Quantifying stoichiometry of crop N and P acquisition(i.e.removal from farmland)under different agronomic practices is essential for understanding nutrient budgets and optimizing N and P fertilizer application in agroecosystems.It is not clear how plant N and P uptake and N:P stoichiometry vary between monoculture and intercropping throughout an entire growing season under different N fertilization and mulching practices.Here,we addressed how plant interspecific competition for nutrients have affected the temporal dynamics of crop N and P uptake(and N:P ratios)in five cropping systems(wheat,maize and barley monocultures,and wheat/maize and barley/maize intercropping),under two N levels(0 and 225 kg N ha^(−1))and two maize mulching treatments(with and without).Wheat and barley had greater N and P competitive ability than maize,leading to an increase in N and P uptake of wheat and barley and a decrease in N and P uptake of maize during co-growth stages in intercropping.N:P ratios of three crop species decreased with plant growth.Crop-level N:P ratios were either not affected by intercropping or did not change consistently with N fertilization while film mulching decreased maize N:P ratios.Community-level N:P ratios of the two intercrops were different from those of the corresponding monoculture at maturity.Because(i)the proportion of N and P removal from intercropping differs from monocultures,and(ii)N and P uptake by crops is decoupled under N fertilization and mulching,these findings may have practical implications for the nutrient budget of intercropping systems.
Wei-Ping ZhangDario FornaraGuang-Cai LiuJosep PeñuelasJordi SardansJian-Hao SunLi-Zhen ZhangLong Li
