IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/agiwat/v321y2025ics0378377425006420.html

Mitigating N leaching and N₂O emissions by combining drip irrigation and reduced fertilization with straw incorporation in greenhouse tomato systems

Author

Listed:
  • Han, Le
  • Zhao, Yiming
  • Peacock, Caroline L.
  • Lv, Haofeng
  • Feng, Puyu
  • Lin, Shan
  • Hu, Kelin

Abstract

Severe nitrogen (N) leaching and increased N2O emissions are major environmental risks for greenhouse vegetable production systems (GVPS) that depend on flood irrigation and overfertilization. Comprehensive research on reducing both simultaneously, however, remains scarce due to their complex trade-off dynamics. In this study, a field experiment was carried out across three tomato growing seasons in GVPS in North China to measure N leaching and N2O emissions under four management practices: CIF (conventional flood irrigation and fertilization), CIFS (CIF + straw), DIF (drip fertigation with reduced N), and DIFS (DIF + straw). The WHCNS_Veg model, calibrated and validated with field data, and quantified the effects of different management practices on drainage, nitrate and dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) leaching, N2O emissions and yields. Compared to conventional fertilization with flood irrigation, drip irrigation with reduced N application decreased average seasonal drainage, N leaching (nitrate and DON) and N2O emissions by 79.3 %, 84.6 % and 82.6 %, respectively. Additionally, it enhanced average seasonal yield, water use efficiency and N use efficiency by 13.0 %, 34.7 % and 147.3 %, respectively. Under flood irrigation, compared to CIF, CIFS reduced overall average seasonal total N leaching by 7.9 % due to a 19.0 % reduction in average seasonal nitrate leaching, but increased average seasonal DON leaching and N2O emissions by 112.9 % and 94.2 %, respectively. Under drip irrigation, straw incorporation had minimal impact on N losses while maintaining high yields. Therefore, combining drip irrigation with reduced N application and straw incorporation is recommended for sustainable and high-yield GVPS cultivation.

Suggested Citation

  • Han, Le & Zhao, Yiming & Peacock, Caroline L. & Lv, Haofeng & Feng, Puyu & Lin, Shan & Hu, Kelin, 2025. "Mitigating N leaching and N₂O emissions by combining drip irrigation and reduced fertilization with straw incorporation in greenhouse tomato systems," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 321(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:agiwat:v:321:y:2025:i:c:s0378377425006420
    DOI: 10.1016/j.agwat.2025.109928
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378377425006420
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.agwat.2025.109928?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. Yang, J.M. & Yang, J.Y. & Liu, S. & Hoogenboom, G., 2014. "An evaluation of the statistical methods for testing the performance of crop models with observed data," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 127(C), pages 81-89.
    2. Han, Feng & Zheng, Yi & Zhang, Ling & Xiong, Rui & Hu, Zhaoping & Tian, Yong & Li, Xin, 2023. "Simulating drip irrigation in large-scale and high-resolution ecohydrological models: From emitters to the basin," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 289(C).
    3. Zotarelli, L. & Dukes, M.D. & Scholberg, J.M.S. & Muñoz-Carpena, R. & Icerman, J., 2009. "Tomato nitrogen accumulation and fertilizer use efficiency on a sandy soil, as affected by nitrogen rate and irrigation scheduling," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 96(8), pages 1247-1258, August.
    4. Li, Zhuo Ting & Yang, J.Y. & Drury, C.F. & Hoogenboom, G., 2015. "Evaluation of the DSSAT-CSM for simulating yield and soil organic C and N of a long-term maize and wheat rotation experiment in the Loess Plateau of Northwestern China," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 135(C), pages 90-104.
    5. Yu, Yaze & Jiao, Yan & Yang, Wenzhu & Song, Chunni & Zhang, Jing & Liu, Yubin, 2022. "Mechanisms underlying nitrous oxide emissions and nitrogen leaching from potato fields under drip irrigation and furrow irrigation," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 260(C).
    6. Delbaz, Reza & Ebrahimian, Hamed & Abbasi, Fariborz & Ghameshlou, Arezoo N. & Liaghat, Abdolmajid & Ranazadeh, Dariush, 2023. "A global meta-analysis on surface and drip fertigation for annual crops under different fertilization levels," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 289(C).
    7. Ye, X.H. & Han, B. & Li, W. & Zhang, X.C. & Zhang, Y.L. & Lin, X.G. & Zou, H.T., 2018. "Effects of different irrigation methods on nitrous oxide emissions and ammonia oxidizers microorganisms in greenhouse tomato fields," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 203(C), pages 115-123.
    8. Xin Zhang & Eric A. Davidson & Denise L. Mauzerall & Timothy D. Searchinger & Patrice Dumas & Ye Shen, 2015. "Managing nitrogen for sustainable development," Nature, Nature, vol. 528(7580), pages 51-59, December.
    9. Liang, Hao & Lv, Haofeng & Batchelor, William D. & Lian, Xiaojuan & Wang, Zhengxiang & Lin, Shan & Hu, Kelin, 2020. "Simulating nitrate and DON leaching to optimize water and N management practices for greenhouse vegetable production systems," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 241(C).
    10. Li, Haoru & Mei, Xurong & Wang, Jiandong & Huang, Feng & Hao, Weiping & Li, Baoguo, 2021. "Drip fertigation significantly increased crop yield, water productivity and nitrogen use efficiency with respect to traditional irrigation and fertilization practices: A meta-analysis in China," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 244(C).
    11. Li, Jungai & Liu, Hongbin & Wang, Hongyuan & Luo, Jiafa & Zhang, Xuejun & Liu, Zhaohui & Zhang, Yitao & Zhai, Limei & Lei, Qiuliang & Ren, Tianzhi & Li, Yan & Bashir, Muhammad Amjad, 2018. "Managing irrigation and fertilization for the sustainable cultivation of greenhouse vegetables," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 210(C), pages 354-363.
    12. Zotarelli, Lincoln & Scholberg, Johannes M. & Dukes, Michael D. & Muñoz-Carpena, Rafael & Icerman, Jason, 2009. "Tomato yield, biomass accumulation, root distribution and irrigation water use efficiency on a sandy soil, as affected by nitrogen rate and irrigation scheduling," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 96(1), pages 23-34, January.
    13. Liang, Hao & Hu, Kelin & Batchelor, William D. & Qin, Wei & Li, Baoguo, 2018. "Developing a water and nitrogen management model for greenhouse vegetable production in China: Sensitivity analysis and evaluation," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 367(C), pages 24-33.
    14. Li, Bo & Wim, Voogt & Shukla, Manoj Kumar & Du, Taisheng, 2021. "Drip irrigation provides a trade-off between yield and nutritional quality of tomato in the solar greenhouse," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 249(C).
    15. Zhang, Hongyuan & Batchelor, William D. & Hu, Kelin & Liang, Hao & Han, Hui & Li, Ji, 2022. "Simulation of N2O emissions from greenhouse vegetable production under different management systems in North China," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 470(C).
    16. Li, Yong & White, Robert & Chen, Deli & Zhang, Jiabao & Li, Baoguo & Zhang, Yuming & Huang, Yuanfang & Edis, Robert, 2007. "A spatially referenced water and nitrogen management model (WNMM) for (irrigated) intensive cropping systems in the North China Plain," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 203(3), pages 395-423.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    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. Liang, Hao & Lv, Haofeng & Batchelor, William D. & Lian, Xiaojuan & Wang, Zhengxiang & Lin, Shan & Hu, Kelin, 2020. "Simulating nitrate and DON leaching to optimize water and N management practices for greenhouse vegetable production systems," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 241(C).
    2. Zhang, Hongyuan & Batchelor, William D. & Hu, Kelin & Liang, Hao & Han, Hui & Li, Ji, 2022. "Simulation of N2O emissions from greenhouse vegetable production under different management systems in North China," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 470(C).
    3. Li, Zhuoting & Yang, J.Y. & Drury, C.F. & Yang, X.M. & Reynolds, W.D. & Li, Xiaogang & Hu, Chunsheng, 2017. "Evaluation of the DNDC model for simulating soil temperature, moisture and respiration from monoculture and rotational corn, soybean and winter wheat in Canada," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 360(C), pages 230-243.
    4. Liang, Hao & Chen, Qing & Liang, Bin & Hu, Kelin, 2020. "Modeling the effects of long-term reduced N application on soil N losses and yield in a greenhouse tomato production system," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 185(C).
    5. Dou, Zhiyao & Feng, Hanlong & Zhang, Hao & Abdelghany, Ahmed Elsayed & Zhang, Fucang & Li, Zhijun & Fan, Junliang, 2023. "Silicon application mitigated the adverse effects of salt stress and deficit irrigation on drip-irrigated greenhouse tomato," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 289(C).
    6. Bonfante, A. & Monaco, E. & Manna, P. & De Mascellis, R. & Basile, A. & Buonanno, M. & Cantilena, G. & Esposito, A. & Tedeschi, A. & De Michele, C. & Belfiore, O. & Catapano, I. & Ludeno, G. & Salinas, 2019. "LCIS DSS—An irrigation supporting system for water use efficiency improvement in precision agriculture: A maize case study," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 176(C).
    7. Cui, Wenyi & Zhou, Tiantian & Levintal, Elad & García, Cristina Prieto & Kisekka, Isaya & Dahlke, Helen E., 2025. "Modeling the impact of agricultural managed aquifer recharge (Ag-MAR) on soil water and nitrogen dynamics of the growing season," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 317(C).
    8. Katsoulas, N. & Sapounas, A. & De Zwart, F. & Dieleman, J.A. & Stanghellini, C., 2015. "Reducing ventilation requirements in semi-closed greenhouses increases water use efficiency," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 156(C), pages 90-99.
    9. Getong Liu & Jiajun Sun & Chenfeng Liu & Huading Shi & Yang Fei & Chen Wang & Guilong Zhang & Hongjie Wang, 2025. "Progress and Trends in Research on Soil Nitrogen Leaching: A Bibliometric Analysis from 2003 to 2023," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(1), pages 1-23, January.
    10. Shi, Xinrui & Batchelor, William D. & Liang, Hao & Li, Sien & Li, Baoguo & Hu, Kelin, 2020. "Determining optimal water and nitrogen management under different initial soil mineral nitrogen levels in northwest China based on a model approach," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 234(C).
    11. Dai, Zhiguang & Fei, Liangjun & Huang, Deliang & Zeng, Jian & Chen, Lin & Cai, Yaohui, 2019. "Coupling effects of irrigation and nitrogen levels on yield, water and nitrogen use efficiency of surge-root irrigated jujube in a semiarid region," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 213(C), pages 146-154.
    12. Fullana-Pericàs, Mateu & Conesa, Miquel À. & Douthe, Cyril & El Aou-ouad, Hanan & Ribas-Carbó, Miquel & Galmés, Jeroni, 2019. "Tomato landraces as a source to minimize yield losses and improve fruit quality under water deficit conditions," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 223(C), pages 1-1.
    13. Wen, Shenglin & Cui, Ningbo & Wang, Yaosheng & Gong, Daozhi & Xing, Liwen & Wu, Zongjun & Zhang, Yixuan & Wang, Zhihui, 2024. "Determining effect of fertilization on reactive nitrogen losses through nitrate leaching and key influencing factors in Chinese agricultural systems," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 303(C).
    14. Qin, Shujing & Li, Sien & Kang, Shaozhong & Du, Taisheng & Tong, Ling & Ding, Risheng & Wang, Yahui & Guo, Hui, 2019. "Transpiration of female and male parents of seed maize in northwest China," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 213(C), pages 397-409.
    15. Müller, T. & Ranquet Bouleau, C. & Perona, P., 2016. "Optimizing drip irrigation for eggplant crops in semi-arid zones using evolving thresholds," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 177(C), pages 54-65.
    16. Namdarian, Dorsa & Boroomand-Nasab, Saeid & Gorooei, Aram & Gaiser, Thomas & Solymani, Asma & Naseri, Abdali & dos Santos Vianna, Murilo, 2024. "Determination of the optimum depth for subsurface dripping irrigation of sugarcane under crop residue management," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 303(C).
    17. Liu, Kai & Liao, Huan & Hao, Haibo & Hou, Zhenan, 2024. "Water and nitrogen supply at spatially distinct locations improves cotton water productivity and nitrogen use efficiency and yield under drip irrigation," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 296(C).
    18. Li, Shengping & Tan, Deshui & Wu, Xueping & Degré, Aurore & Long, Huaiyu & Zhang, Shuxiang & Lu, Jinjing & Gao, Lili & Zheng, Fengjun & Liu, Xiaotong & Liang, Guopeng, 2021. "Negative pressure irrigation increases vegetable water productivity and nitrogen use efficiency by improving soil water and NO3–-N distributions," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 251(C).
    19. Guida, Gianpiero & Sellami, Mohamed Houssemeddine & Mistretta, Carmela & Oliva, Marco & Buonomo, Roberta & De Mascellis, Roberto & Patanè, Cristina & Rouphael, Youssef & Albrizio, Rossella & Giorio, P, 2017. "Agronomical, physiological and fruit quality responses of two Italian long-storage tomato landraces under rain-fed and full irrigation conditions," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 180(PA), pages 126-135.
    20. Liang, Hao & Xu, Junzeng & Hou, Huijing & Qi, Zhiming & Yang, Shihong & Li, Yawei & Hu, Kelin, 2022. "Modeling CH4 and N2O emissions for continuous and noncontinuous flooding rice systems," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 203(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    JEL classification:

    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:321:y:2025:i:c:s0378377425006420. 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.