College of Grassland Science and Technology
Dr. Yingjun Zhang is the Professor and Dean of college of grassland science and technology, China Agricultural University (CAU). He is the Secretary General of Chinese Grassland Society. Prof Zhang, was awarded the Changjiang Scholarship by the Ministry of Education in 2015 for his outstanding achievement in grassland and forage studies. As the Chief Scientist for China’s Forage and Grassland Research System (CFGRS), he is leading national forage production and grassland improvement, funded by the Ministry of Agriculture. The CFGRS research team consists of 28 scientists and 24 demonstration stations across the country, aiming to improve the forage production and supply via innovation of technology. He has received the John Dillon Memorial Fellowship Award, Outstanding Scientist from Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of China and China Association for Science and Technology, and New Century Excellent Talents from Ministry of Education.
Prof. Zhang conducts research and teaching in grassland management and ecology, forage production and utilization. As the first author or corresponding author, he has published 167 refereed papers, some of which were published in high impact journals, including Ecological Monographs, New Phytologist, Journal of Ecology, Ecology, Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, Soil Biology and Biochemistry, Plant and Soil, etc. He was the Continuing Committee member of the International Rangeland Congress and invited to be a plenary speaker at the 22nd International Grassland Congress in 2013 and 8th International Rangeland Congress in 2016, and is an associate editor of Grass and Forage Science and Rangeland Ecology and Management.
Research
• Balance of forage production and livestock demand under Seasonal Rest Grazing System
• Theory and application of no-tillage reseeding in degraded grasslands
• The estimation of selective intake by grazing sheep and its effect on plant community composition
• The regulation of Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) on plant growth, and plant community productivity and diversity
• The mechanism of plant diversity maintenance of grazing grassland
• Mechanism of formation and maintaining high productivity of fairy ring in grassland
• Improvement of forage production and quality under legume-grass/grain intercropping system
• Salt tolerance of alfalfa under non-uniform salt stress
Representative Thesis (recent 2 years)
1. Zhang, Y.*, Zhou, J., Yang, G., Jing J., Liu, N., 2020. Theory and application of no-tillage reseeding in degraded grasslands. Chinese Science Bulletin 65, 1546-1555.
2. Xiong, X., Wei, Y.-q., Chen, J.-h., Liu, N. & Zhang, Y.-j. Transcriptome analysis of genes and pathways associated with salt tolerance in alfalfa under non-uniform salt stress. Plant Physiology and Biochemistry 151, 323-333 (2020).
3. Chen, Wenqing, Wang, Jianyu, Meng, Zexin, Xu, Ran, Chen, Jun, Zhang, Yingjun*, Hu, Tianming*. Fertility-related interplay between fungal guilds underlies plant richness-productivity relationships in natural grasslands. New Phytologist (2020).
4. Zhang Yingjun, Chen Wenqing, Liu Nan, Huang Ding, Rong Yuping, Zhang Hao, Kan Haiming, David Kemp, 2019. Chapter 9: Managing the typical steppe. Sustainable Chinese Grasslands. Editor Kemp, D.R. Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research, Canberra, ACT. 328 pp.
5. Zhou, J. Zhou, Jiqiong, Zhang, Fengge, Huo, Yunqian, Wilson, Gail W. T., Cobb, Adam B., Xu, Xixi, Xiong, Xue, Liu, Lin, Zhang, Yingjun*. Following legume establishment, microbial and chemical associations facilitate improved productivity in degraded grasslands. Plant and Soil 443, 273-292 (2019).
5. Zhou, J., Wilson, G.W.T., Cobb, A.B., Yang, G. & Zhang, Y*. Phosphorus and mowing improve native alfalfa establishment, facilitating restoration of grassland productivity and diversity. Land Degradation & Development 30, 647-657 (2019).
6. Zhang, H., Guo, Y. P., Chen, W. Q., Liu, N., Shi, S. L., Zhang, Y. J.*, Ma, L., Zhou, J. Q. The potential application of plant wax markers from alfalfa for estimating the total feed intake of sheep. Animal 13, 2782-2791 (2019).
7. Yang, C., Liu, N. & Zhang, Y*. Soil aggregates regulate the impact of soil bacterial and fungal communities on soil respiration. Geoderma 337, 444-452 (2019).
8. Yang, C., Li, J., Liu, N. & Zhang, Y*. Effects of fairy ring fungi on plants and soil in the alpine and temperate grasslands of China. Plant and Soil 441, 499-510 (2019).
9. Michalk, D.L. Kemp, David R. Badgery, Warwick B. Wu, Jianping, Zhang, Yingjun, Thomassin, Paul J. Sustainability and future food security-A global perspective for livestock production. Land Degradation & Development 30, 561-573 (2019).
10. Bi, Y., Zhou, Ping, Li, Shoujiao, Wei, Yuqi, Xiong, Xue, Shi, Yonghong, Liu, Nan, Zhang, Yingjun*. Interspecific interactions contribute to higher forage yield and are affected by phosphorus application in a fully-mixed perennial legume and grass intercropping system. Field Crops Research 244, 107636 (2019).
11. Zhang, Y., Wenjie, L.U., Zhang, H., Zhou, J. & Shen, Y. Grassland management practices in Chinese steppes impact productivity, diversity and the relationship. Frontiers of Agricultural Science and Engineering 5(2018).
12. Yang, X. Shen, Y., Liu, N., Wilson, G. W. T., Cobb, A. B., Zhang, Y*. Defoliation and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi shape plant communities in overgrazed semiarid grasslands. Ecology 99, 1847-1856 (2018).
13. Yang, C., Li, J., Zhang, F., Liu, N. & Zhang, Y*. The optimal Redfield N: P ratio caused by fairy ring fungi stimulates plant productivity in the temperate steppe of China. Fungal Ecology 34, 91-98 (2018).
14. Xiong, X. Liu, Nan, Wei, Yu-qi, Bi, Yi-xian, Luo, Jian-chuan, Xu, Rui-xuan, Zhou, Ji-qiong, Zhang, Ying-jun*. Effects of non-uniform root zone salinity on growth, ion regulation, and antioxidant defense system in two alfalfa cultivars. Plant Physiology and Biochemistry 132, 434-444 (2018).