Effects of ridge and furrow rainfall harvesting system on <i>Elymus sibiricus</i> yield in Bashang agro-pastoral zone of China

Abstract

A ridge-furrow rainfall harvesting system (RFRHS) was designed to increase the available soil water for  Elymus sibiricus artificial grassland in order to improve and stabilize its yield in the agro-pastoral zone of  Bashang region in North China. Field experiments were conducted during the growth seasons in 2008 to 2010 to evaluate the effects of the RFRH system on soil temperature, soil water content and the yield of E. sibiricus. Specifically, the following three systems were investigated: ridge width 60 cm and furrow width 30 cm  (MR60), ridge width 30 cm and furrow width 30 cm (MR30) and flat (CK). The results show that in regrowth  periods, average daily minimum temperature of MR30 and MR60 in the furrow soil surface was 3.22 and  2.16°C, which were significantly higher than that of CK. Soil water content of MR60, was higher than that of MR30 and the latter was higher than that of CK in most of the experimental periods. Due to the improved hydrothermal condition, the three year average of annual yields of MR60 and MR30 was 3.14 and 2.77 t ha^-1, which was significantly higher and increased by 99 and 75% compared with CK, respectively.

Key words: Elymus sibiricus, ridge-furrow rainfall harvesting system (RFRHS), semi-arid area, perennial grassland, soil temperature, soil moisture.