Selection of suitable organic amendments to balance agricultural economic benefit and carbon sequestration

Long-term excessive use of fertilizers decreases soil productivity, which is detrimental to sustainable agricultural development. The purpose of this paper is to identify organic amendments suitable for winter wheat growth in the North China Plain by studying the effects of organic amendments on the economic benefit and carbon sequestration of winter wheat fields, and to provide a theoretical basis for the wide application of organic amendments. The nitrogen rates were N0 (0 kg/ha) and N240 (240 kg/ha), and the organic amendments were straw, manure, mushroom residue and biochar. The result showed that compared to N0, N240 significantly increased the yield by 244.1%-318.4% and the organic carbon sequestration by 16.7-30.5%, respectively, but increased the carbon emission by 29.3-45.5%. In addition, soil carbon sequestrations increased with three types of organic amendments compared to straw, with the biochar treatment being the largest, increasing carbon sequestration by 13.3-33.6%. In terms of yield and economic benefits, compared to straw, manure and biochar increased yield by 0.0-1.5% and 4.0-13.3%, respectively, and mushroom residue slightly decreased yield, but only the economic benefit of mushroom residue was greater than that of straw, with an increase in economic benefit of 1.3% and 8.2% in the 2021-2022 and 2022-2023, respectively. Furthermore, Net ecosystem productivity showed that N0 and N240 was the source and sink of CO 2, respectively. The TOPSIS results showed that N240 with mushroom residue could be recommended for increasing soil carbon sequestration and economic benefits for winter wheat in the NCP. Low-cost mushroom residue can increase farmer motivation and improve SOC, making a big step forward in the spread of organic amendments.