The Era of Integrated Water and Fertilizer Management in Agriculture Has Arrived

To accelerate the development of water-saving agriculture and integrated water–fertilizer management, it is essential to vigorously promote and popularize advanced, practical technologies for enhancing fertilizer efficiency. Recently, the “Training Workshop on New Fertilizer Technologies and National On-site Conference on Integrated Water–Fertilizer Management for Enhanced Efficiency” was successfully held in Juxian County, Rizhao City, Shandong Province. The event was co-organized by the National Agricultural Technology Extension Service Center and Sinochem Agriculture, with support from Sinochem (Yantai) Crop Nutrition Co., Ltd., Dongying Wuzhoufeng Ecological Agriculture Co., Ltd., and Xiaodian Hengshan Family Farm in Juxian County, and hosted by the Shandong Provincial Soil and Fertilizer Station, the Juxian County Bureau of Agriculture of Rizhao City, and the Shandong Branch of Sinochem Agriculture.

According to reports, this conference drew nearly 200 representatives from Shandong Province, including new-type farm owners and large-scale growers, who participated in training and learning activities. The event was themed “****—Enhancing Efficiency through Integrated Water and Fertilizer Management” and featured three main components: on-site observation of Sinochem’s intelligent integrated water-and-fertilizer system, keynote presentations, and a symposium for new-type farm owners. Attendees included Xin Jingshu, Director of the Soil and Fertilizer Division at the National Agricultural Technology Extension Service Center; Wang Shuai, Assistant General Manager of Sinochem Agriculture’s Distribution Business Unit; Liu Yansheng, Director of the Shandong Provincial Soil and Fertilizer Station; Wu Xihua, Deputy County Magistrate of Juxian County, Rizhao City, Shandong Province; Shi Chengqi, General Manager of Sinochem Agriculture’s Shandong Branch; Wang Xutao, General Manager of Sinochem (Yantai) Crop Nutrition Co., Ltd.; Professor Li Junliang, Vice Dean of the College of Resources and Environment at Qingdao Agricultural University; and Wang Baojie, Chief Designer of Sinochem’s Intelligent Liquid Fertilizer Blending System and Secretary-General of the Shandong New-Type Farm Owners Club, all of whom delivered insightful remarks at the conference.

Water and fertilizer are essential material resources for agricultural production. Water is critical for maximizing fertilizer efficiency, while fertilizer is the key to unlocking the productive potential of the soil–water system. Integrated water–fertilizer technology involves the comprehensive regulation and integrated management of soil moisture and nutrient availability in accordance with crop requirements, using water to enhance fertilizer effectiveness and fertilizer to optimize water use, thereby achieving coupled optimization of water and fertilizer application.

Compared with traditional irrigation and fertilization practices, integrated water–fertilizer technology enhances the efficiency of water and fertilizer use, ensures a balanced supply of water and nutrients to each individual crop, thereby reducing water and fertilizer consumption, lowering pesticide application, and producing higher-quality agricultural products. Wang Baojie, chief designer of Sinochem’s intelligent liquid fertilizer blending system and secretary-general of the Shandong Provincial New-Type Farmer Club, told reporters that, taking grapes as an example, after adopting integrated water–fertilizer management, water demand drops to 5–10 cubic meters per mu, representing a 30%–40% reduction in water use compared with conventional flood irrigation. Under the conventional practice of trenching and backfilling, grapes require 100 kg of compound fertilizer, 20 kg of potassium fertilizer, and 30 kg of diammonium phosphate per mu annually; however, with integrated water–fertilizer management, only 55 kg of liquid fertilizer per mu is needed. At Huishengyuan Ecological Farm, routine watering and fertilization used to require eight workers working for six days; after implementing integrated water–fertilizer technology, the same task can now be completed by just one worker in two days, resulting in a labor-saving of more than 90% compared with the conventional method.

The General Office of the Ministry of Agriculture has issued the “Implementation Plan for Promoting Integrated Water and Fertilizer Application (2016–2020),” which states that, in order to vigorously develop water-saving agriculture, control total agricultural water consumption, advance the initiative to achieve zero growth in chemical fertilizer use, and enhance the efficiency of water resource utilization, integrated water and fertilizer application is an indispensable path for ensuring ****food security****, developing modern, water-efficient agriculture, transforming the mode of agricultural development, and promoting sustainable agricultural development.

At the on-site meeting, Professor Li Junliang from the College of Resources and Environment at Qingdao Agricultural University expressed full recognition of Sinochem Agriculture’s integrated water–fertilizer technology. He stated that, through a micro-irrigation system, water and fertilizers required by crops are delivered directly to the root zone, thereby ensuring efficient supply of nutrients and moisture and promoting rapid nutrient uptake by the roots. This approach not only enhances the efficiency of fertilizer and water use but also significantly reduces labor requirements, with particularly pronounced benefits in greenhouse cultivation and large-scale operations.

Xin Jingshu, Director of the Soil and Fertilizer Technology Division at the National Agricultural Technology Extension Center, reviewed the major achievements in the development of the soil and fertilizer sector in recent years, provided an in-depth analysis of the key challenges currently facing fertilizer application in China, and proposed a vision for collaborating with Sinochem to jointly promote reduced fertilizer use and enhanced fertilizer efficiency.

Shi Chengqi, General Manager of Sinochem Agriculture’s Shandong Branch, stated that Sinochem Agriculture is committed to the vision of using technology to create a better agricultural future. The company leverages core technologies and upholds industry integrity to deliver high-quality crop production and agricultural products, all while staying true to its mission of making modern agriculture more sustainable, farmers more prosperous, and the agricultural sector more promising. To this end, Sinochem Agriculture provides a comprehensive suite of services. The Shandong Branch will unite as one, focus on practical implementation, serve new types of agricultural entities and partners effectively, and offer end-to-end farming solutions.

Wang Shuai, Assistant General Manager of Sinochem Agriculture’s Distribution Division, stated that in the future Sinochem Agriculture will continue to increase its investment in integrated water–fertilizer application technologies and agricultural technical service capabilities, ramp up the nationwide promotion of these technologies, and focus on providing training and technical guidance to new-generation professional farmers cultivating cash crops. The company plans to build 500 smart liquid fertilizer-blending stations in 2018.