Abstract
Cultivated land quality is critical for soil productivity and scientific fertilization. This
study analyzed its evolution and impact on soil productivity across three ecological
regions (southern, central, and northern Shanxi) in Shanxi Province, China, from 1998 to
2021). Using data from 8 long-term experimental sites (1998–2021) and 50 monitoring
stations (2016–2021), we employed random forest analysis to evaluate temporal trends in
key soil indicators. The results show the following: (1) Northern Shanxi exhibited the
greatest improvement in soil fertility, with organic matter increasing by 98.2%, total
nitrogen by 57.2%, available phosphorus by 131.7%, and available potassium by 17.1%.
(2) Nitrogen fertilizer application increased across all regions, while phosphorus and
potassium inputs generally declined. (3) Crop yields improved substantially — southern
Shanxi wheat and maize increased by 15.3% and 20.9%, respectively, while central and
northern Shanxi maize yields rose by 30.9% and 75.4%. Random forest models identified
regional characteristics (40%), nitrogen fertilization (20%), and available phosphorus
(18%) as primary influencing factors. Although cultivated land quality improved overall,
soil fertility remained medium to low. Region-specific management strategies are
recommended: rational nitrogen use in all regions; nitrogen control with phosphorus
supplementation in the south; focused improvement of available phosphorus and
potassium in the center; and increased organic fertilizer in the north. These measures
support scientific nutrient management and sustainable agricultural production.
study analyzed its evolution and impact on soil productivity across three ecological
regions (southern, central, and northern Shanxi) in Shanxi Province, China, from 1998 to
2021). Using data from 8 long-term experimental sites (1998–2021) and 50 monitoring
stations (2016–2021), we employed random forest analysis to evaluate temporal trends in
key soil indicators. The results show the following: (1) Northern Shanxi exhibited the
greatest improvement in soil fertility, with organic matter increasing by 98.2%, total
nitrogen by 57.2%, available phosphorus by 131.7%, and available potassium by 17.1%.
(2) Nitrogen fertilizer application increased across all regions, while phosphorus and
potassium inputs generally declined. (3) Crop yields improved substantially — southern
Shanxi wheat and maize increased by 15.3% and 20.9%, respectively, while central and
northern Shanxi maize yields rose by 30.9% and 75.4%. Random forest models identified
regional characteristics (40%), nitrogen fertilization (20%), and available phosphorus
(18%) as primary influencing factors. Although cultivated land quality improved overall,
soil fertility remained medium to low. Region-specific management strategies are
recommended: rational nitrogen use in all regions; nitrogen control with phosphorus
supplementation in the south; focused improvement of available phosphorus and
potassium in the center; and increased organic fertilizer in the north. These measures
support scientific nutrient management and sustainable agricultural production.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | 2346 |
| Journal | Agronomy |
| Volume | 15 |
| Issue number | 10 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 05 Oct 2025 |
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- Evolution of cultivated land quality and its impact on productivity in three arid ecological zones of northern China
Copyright 2025 the authors. This is an open access article published under a Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the author and source are cited.