Response of wheat grain protein content to organic material return in China:A Meta-analysis
The return of organic materials(such as straw and organic fertilizers)to the field affects the nutritional quality of wheat grains.This study conducted a Meta-analysis based on literature data published by Chinese research stations before September 30,2023.A total of 393 observations from 65 studies were synthesized,and subgroups such as nitrogen application rate,soil baseline or-ganic matter content,annual average temperature,and annual average rainfall were used to assess the impact of organic materials re-turn on wheat grain protein content(GPC)in China.The results showed that straw return could enhance wheat GPC.Among differ-ent subgroups of straw return,the improvement in GPC was most pronounced under a nitrogen rate of 151-200 kg·hm-2.A straw re-turn amount>9 000 kg·hm-2 had the greatest positive effect,while soil baseline organic matter content ≥21 g·kg-1under straw return significantly boosted wheat GPC.The return of rice and maize straw also had a significant positive effect.Optimal improvements in GPC were observed under an average annual temperature of 21-25 ℃ and average annual precipitation>800 mm.In contrast,organ-ic fertilizer applicaiton reduced wheat GPC.Specifically,the complete(100%)and partial(75%)replacement of inorganic fertilizer with organic fertilizer significantly decreased GPC,while reductions were smaller with 25%and 50%organic fertilizer substitution.For organic fertilizer return subgroups,nitrogen rate of 151-200 and 251-300 kg·hm-2 combined with 25%or 50%organic fertilizer substitution improved wheat GPC.High soil background organic matter content(baseline organic matter content ≥21 g·kg-1)par-tially mitigated the loss in GPC.Furthermore,50%organic fertilizer substitution improved GPC under an annual average temperature of 21-25 ℃ and average annual precipitation>800 mm.Overall,straw return had a positive effect on wheat GPC across regions in China,whereas organic fertilizer return primarily showed a negative effect.These findings provide scientific evidence for enhancing wheat grain protein content through organic materials return in China.