The Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC) is situated in a prototypical arid region of China. State-of-the-art technologies have realized to prevent the land degradation in saline-alkali land. Land governance pathways can provide for soil restoration in the country, significantly contributing to sustainable agriculture and national food security. A systematic review was presented to divide into the three long-term stages in the XPCC, thus tracing from the basic engineering to advanced system integration. The initial stage (1950s-1970s) was characterized by extensive engineering interventions. The strategy was fully met the needs of land reclamation. The salts were physically extracted from the root zone via open ditch drainage networks to reduce the groundwater table, supplemented by flood irrigation to leach soluble salts. These foundational measures were crucial to control the initial salinity. It was often required for more efficient approaches. The following period (1980s-1990s) was characterized by the strategic shift into the physical and chemical techniques. According to the drainage infrastructure, the simple irrigation and leaching were evolved to combine the measures suitable for the regional conditions: physical practices, such as the deep plowing, sand-soil blending, and surface salt removal; Biological measures like the organic manure and planting green manure; and chemical/engineering, such as flue gas desulfurization gypsum and subsurface pipe drainage. Emerging irrigation technologies, such as film-hole furrow irrigation, were used to transit from only symptoms to soil health. A revolutionary advancement occurred in 1996 with the widespread adoption of drip irrigation under plastic mulch. Water, fertilizer, and salt were precisely regulated in the crop root zone. Water and nutrients were directly delivered to plant roots using emitters covered by plastic film. Evaporation was reduced to inhibit upward salt movement in the saline-alkali land. Evaporation and soil salinization were suppressed to regulate the soil temperature after mulching. Conventional leaching was shifted to active, precise salt control. Six governance models were developed under specific conditions in XPCC: the irrigation-drainage synergistic model for heavily saline land in rice cultivation; the precise salt control for moderately saline land with drip irrigation; the water-saving salt suppression for lightly saline land in dry seeding; the biological fertility enhancement for compacted soils; the ecological reconstruction using brackish water and aquaculture; and the long-term precision management of water, fertilizer and salt. Collectively, the technological system also centered on the water-salt-fertilizer nexus. Challenges remained in the XPCC. Specifically, the fragile oasis agro-ecosystem was characterized by extreme aridity, high evapotranspiration, and limited water resources, indicating the water management as the critical factor. Water resource was further intensified under pressure. Additionally, the limited genetic diversity of existing salt-tolerant crop varieties was restricted the potential for profitable cultivation on moderate to severely saline soils. The technological infrastructure also hindered adaptive strategies for the real-time, intelligent monitoring and precise soil salinity. In absence of a holistic framework to enhance the overall productivity, current approaches focused on individual components rather than integrating land improvement, crop production, and ecosystem stability. Future strategies can shift towards more integrated, intelligent, and ecologically balanced approaches, thereby promoting a "Water-Land-Sand-Crop-Energy" governance model. A globally leading model can be established to transform saline-alkali lands from marginal resources into productive assets, thereby contributing to global food security and agricultural resilience against climate change.

This study aims to explore the three-factor interaction of the irrigation amount, combined application of the organic and inorganic fertilizers, and fulvic acid on the soil fertility and cotton growth under drip irrigation. A field experiment was conducted under mulch in Xinjiang in 2024. A three-factor randomized experiment consisted of 18 treatments in total. Three irrigation levels were set as follows: 4 500 m³/hm² (W1), 3 825 m³/hm² (W2), and 3 150 m³/hm² (W3). Three levels of the combined organic-inorganic fertilizer application with the equal nitrogen content were established: no organic fertilizer + 600 kg/hm² urea (O1), 2 000 kg/hm² organic fertilizer + 510 kg/hm² urea (O2), and 4 000 kg/hm² organic fertilizer + 420 kg/hm² urea (O3). Two levels of the fulvic acid were included: no fulvic acid addition (F1) and 45 kg/hm² fulvic acid addition (F2). The indicators were also obtained, such as the soil water and nutrient parameters, crop growth, yield and quality, as well as the water and fertilizer use efficiency. A precise scheme was proposed for the cotton irrigation and fertilization, in order to achieve the water conservation, stable yield, and efficiency. The results showed that the fulvic acid addition increased the soil water storage at the seedling stage under the same irrigation amount and combined organic-inorganic fertilizer treatment, compared with the treatment without the fulvic acid. While there was a decrease at the flowering and boll-forming stage. The interaction between irrigation amount and fulvic acid also showed a threshold effect on the soil water storage and organic matter content. Specifically, the soil water storage increased by 7.83% and 18.02%, respectively, in the W1 and W2 treatments with the fulvic acid addition at the budding stage, compared with those without the fulvic acid, while that decreased by 6.32% in the W3 treatment. At the end of the growing season, the organic matter content increased by 30.30% and 80.40%, respectively, in the 0–20 cm soil layer of the W1 and W2 treatments with the fulvic acid addition, whereas that decreased by 17.68% in the W3 treatment. The interaction between combined organic-inorganic fertilizer application and fulvic acid shared a threshold effect on the boll dry matter weight. Compared with the treatment without the fulvic acid, the boll dry matter weight increased by 22.51% and 23.69%, respectively, in the O1 and O2 treatments with the fulvic acid addition, while that decreased by 25.57% in the O3 treatment. The three-factor interaction between the irrigation amount, combined application of the organic-inorganic fertilizer, and the fulvic acid also presented a threshold effect on the cotton yield, partial factor productivity of the nitrogen fertilizer, and irrigation water use efficiency. Under the O3 condition, the cotton yield, partial factor productivity of the nitrogen fertilizer, and irrigation water use efficiency were all improved in the W1 and W2 treatments with the fulvic acid addition, compared with those without fulvic acid, while those decreased in the W3 treatment. An evaluation was conducted with the equal weights of the cotton yield, cotton quality index, irrigation water use efficiency, and partial factor productivity of the nitrogen fertilizer under each treatment using the technique for order preference by similarity to an ideal solution. The W1O2F2 treatment was identified as the best irrigation and fertilization for the yield and efficiency enhancement. The W2O1F2, W2O2F2, and W3O3F1 treatments were all achieved in the water conservation, stable yield, and efficiency in the arid and semi-arid regions. The findings can provide a theoretical basis and data support for the water-saving and high-efficiency cultivation of the cotton during drip irrigation under mulch in the arid and semi-arid regions.

High nitrogen (N) application can dominate the processing of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) under drip irrigation in Xinjiang, China. The risks are associated with the low nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) and significant environmental pollution. In this study, the potential of fulvic acid (FA) application was determined to mitigate these negative impacts under the prevailing high N regime. A systematic investigation was also made to evaluate the effects of the FA application rates on the soil-crop continuum under the drip irrigation. The optimal FA rate was identified to enhance the tomato yield, quality, and NUE. A field experiment was conducted over two consecutive growing seasons (2023 and 2024). Five application rates of the fulvic acid were tested as the CK (0), FA1 (10 kg/hm²), FA2 (25 kg/hm²), FA3 (50 kg/hm²), and FA4 (75 kg/hm²). All treatments received the same high rate of nitrogen fertilizer. The impacts of FA were assessed on: (1) Soil properties: Nitrate-N (NO₃⁻-N), ammonium-N (NH₄⁺-N), total nitrogen (TN), and total carbon (TC) content in the 0~60 cm soil profile. (2) Crop growth and physiology: Plant height, stem diameter, leaf area index (LAI), aboveground biomass, leaf SPAD (soil and plant analyzer development) value (indicating chlorophyll content), and photosynthetic performance. (3) Yield and water use efficiency: Processing tomato fruit yield and irrigation water use efficiency (IWUE). (4) Fruit quality: soluble sugar, soluble solids, organic acid, vitamin C content, lycopene content, and sugar acid ratio. (5) Nitrogen dynamics: Plant N uptake efficiency, aboveground N accumulation, partial factor productivity of nitrogen (PFPN), and N surplus in the soil-crop system. A total of 16 key indicators were measured over these categories. The results showed that the optimal FA application rate was determined to construct the evaluation model using both the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and Principal Component Analysis (PCA). Specifically, the FA application significantly increased (P<0.05) the concentrations of NO₃⁻-N, NH₄⁺-N, TN, and TC in the 0-60 cm soil layer, compared with the CK control. Significant improvements (P<0.05) were observed in the plant height, stem diameter, LAI, aboveground biomass, leaf SPAD value, and photosynthetic parameters in the FA-amended plots. The FA3 and FA4 treatments significantly increased the processing tomato yield by 8.39%-16.33% and irrigation water use efficiency by 8.39%-16.32%, respectively, compared with the CK treatment. At the same time, the better performance was achieved in the soluble sugar, soluble solids, fruit vitamin C, lycopene content, and sugar acid ratio quality parameters. In addition, the FA3 and FA4 treatments significantly increased the plant nitrogen uptake efficiency, aboveground nitrogen accumulation, and nitrogen partial factor productivity, and reduced nitrogen surplus in the soil-crop system by 9.93%-10.67% (2023) and 7.20%-7.67% (2024) (P<0.05), compared with the CK treatment. The evaluation model was integrated with the 16 indicators after AHP and PCA. The FA3 treatment (50 kg/hm²) was consistently identified as the optimal application rate of the fulvic acid under the conventional high N regime. The high nitrogen fertilization was realized with the fulvic acid. Particularly, the highly effective strategy was provided for the tomato production under drip irrigation at the optimal rate of 50 kg/hm². FA application significantly improved the soil nitrogen and carbon status, particularly for the crop growth and physiological performance, the yield, and irrigation water productivity. The key attributes of the fruit quality were promoted more efficient nitrogen utilization, thereby substantially reducing the risk of nitrogen loss and environmental pollution. These findings can also provide a robust theoretical and practical solution to increase the yield and quality of the nitrogen use efficiency in tomato cultivation.

Using brackish water for irrigation in arid and semi-arid areas can alleviate the supply-demand contradiction of freshwater resources. However, the correlation between its irrigation effect and soil texture remains to be studied. This study investigated the effects of irrigation mineralization on the growth and development of drip-irrigated cotton with different soil textures and the yield and fiber quality of seed cotton. In 2022, a barrel planting experiment was conducted to study two common cotton field soil textures (sandy loam soil T1 and sandy soil T2) and four irrigation mineralization degrees (0.85 (S0), 2.00 (S1), 5.00 (S2), and 8.00 g/L (S3)) in the Manas River Basin. Under different treatments, eight experimental treatments were used to study cotton photosynthetic indicators, plant height, stem diameter, yield, and quality. The results showed that as the mineralization degree of irrigation increased, the plant height, stem diameter, net photosynthetic rate, transpiration rate, single boll weight, number of bolls per plant, yield, irrigation water use efficiency, and fracture ratio intensity of cotton seedlings in sandy soil showed a decreasing trend after the seedling stage. The transpiration rate of S3 treatment decreased by 10.61% compared to S0 during the bud stage. Under sandy loam conditions, all indicators showed an increasing and decreasing trend. The net photosynthetic rate of S1 treatment increased by 8.40% compared to S0. As irrigation's mineralization degree increases, underground cotton's maximum fluorescence in two soil types decreases, while nonphotochemical quenching shows an increasing trend. It can be concluded through regression analysis that there is a negative correlation between cotton yield and irrigation mineralization in sandy soil cotton fields. However, irrigation water less than 3.69 g/L in sandy loam cotton fields will not reduce cotton yield. Using path analysis, it can be concluded that cotton stem diameter and transpiration rate are the main factors affecting yield under sandy loam conditions. Plant height is the main factor affecting the micronaire value. Under sandy soil conditions, the nonphotochemical quenching coefficient and transpiration rate are the main factors affecting yield. In contrast, plant height and transpiration rate are the main factors affecting micronaire value. This study can provide a theoretical basis and technical support for the rational utilization of brackish water resources in cotton fields with different soil types in the Manas River Basin.

Guar is a typical legume cash crop native to India. Guar beans are ever-rising in the market share at present. Among them, the guar gum of its seed endosperm has been mainly used in the oil exploration industry. Water-based fracturing fluid can be formulated to increase the permeability of oil-bearing strata during oil production. In addition, guar gum is also widely used in paper making, textiles, food, spices, drugs, as well as mining and metallurgical industries. The nutrient-rich green seeds of guar beans are edible for food vegetables, due to a large amount of protein and a small amount of fat. The plant can be used as fodder and green manure. However, the low supply of guar gum on the market cannot fully meet the broad market space. Only a small number of planting areas of guar beans are suitable for the cultivation of guar beans in the food industry. Among them, Xinjiang located in the northwestern inland arid zone is very similar to the unique geographic conditions for the production and cultivation of guar beans. The temperature and heat conditions are suitable for the origin of guar, rich in the light and heat resources under the soil and water environment, with the high temperature difference between day and night, due to the scarce rainfall and high evaporation. But the relatively small region of guar bean planting still remains so far. Therefore a broad prospect can be expected to optimize the water and nitrogen management for the high crop yield and efficient use of water and nitrogen. This study aims to explore the water and nitrogen mode suitable for drip irrigation of guar beans under film in the Xinjiang area of China. Four irrigation levels were set: W1:1 170 m³/hm², W2:1 530 m³/hm², W3:1 890 m³/hm², W4:2 250 m³/hm²; Two levels of nitrogen application were: N1:30 kg/hm², N2:50 kg/hm². A systematic investigation was made to clarify the effects of water and nitrogen interaction on the growth index, yield, water, and nitrogen use efficiency, as well as the quality of guar bean during drip irrigation under film. The results showed that the coupling effect of water and nitrogen shared a significant effect on the yield, irrigation water use efficiency, and partial factor productivity of nitrogen fertilizer (W3>W4>W2>W1). There was an increase in the plant height, stem diameter, dry matter accumulation, yield, water use efficiency, galactomannan, soluble sugar, and polysaccharide content of Guar bean under the N2 level, compared with the N1 level. Only the partial productivity of nitrogen fertilizer decreased slightly. Principal component and membership function analysis showed that the optimal treatment was achieved in the irrigation amount of 1 890 m³/hm² and the nitrogen application rate of 50 kg/hm²(W3N2). The finding can also provide a theoretical basis to promote the yield, water, and nitrogen use efficiency of Guar bean under mulched drip irrigation.

In recent years, the rational utilization of saline water resources for agricultural irrigation has emerged as an effective strategy to alleviate water scarcity. To safely and efficiently exploit saline water resources over the long term, it is crucial to understand the effects of salinity on crops and develop optimal water-salinity irrigation strategies for processing tomatoes. A two-year field experiment was conducted in 2018 and 2019 to explore the impact of water salinity levels (S1: 1 g L^–1, S2: 3 g L^–1, and S3: 5 g L^–1) and irrigation amounts (W1: 305 mm, W2: 485 mm, and W3: 611 mm) on the soil volumetric water content and soil salinity, as well as processing tomato growth, yield, and water use efficiency. The results showed that irrigation with low to moderately saline water (<3 g L^–1) enhanced plant water uptake and utilization capacity, with the soil water content (SWC) reduced by 6.5–7.62% and 10.52–13.23% for the S1 and S2 levels, respectively, compared to the S3 level in 2018. Under S1 condition, the soil salt content (SSC) accumulation rate gradually declined with an increase in the irrigation amount. For example, W3 decreased by 85.00 and 77.94% compared with W1 and W2 in 2018, and by 82.60 and 73.68% in 2019, respectively. Leaching effects were observed at the W3 level under S1, which gradually diminished with increasing water salinity and duration. In 2019, the salt contents of soil under each of the treatments increased by 10.81–89.72% compared with the contents in 2018. The yield of processing tomatoes increased with an increasing irrigation amount and peaked in the S1W3 treatment for the two years, reaching 125,304.85 kg ha^–1 in 2018 and 128,329.71 kg ha^–1 in 2019. Notably, in the first year, the S2W3 treatment achieved relatively high yields, exhibiting only a 2.85% reduction compared to the S1W3 treatment. However, the yield of the S2W3 treatment declined significantly in two years, and it was 15.88% less than that of the S1W3 treatment. Structural equation modeling (SEM) revealed that soil environmental factors (SWC and SSC) directly influence yield while also exerting indirect impacts on the growth indicators of processing tomatoes (plant height, stem diameter, and leaf area index). The TOPSIS method identified S1W3, S1W2, and S2W2 as the top three treatments. The single-factor marginal effect function also revealed that irrigation water salinity contributed to the composite evaluation scores (CES) when it was below 0.96 g L^–1. Using brackish water with a salinity of 3 g L^–1 at an irrigation amount of 485 mm over one year ensured that processing tomatoes maintained high yields with a relatively high CES (0.709). However, using brackish water for more than one year proved unfeasible.