Abstract Global water shortage is a crisis for all living systems, including agricultural cropping systems. Water absorbent hydrogels from synthetic polymers can retain moisture from irrigation or rainfall and release it in response to crop water demands, but have a limited functional lifespan and may release byproducts that are harmful to plants or pollute the soil environment. Hydrogels fabricated from plant-based polymers are more suitable for agricultural cropping systems because they could improve the soil water availability to the crop and gradually biodegrade to harmless carbon dioxide and water. The objective of this work was to determine how biodegradable lignin hydrogel affected the soil water availability to maize grown under drought conditions. The lignin hydrogel was applied at 0.3 % and 0.6 % (by weight) in pots subjected to water deficit or sufficiency, and compared to sodium polyacrylate hydrogel that was applied at the same rates. Maize plants were taller, had greater phosphorus content and more biomass when grown in soil with lignin hydrogel and sodium polyacrylate hydrogel than without hydrogel. Furthermore, soil receiving 0.6 % lignin hydrogel produced significantly (P

中文翻译：

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木质素水凝胶缓解玉米干旱胁迫

摘要 全球水资源短缺是所有生命系统的危机，包括农业种植系统。由合成聚合物制成的吸水水凝胶可以保留灌溉或降雨中的水分，并根据作物对水的需求将其释放，但功能寿命有限，并且可能会释放出对植物有害或污染土壤环境的副产品。由植物基聚合物制成的水凝胶更适合农业种植系统，因为它们可以提高作物的土壤水分利用率，并逐渐生物降解为无害的二氧化碳和水。这项工作的目的是确定可生物降解的木质素水凝胶如何影响在干旱条件下生长的玉米的土壤水分可用性。木质素水凝胶以 0.3% 和 0. 6%（按重量计）在缺水或水充足的花盆中，与以相同比例施用的聚丙烯酸钠水凝胶相比。与没有水凝胶相比，在含有木质素水凝胶和聚丙烯酸钠水凝胶的土壤中生长的玉米植株更高、磷含量更高、生物量更多。此外，接受 0.6% 木质素水凝胶的土壤显着产生（P