Rice Genomics and Genetics 2025, Vol.16, No.3, 116-131 http://cropscipublisher.com/index.php/rgg 116 Research Insight Open Access Regulatory Effects of Integrated Rice-Farming Systems on Soil Nutrient Dynamics Yuchao Shen Deqing Xingqing Family Farm Co., Ltd., Deqing, 313217, Zhejiang, China Corresponding email: 786699255@qq.com Rice Genomics and Genetics, 2025, Vol.16, No.3 doi: 10.5376/rgg.2025.16.0011 Received: 08 Mar., 2025 Accepted: 20 Apr., 2025 Published: 05 May, 2025 Copyright © 2025 Shen, This is an open access article published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Preferred citation for this article: Shen Y.C., 2025, Regulatory effects of integrated rice-farming systems on soil nutrient dynamics, Rice Genomics and Genetics, 16(3): 116-131 (doi: 10.5376/rgg.2025.16.0011) Abstract Integrated rice farming combines rice planting with aquaculture or livestock farming to form a benign cycle of farmland ecosystems. This study systematically analyzes the regulatory effects of typical models such as rice-duck, rice-fish, and rice-crab on paddy soil organic matter, nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium nutrients, and trace elements, explores key mechanisms such as animal manure return to the field, water disturbance, and microbial activity, and verifies the actual effects of integrated farming in improving acidic soil and enhancing fertility stability through practical cases such as Deqing Xingqing Family Farm. At the same time, its green agricultural value is evaluated from the perspectives of reducing weight and pollution, efficient nutrient utilization, and ecosystem services. Studies have shown that integrated rice farming plays a positive role in promoting the dynamic optimization of soil nutrients and improving soil health, providing strong support for the sustainable development of agriculture. Finally, this study proposes suggestions such as strengthening mechanism research and policy support, and promoting regional adaptation models, in order to promote the scientific application and large-scale promotion of integrated rice farming models. Keywords Integrated rice farming; Soil nutrients; Rice-duck farming; Rice-fish symbiosis; Organic matter; Nutrient cycle 1 Introduction Integrated rice farming refers to the introduction of aquatic animals (such as fish, shrimp, crab) or poultry (such as duck) for synchronous farming on the basis of traditional rice field planting, so as to achieve a three-dimensional agricultural model of "one water for two uses, one field for multiple harvests". This model originated from the ancient Chinese practice of rice-fish symbiosis, which can be traced back to the tradition of rice-fish farming more than 2 000 years ago. After the founding of New China, rice-fish farming was restored and developed, and in 2005 it was listed as the first batch of global important agricultural cultural heritage by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (Zhejiang Qingtian rice-fish symbiosis system). Since the 21st century, driven by the concepts of ecological agriculture and circular agriculture, the traditional "rice-fish farming" has gradually expanded into a richer "integrated rice farming" model, including rice-fish, rice-shrimp, rice-crab, rice-duck and other symbiotic combinations. In the past decade, the scale of integrated rice farming in my country has expanded rapidly, and the model has been continuously innovated and upgraded. In 2018, the area of integrated rice farming in China exceeded 2.26 million hectares, accounting for about 7% of the total rice planting area. The government attaches great importance to this green efficiency-enhancing technology and has introduced a number of supporting policies to promote its industrial development. Integrated rice farming has become one of the important production methods of rice farming systems in my country (Dou et al., 2024). Paddy field soil is the material basis of rice production, and its fertility level directly affects rice yield and quality (Sun et al., 2025). However, long-term monoculture of rice often relies on high-intensity fertilizer input to maintain yield, resulting in a decrease in soil organic matter, an imbalance of nitrogen and phosphorus nutrients, and an increase in environmental problems. Poor soil nutrient management can cause soil degradation and a decrease in productivity, as well as agricultural non-point source pollution such as nitrogen leaching and phosphorus enrichment. Improving the sustainability of soil nutrient supply, nutrient cycle efficiency, and reducing loss are key issues that must be addressed to achieve green yield increases in rice farms (Miao et al.,
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