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A special issue of Agriculture (ISSN 2077-0472). This special issue belongs to the section "Ecosystem, Environment and Climate Change in Agriculture".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (25 February 2023) | Viewed by 20987

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Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Michele Pisante

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Guest Editor

Agronomy and Crop Sciences Research and Education Center, University of Teramo, Teramo, Italy
Interests: abiotic and biotic plant stress; climate adaptation and mitigation; conservation agriculture; precision farming; sustainability
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Prof. Dr. Fabio Stagnari

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Guest Editor

Agronomy and Crop Sciences Research and Education Center, University of Teramo, Teramo, Italy
Interests: conservation agriculture; crop stress; weed control; soil quality; sustainability
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The Sustainable Development Goals aim to both combat climate change (Goal 13) and protect, restore, and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, combating desertification, land degradation, and biodiversity loss (Goal 15). These objectives have to be achieved before 2030 to prevent irreversible damage to our planet. Nonetheless, in recent decades, reckless use of natural resources, which are scarce and nonrenewable, and unsustainable agricultural practices have brought about progressive soil erosion, loss in soil fertility, and water scarcity, to name a few issues. Furthermore, as agriculture and climate change are closely interlinked, it is increasingly urgent to favor the transition to a more carbon neutral agriculture, while at the same time promoting and integrating sustainability into ecosystem services. This transition can be possible if proper farm management practices are adopted to optimise carbon balance in farming systems. In this context, conservation agriculture can be considered as a solution for sustainable land management, environmental protection, and climate change adaptation and mitigation. Conservation agriculture principles (the interlinked application of minimal soil disturbance, permanent soil cover, and crop rotations) are universally applicable in all agricultural landscapes and cropping systems. The application of these principles will favor the transition to a carbon-neutral agriculture and the long-term achivement of sustainability within agricultural systems. In this Special Issue, we present evidence that conservation agriculture can be considered as system that can concretely contribute to tackle the challenges of the 21st century.

Prof. Dr. Michele Pisante
Prof. Dr. Fabio Stagnari
Guest Editors

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Keywords

Conservation agriculture
Ecosystem services
Land degradation
Biodiversity loss
Carbon neutrality

Published Papers (6 papers)

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Research

Jump to: Review

19 pages, 4022 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Assessing the Long-Term Impact of Traditional Agriculture and the Mid-Term Impact of Intensification in Face of Local Climatic Changes

by José Telo da Gama, Luis Loures, António Lopez-Piñeiro, Derick Quintino, Paulo Ferreira and José Rato Nunes

Agriculture 2021, 11(9), 814; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture11090814 - 27 Aug 2021

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2460

Abstract

In the Mediterranean basin, edaphic salinization, sodification and alkalinization related to anthropic pressures and climatic changes may hinder the ecosystem sustainability. It is pertinent to study the mid and long-term variability of these soil characteristics in face off the macro agricultural system in use (i.e., irrigation or rain-fed). Four irrigated soils from the Caia Irrigation Perimeter (Portugal), Fluvisols, Luvisols, Calcisols and Cambisols were analysed in the mid-term, from 2002 to 2012, for its available Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺, K⁺ and Na⁺ content. Overall, Ca²⁺, K⁺ and Na⁺ significantly increased during the period of this study by 25%, 8% and 7%, respectively. Soil organic matter (SOM) and pH for the irrigated soils in the area were already assessed in previous studies with the overall SOM remaining constant (p ≥ 0.05) and pH increasing (p < 0.01) by 5%. We provide the predictive maps for Na⁺ and the CROSS predictive & HotSpot evolution map from 2002 to 2012. Rain-fed soils were analysed in the long-term, from 1965 to 2012, for their SOM, pH and non-acid cations (Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺, K⁺ and Na⁺) content. While SOM, pH and the exchangeable Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺ and K⁺ significantly increased (p < 0.01) by 23%, 8%, 60%, 21% and 193%, respectively, exchangeable Na⁺ significantly decreased (p < 0.01) by 50%. These results may be related to the local climate changes as, according to the Thornthwaite classification, it went from sub-humid with great water excess (C1B2s2b4) in the climate normal 1951/1980 to sub-humid with moderate water excess (C1B2sb4) in 1981/2010 to semi-arid with little to none water excess (DB2db4) in 1991/2020. The irrigated areas in this Mediterranean region are slowly departing from sustainable goals of soil conservation and better edaphic management and conservation practices, that address the registered climatic changes in the area, could be adopted. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Conservation Agriculture for Ecosystem Services)

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14 pages, 659 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Durum Wheat Yield and Grain Quality in Early Transition from Conventional to Conservation Tillage in Semi-Arid Mediterranean Conditions

by Karima Djouadi, Arezki Mekliche, Sonia Dahmani, Nadia Insaf Ladjiar, Yasmine Abid, Zakaria Silarbi, Abdelmadjid Hamadache and Michele Pisante

Agriculture 2021, 11(8), 711; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture11080711 - 28 Jul 2021

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 2282

Abstract

In semi-arid Mediterranean areas, there is a growing interest in adopting conservation tillage practices for their advantages in improving soils fertility, reducing production costs, and stabilizing crop yields. The aim of this study conducted in the 2019 and 2020 seasons was to investigate the effect of three tillage systems—conventional tillage (CT), minimum tillage (MT), and no-tillage (NT)—on grain yield, yield components, and quality indices of a durum wheat crop (Triticum durum Desf. cv. Simeto) grown in monoculture in semi-arid conditions of Northern Algeria. Tillage systems had a significant effect on the average yield of the 2 years, with NT being 28% and 35% higher than CT and MT, respectively—a trend even more evident in the second year under observation. The superiority of NT (p < 0.001) in the second year (2020) is mainly due to the increased spikes density (318.93 spikes m² under NT vs. 225.07 and 215.20 spikes m² under MT and CT, respectively). Yield components and quality parameters were more affected by climatic conditions than by tillage treatments. The number of kernels per spike being the most affected by water and heat stresses occurred in 2020 season. A decrease of 51% is noted regardless of the tillage treatment, which negatively affected the grain yield in that year (1.9 vs. 1.3 t ha⁻¹ in 2019 and 2020, respectively). This stress also induced an increase in grain protein content, but a reduction of its weight. The results of this study conducted in the early transition from conventional to conservation tillage show that durum wheat grown under NT results in higher grain yield than the other systems in the specific operative conditions of the study region, providing better seed emergence and better spikes density, especially in the dry years. Moreover, the quality parameters are more affected by weather conditions than by the tillage system—with an interaction year × tillage system significant only for the grain. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Conservation Agriculture for Ecosystem Services)

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13 pages, 3222 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Native Perennial Plants Colonizing Abandoned Arable Fields in a Desert Area: Population Structure and Community Assembly

by Saud L. Al-Rowaily, Dekhil H. Al-Dosari, Abdulaziz M. Assaeed, Ahmed M. Abd-ElGawad, Mohamed A. El-Sheikh, Magdy I. El-Bana and Wafa’a A. Al-Taisan

Agriculture 2020, 10(11), 550; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture10110550 - 15 Nov 2020

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2616

Abstract

In recent years, the phenomenon of abandonment of arable fields has increased in Saudi Arabia due to low soil fertility, drought, low rainfall, high levels of evapotranspiration, soil salinization, and low level of groundwater. We evaluated the effect of agricultural land abandonment on soil properties, perennial vegetation composition, and population structure in the Al-Kharj region, Saudi Arabia. A total of 11 perennial plant species belonging to 9 families and 11 genera were detected in the different abandoned fields of the study area. Four plant communities were identified after the application of the detrended correspondence analysis (DCA) ordination. The indicator species were (1) Seidlitzia rosmarinus—Zygophyllum hamiense, (2) Traganum nudatum—Seidlitzia rosmarinus, (3) Traganum nudatum—Prosopis farcta, and (4) Calligonum comosum—Pulicaria undulata. Results of the soil analysis showed significant differences in soil texture, pH, salinity, and nutrient content among the four recognized plant communities. Demographic analysis indicated that populations of Zygophyllum hamiense and Calligonum comosum tended to be either inverse J-shaped or positively skewed which may have indicated rapidly-growing populations with high reproductive capacity. Conversely, the size–frequency distribution of Traganum nudatum, S. Rosmarinus, and Prosopis farcta was approximately symmetrical (i.e., bell-shaped). The present study sheds light on the necessity of managing abandoned agricultural fields for restoring and improving rangelands with native species that are adapted to the local conditions such as low water demand. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Conservation Agriculture for Ecosystem Services)

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18 pages, 3252 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Quantifying Soil Compaction in Persimmon Orchards Using ISUM (Improved Stock Unearthing Method) and Core Sampling Methods

by Ehsan Moradi, Jesús Rodrigo-Comino, Enric Terol, Gaspar Mora-Navarro, Alexandre Marco da Silva, Ioannis N. Daliakopoulos, Hassan Khosravi, Manuel Pulido Fernández and Artemi Cerdà

Agriculture 2020, 10(7), 266; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture10070266 - 03 Jul 2020

Cited by 16 | Viewed by 3299

Abstract

Agricultural activities induce micro-topographical changes, soil compaction and structural changes due to soil cultivation, which directly affect ecosystem services. However, little is known about how these soil structural changes occur during and after the planting of orchards, and which key factors and processes play a major role in soil compaction due to cultivation works. This study evaluates the improved stock unearthing method (ISUM) as a low-cost and precise alternative to the tedious and costly traditional core sampling method, to characterize the changes in soil compaction in a representative persimmon orchard in Eastern Spain. To achieve this goal, firstly, in the field, undisturbed soil samples using metallic core rings (in January 2016 and 2019) were collected at different soil depths between 45 paired-trees, and topographic variations were determined following the protocol established by ISUM (January 2019). Our results show that soil bulk density (Bd) increases with depth and in the inter-row area, due to the effect of tractor passes and human trampling. The bulk density values of the top surface layers (0–12 cm) showed the lowest soil accumulation, but the highest temporal and spatial variability. Soil consolidation within three years after planting as calculated using the core samples was 12 mm, whereas when calculated with ISUM, it was 14 mm. The quality of the results with ISUM was better than with the traditional core method, due to the higher amount of sampling points. The ISUM is a promising method to measure soil compaction, but it is restricted to the land where soil erosion does not take place, or where soil erosion is measured to establish a balance of soil redistribution. Another positive contribution of ISUM is that it requires 24 h of technician work to acquire the data, whereas the core method requires 272 h. Our research is the first approach to use ISUM to quantify soil compaction and will contribute to applying innovative and low-cost monitoring methods to agricultural land and conserving ecosystem services. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Conservation Agriculture for Ecosystem Services)

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Review

Jump to: Research

14 pages, 2855 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceReview

Revamping Ecosystem Services through Agroecology—The Case of Cereals

by Gomathy Sethuraman, Nurul Amalina Mohd Zain, Sumiani Yusoff, Yin Mei Ng, Niranjan Baisakh and Acga Cheng

Agriculture 2021, 11(3), 204; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture11030204 - 03 Mar 2021

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 5180

Abstract

Globally, farming systems are mostly dominated by monoculture, which has the advantage of profitability at the expense of ecological systems. Recent years have witnessed an increasing momentum in global efforts to deploy sustainable agriculture practices that mimic ecological processes, with agroecology at the forefront. In addition to the ecological aspect, agroecology also encompasses economic and social aspects targeting the whole food system. Transformative agroecology has been recognized as a stepping stone to achieving several Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), due to its great potential to build climate change-resilient farming systems while enhancing ecosystem services and reducing biodiversity loss. Nonetheless, the available literature on the recent developments and future trajectories of the adoption of agroecology approaches for improving the production of cereals, the most important group of food crops, is limited. This review aims to highlight the blueprint of agroecology that can contribute to the achievements of the SDGs, allowing explicit interpretation of the term that will benefit twenty-first century agriculture. Using cereal crops as the case study, we provide insights into how far this field has come and the main barriers to its adoption, and conclude that this approach of “science for and with society” is the way forward for building a resilient future. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Conservation Agriculture for Ecosystem Services)

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21 pages, 1471 KiB

Open AccessReview

Conservation of Ecosystem Services in Argiudolls of Argentina

by Marcelo Germán Wilson, Alejandro Esteban Maggi, Mario Guillermo Castiglioni, Emmanuel Adrián Gabioud and María Carolina Sasal

Agriculture 2020, 10(12), 649; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture10120649 - 19 Dec 2020

Cited by 13 | Viewed by 3526

Abstract

Mollisols are a fundamental component of global agricultural production. In the Argentine Pampas region, 65% of the Mollisols belong to Argiudoll great group. These soils have an agricultural aptitude, with limitations given mainly by varying thickness of the top horizon A as a result of the severity of water erosion depending on its site in the landscape layered on an argillic B horizon. Over the last three decades, Pampean agriculture has been widespread because of a modern technological matrix characterized by transgenic crops, and increasing use of fertilizers and pesticides. Large changes have taken place in crop sequence composition, toward the disappearance of pastures and the rapid expansion of soybean monoculture due to the upward trend of the international price of this commodity. This review contributes to an alertness regarding the significance of the soil degradation problem, in terms of decline in soil fertility and structural condition, decrease in size of soil aggregates, surface and subsurface compaction, decrease in organic carbon content, soil and water contamination, reduction of infiltration rate and structure stability, causing an increase in water losses through surface runoff and water erosion and lost ecosystem services. Additionally, a set of sustainable land management practices and legal aspects is shown. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Conservation Agriculture for Ecosystem Services)

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