanshan & Wu, Yige & Wang, Hongrong, 2022. "Metabolomics analysis reveals the physiological mechanism underlying growth restriction in maize roots under continuous negative pressure and stable water supply," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 263(C).
    4. Kang, Jian & Hao, Xinmei & Zhou, Huiping & Ding, Risheng, 2021. "An integrated strategy for improving water use efficiency by understanding physiological mechanisms of crops responding to water deficit: Present and prospect," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 255(C).
    5. C.H. Yang & Q. Chai & G.B. Huang, 2010. "Root distribution and yield responses of wheat/maize intercropping to alternate irrigation in the arid areas of northwest China," Plant, Soil and Environment, Czech Academy of Agricultural Sciences, vol. 56(6), pages 253-262.
    6. Prem Chandra Pandey & Manish Pandey, 2023. "Highlighting the role of agriculture and geospatial technology in food security and sustainable development goals," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 31(5), pages 3175-3195, October.
    7. Manzoor H. Dar & Showkat A. Waza & Sarvesh Shukla & Najam W. Zaidi & Swati Nayak & Mosharaf Hossain & Arvind Kumar & Abdelbagi M. Ismail & Uma S. Singh, 2020. "Drought Tolerant Rice for Ensuring Food Security in Eastern India," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(6), pages 1-17, March.
    8. Singh, Atinderpal & Deb, Sanjit K. & Slaughter, Lindsey C. & Singh, Sukhbir & Ritchie, Glen L. & Guo, Wenxuan & Saini, Rupinder, 2023. "Simulation of root zone soil water dynamics under cotton-silverleaf nightshade interactions in drip-irrigated cotton," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 288(C).
    9. Ma, Shou-tian & Wang, Tong-chao & Ma, Shou-Chen, 2022. "Effects of drip irrigation on root activity pattern, root-sourced signal characteristics and yield stability of winter wheat," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 271(C).
    10. Zhang, Yuhao & Hou, Renjie & Fu, Qiang & Li, Tianxiao & Li, Mo & Cui, Song & Dong, Wencai, 2023. "Drip irrigation impacts on the root zone soil environment and enrichment characteristics of heavy metals in soybean," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 288(C).
    11. Shimeles, Abebe & Verdier-Chouchane, Audrey & Boly, Amadou, 2018. "Introduction: Understanding the Challenges of the Agricultural Sector in Sub-Saharan Africa," Monographs: Applied Economics, AgEcon Search, number 302432.
    12. Birthal, Pratap S. & Hazrana, Jaweriah & Negi, Digvijay S. & Pandey, Ghanshyam, 2021. "Benefits of irrigation against heat stress in agriculture: Evidence from wheat crop in India," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 255(C).
    13. Mekonen Ayana Gebul, 2021. "Trend, Status, and Challenges of Irrigation Development in Ethiopia—A Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(10), pages 1-16, May.
    14. Kang, Shaozhong & Hao, Xinmei & Du, Taisheng & Tong, Ling & Su, Xiaoling & Lu, Hongna & Li, Xiaolin & Huo, Zailin & Li, Sien & Ding, Risheng, 2017. "Improving agricultural water productivity to ensure food security in China under changing environment: From research to practice," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 179(C), pages 5-17.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Li, Haotian & Liu, Na & Shao, Liwei & Liu, Xiuwei & Sun, Hongyong & Chen, Suying & Zhang, Xiying, 2025. "Changes in root growth and water uptake contribute to the yield and water productivity improvement in winter wheat during the past three decades: A case study in the North China Plain," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 313(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Gao, Jia & Li, Lin & Ding, Risheng & Kang, Shaozhong & Du, Taisheng & Tong, Ling & Kang, Jian & Xu, Wanli & Tang, Guangmu, 2025. "Grain yield and water productivity of maize under deficit irrigation and salt stress: Evidences from field experiment and literatures," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 307(C).
    2. Tang, Zijun & Lu, Junsheng & Xiang, Youzhen & Shi, Hongzhao & Sun, Tao & Zhang, Wei & Wang, Han & Zhang, Xueyan & Li, Zhijun & Zhang, Fucang, 2024. "Farmland mulching and optimized irrigation increase water productivity and seed yield by regulating functional parameters of soybean (Glycine max L.) leaves," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 298(C).
    3. Ran, Junjun & Ran, Hui & Ma, Longfei & Jennings, Stewart A. & Yu, Tinggao & Deng, Xin & Yao, Ning & Hu, Xiaotao, 2023. "Quantifying water productivity and nitrogen uptake of maize under water and nitrogen stress in arid Northwest China," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 285(C).
    4. Xing, Yingying & Chen, Mengru & Wang, Xiukang, 2025. "Enhancing water use efficiency and fruit quality in jujube cultivation: A review of advanced irrigation techniques and precision management strategies," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 307(C).
    5. Cao, Zhaodan & Zhu, Tingju & Cai, Ximing, 2023. "Hydro-agro-economic optimization for irrigated farming in an arid region: The Hetao Irrigation District, Inner Mongolia," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 277(C).
    6. Ren, Dongyang & Xu, Xu & Engel, Bernard & Huang, Quanzhong & Xiong, Yunwu & Huo, Zailin & Huang, Guanhua, 2021. "A comprehensive analysis of water productivity in natural vegetation and various crops coexistent agro-ecosystems," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 243(C).
    7. Wu, Zhangsheng & Li, Yue & Wang, Rong & Xu, Xu & Ren, Dongyang & Huang, Quanzhong & Xiong, Yunwu & Huang, Guanhua, 2023. "Evaluation of irrigation water saving and salinity control practices of maize and sunflower in the upper Yellow River basin with an agro-hydrological model based method," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 278(C).
    8. Zhang, Shulin & Su, Xiaoling & Singh, Vijay P & Ayantobo, Olusola Olaitan & Xie, Juan, 2018. "Logarithmic Mean Divisia Index (LMDI) decomposition analysis of changes in agricultural water use: a case study of the middle reaches of the Heihe River basin, China," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 208(C), pages 422-430.
    9. El-Saied E. Metwaly & Hatim M. Al-Yasi & Esmat F. Ali & Hamada A. Farouk & Saad Farouk, 2022. "Deteriorating Harmful Effects of Drought in Cucumber by Spraying Glycinebetaine," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 12(12), pages 1-16, December.
    10. Yang, Danni & Li, Sien & Kang, Shaozhong & Du, Taisheng & Guo, Ping & Mao, Xiaomin & Tong, Ling & Hao, Xinmei & Ding, Risheng & Niu, Jun, 2020. "Effect of drip irrigation on wheat evapotranspiration, soil evaporation and transpiration in Northwest China," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 232(C).
    11. Fu, Yuanhong & Ding, Guijie & Quan, Wenxuan & Zhao, Xizhou & Tao, Qinghong, 2024. "Coupling optimization of water-fertilizer for coordinated development of the environment and growth of Pinus massoniana seedlings," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 300(C).
    12. Jovanovic, N. & Pereira, L.S. & Paredes, P. & Pôças, I. & Cantore, V. & Todorovic, M., 2020. "A review of strategies, methods and technologies to reduce non-beneficial consumptive water use on farms considering the FAO56 methods," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 239(C).
    13. Dániel Fróna & János Szenderák & Mónika Harangi-Rákos, 2019. "The Challenge of Feeding the World," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(20), pages 1-18, October.
    14. Li, Xiaolin & Tong, Ling & Niu, Jun & Kang, Shaozhong & Du, Taisheng & Li, Sien & Ding, Risheng, 2017. "Spatio-temporal distribution of irrigation water productivity and its driving factors for cereal crops in Hexi Corridor, Northwest China," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 179(C), pages 55-63.
    15. Ran, Hui & Kang, Shaozhong & Li, Fusheng & Du, Taisheng & Tong, Ling & Li, Sien & Ding, Risheng & Zhang, Xiaotao, 2018. "Parameterization of the AquaCrop model for full and deficit irrigated maize for seed production in arid Northwest China," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 203(C), pages 438-450.
    16. Zhang, Fengtai & Xiao, Yuedong & Gao, Lei & Ma, Dalai & Su, Ruiqi & Yang, Qing, 2022. "How agricultural water use efficiency varies in China—A spatial-temporal analysis considering unexpected outputs," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 260(C).
    17. Li, Zhi & Fang, Gonghuan & Chen, Yaning & Duan, Weili & Mukanov, Yerbolat, 2020. "Agricultural water demands in Central Asia under 1.5 °C and 2.0 °C global warming," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 231(C).
    18. Miodrag Tolimir & Branka Kresović & Katarina Gajić & Violeta Anđelković & Milan Brankov & Marijana Dugalić & Boško Gajić, 2024. "Integrated effect of irrigation rate and plant density on yield, yield components and water use efficiency of maize," Plant, Soil and Environment, Czech Academy of Agricultural Sciences, vol. 70(8), pages 475-482.
    19. Vaiknoras, Kate A. & Larochelle, Catherine & Alwang, Jeffrey, 2021. "How the adoption of drought-tolerant rice varieties impacts households in a non-drought year: Evidence from Nepal," 2021 Annual Meeting, August 1-3, Austin, Texas 313877, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    20. França, Ana Carolina Ferreira & Coelho, Rubens Duarte & da Silva Gundim, Alice & de Oliveira Costa, Jéfferson & Quiloango-Chimarro, Carlos Alberto, 2024. "Effects of different irrigation scheduling methods on physiology, yield, and irrigation water productivity of soybean varieties," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 293(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:agiwat:v:309:y:2025:i:c:s0378377425000411. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/agwat .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.