Effects of maize straw incorporation on soil fertility and crop production in the black soil region of Northeast China

The black soil region in Northern China is the high quality commodity grain production base.However,the high intensity utilization and unreasonable tillage practices have resulted in the reduction in soil fertility,degradation in soil physical properties,soil and water losses,and fragility in ecological environment,which potentially threatens the grain security.Straw incorporation is an agronomic practice in enhancing soil fertility,improving soil physical properties and microbial activities,while several literature have reported the negative impact of straw incorporation on crop yield.This paper reviews researches relevant to the effects of straw incorporation on soil nutrients contents,soil organic carbon,soil physical properties and crop yields in black soil region of Northeast China,which will shed an insight for straw incorporation at regional scale.