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Chinese Journal of Applied Ecology ›› 2026, Vol. 37 ›› Issue (8): 2665-2674.doi: 10.13287/j.1001-9332.202608.011

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Effects of combined application of soil amendments on soil salinity, pH, yield and quality of watermelon in saline-alkali soil

TANG Zhiyi1,2, CHEN Xin1,2, WANG Xina3, TIAN Juncang1,2, TAN Junli1,2*   

  1. 1School of Civil and Hydraulic Engineering, Ningxia University, Yinchuan 750021, China;
    2Engineering Research Center for Efficient Utilization of Agricultural Water Resources in Modern Dryland Areas, Ministry of Education, Yinchuan 750021, China;
    3School of Agriculture, Ningxia University, Yinchuan 750021, China
  • Received:2025-12-10 Revised:2026-06-23 Online:2026-08-18 Published:2027-02-18

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Abstract: We examined the effects of different combined soil amendments on the quality of saline-alkali soil and on the growth, yield, and quality of watermelon in a field experiment. There were four treatments, including 75 kg·hm-2 sulfur fertilizer+600 kg·hm-2 bio-organic fertilizer (T1), 75 kg·hm-2 sulfur fertilizer+300 kg·hm-2 soil conditioner (T2), 600 kg·hm-2 bio-organic fertilizer+300 kg·hm-2 soil conditioner (T3), and 75 kg·hm-2 sulfur fertilizer+600 kg·hm-2 bio-organic fertilizer+300 kg·hm-2 soil conditioner (T4), with no amendment application as the control (CK). We analyzed the effects of different treatments on soil pH, soil salt content in the 0-100 cm soil profile, as well as photosynthetic characteristics, growth, yield, and fruit quality of watermelon. The results showed that all amendment treatments reduced soil pH and salt content to different extents. The decrease in soil pH was mainly concentrated in the 0-60 cm soil layer. The treatments of T3 and T4 showed more obvious effects on reducing soil pH in the 20-40 cm soil layer. The T2 treatment had a more prominent effect on reducing soil salt content, with a reduction of 13.8% and 29.5% in the 0-20 cm and 20-40 cm soil layers, respectively. The T2 and T3 treatments significantly increased net photosynthetic rate, transpiration rate and stomatal conductance of watermelon. The T2 treatment mainly promoted leaf area expansion and main vine elongation. The T3 treatment mainly promoted main vine elongation and stem thickening. The T1, T2, T3, and T4 treatments increased watermelon yield by 8.9%, 12.4%, 12.3%, and 11.0%, respectively. The T3 treatment significantly increased fruit hardness, while the T2 and T4 treatments significantly increased soluble solids, vitamin C content, and sugar-acid ratio. Based on the multi-criteria decision-making model, the comprehensive ranking of different treatments on watermelon was T2>T3>T4>T1>CK. Overall, the combined application of 75 kg·hm-2 sulfur fertilizer and 300 kg·hm-2 soil conditioner was the optimal treatment for improving saline-alkali soil, promoting watermelon growth, increasing yield and improving fruit quality.

Key words: saline-alkali soil, sulfur fertilizer, bio-organic fertilizer, soil conditioner, watermelon