Rainfall Harvesting and Mulches Combination for Corn Production in the Subhumid Areas Prone to Drought of China

A field study was conducted to determine the effect of a combination of the plastic‐covered ridge and furrow rainwater harvesting (PRFRH) with different mulching materials, namely, 0.08‐mm‐thick plastic film (T1), 10‐cm‐thick corn straw (T2), 8 % biodegradable film (T3), liquid film (T4), bare furrow (T5) and conventional flat (CF), on corn production, soil water storage and water use efficiency (WUE) in the subhumid areas prone to drought of China (SAPDC). The T1–T5plots at 0–100 cm depth had higher (P < 0.05) soil water storage than CF, while at 100–200 cm soil layer there was no difference (P > 0.05) among treatments. The T1–T4plots produced 209–1 107 kg ha−1more grain yields than the T5plots. Meanwhile, almost all treatments had WUE over 2 kg m−3. The order of WUE increase among different mulch treatments was as follows: T3 > T1 > T2 > T4. In the case of environmental and economic feasibility, a combination of the PRFRH system with biodegradable film and straw mulches would be an option with high potential to increase crop sustainability in dry land farming systems and can be adopted in many areas without irrigation capability.