To systematically evaluate the effects of plastic film mulching technology on alleviating water scarcity, improving soil quality, and enhancing maize productivity in the dryland farming areas of the Loess Plateau, in this study, three treatments were established: full plastic film mulching, semi-plastic film mulching, and no mulching(control). The analysis examined soil physical structure, moisture content, nutrient levels, maize plant agronomic traits, and yield at maturity under different treatments. The results indicated that regarding soil physical properties:, compared to the no mulching control, full plastic film mulching significantly reduced soil bulk density in the 0-20 cm soil layer. Regarding soil nutrients, alkali-hydrolyzable nitrogen content in the 0-20 and 20-40 cm soil layers under full mulching increased by 32.85% and 42.08%, respectively, compared to no mulching. Soil total nitrogen and available potassium contents were highest under semi-mulching, measuring 0.74 g/kg and 82.48 mg/kg in the 0-20 cm layer, and 0.70 g/kg and 65.17 mg/kg in the 20-40 cm layer. Regarding maize growth and yield, ear diameter, ear weight, grain number per row, grain weight per ear, and 100-grain weight under full mulching were significantly higher than those under no mulching. Maize grain yields under different treatments ranked as follows: full mulching > semi-mulching > no-mulching. In conclusion, under dryland conditions on the Loess Plateau, plastic film mulching established a stable micro-environment and regulates soil physicochemical properties, facilitating plant absorption of water and nutrients while improving yield components. This approach significantly increased maize grain yield, with full plastic film mulching demonstrating superior effects. Therefore, full plastic film mulching was recommended for application in dryland maize cultivation areas.
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