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A two-year field experiment was conducted to elucidate the adaptive growth mechanism of maize under strip-till (ST) compared with conventional-till (CT). The biomass accumulation of ST plants was significantly lower than CT until V14 (14th leaf), but restored thereafter with one below-ear-node leaf reduced. At silking, the accumulation of nitrogen (N) was reduced by 8.3–10.7% compared to CT. During post-silking, vegetative-N remobilization was reduced by 20.4%, post-silking N uptake increased by 33.9% in ST compared to CT. Leaf senescence was delayed and more green leaf area at physiological maturity in ST. It is concluded that ST plants have the mechanism of 'Recovery Growth Adaptation' to get the similar yield as in CT plants: (1) facilitating growth rate at around V14 when the soil temperature was greatly improved to stabilize ear growth and grain number; (2) getting to silking the same time as in CT plants, so as to ensure the duration of grain filling; (3) increasing post-silking N uptake to fulfill the demand of grain development and reduce leaf N remobilization, so as to maintain leaf function and increase thousand-grain weight, which compensate for the loss of grain number per ear. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]