Balanced Fertilization Improves Crop Production and Soil Organic Carbon Sequestration in a Wheat–Maize Planting System in the North China Plain

Maintaining the long-term viability of a wheat&ndash:maize planting system, particularly the synchronous improvement of crop production and soil organic carbon (SOC) sequestration, is crucial for ensuring food security in the North China Plain. A field experiment in which wheat&ndash:maize was regarded as an integral fertilization unit was carried out in Shanxi Province, China, adopting a split-plot design with different distribution ratios of phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) fertilizer between wheat and maize seasons in the main plot (A) (a ratio of 3:0, A1: a ratio of 2:1, A2) and different application rates of pure nitrogen (N) during the entire wheat and maize growth period (B) (450 kg&middot:ha&minus:1, B1: 600 kg&middot:ha&minus:1, B2). Moreover, no fertilization was used in the entire wheat and maize growth period for the control (CK). The findings showed that A2B1 treatment led to the highest response, with an average wheat yield of 7.75 t&middot:ha&minus:1 and an average maize yield of 8.40 t&middot:ha&minus:1 over the last 9 years. The highest SOC content (15.13 g&middot:kg&minus:1), storage (34.20 t&middot:ha&minus:1), and sequestration (7.11 t&middot:ha&minus:1) were also observed under the A2B1 treatment. Both enhanced crop yield and SOC sequestration resulted from improvements in cumulative carbon (C) input, soil nutrients, and stoichiometry under the A2B1 treatment. It was confirmed that total N (TN), alkali-hydrolysable N (AN), available P (AP), available K (AK), and the ratios of C:K, N:K, and N:P had positive effects on crop yield through the labile components of SOC and on SOC sequestration through microbial necromass C. To conclude, our findings highlight the urgent need to optimize fertilizer management strategies to improve crop production and SOC sequestration in the North China Plain.