Abstract: The experiment was carried out in the field with three treatments i.e. conventional till (CT),non-till with retaining maize stubble (NT) and mulch-till with un-chopped maize straw mulch (MT).The soil temperature,soil water content,transpiration and photosynthesis of maize in CT,NT and MT were observed. The soil temperature of maize field in no-tillage practices including MT and NT decreased comparing to that in CT. The decrease of the soil temperature was high in MT,and low in NT. The differences of the soil temperature among MT,NT and CT gradually became smaller with the growth of maize. MT and NT could improve the soil water content,especially in 0-60cm depth,comparing to CT. At the seedling stage,the photosynthesis and transpiration rates of maize in MT significantly reduced by 8.5% and 9.7%,respectively,but insignificantly reduced in MT,comparing to CT. At the early jointing stage,the photosynthesis and transpiration rates of maize showed no significant difference among MT,NT and CT. The photosynthesis and transpiration rates of maize in MT were significantly increased at the later jointing stage,the heading stage and the filling stage,respectively while those in NT significantly enhanced only at the filling stage,comparing to CT.

Key words: No-till, No-till, Maize, Transpiration rate, Photosynthesis rate