The Future of Farming in a Changing World: From Physiology to Technology

Topic Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Topic explores the multifaceted effects of climate change, precision agriculture technologies, and agrivoltaics on crops’ physiology, growth, yield, quality, and subsequent food processing. These factors significantly influence the agricultural economies of many nations, leading to challenges (such as water scarcity) and opportunities (like the advent of innovative technologies). Climate change manifests in diverse forms: elevated temperatures, droughts, heat waves, intense rainfall, and the emergence of new diseases, which each present unique challenges in crop production. Conversely, precision agriculture technologies offer hope, enabling resource conservation, enhanced crop management, and the efficient utilization of traditional and underutilized crop varieties. This Topic will explore these issues to provide insights and solutions that will shape future crop production strategies.

Dr. Giuseppe Ferrara
Prof. Dr. Olaniyi Amos Fawole
Topic Editors

Keywords

Participating Journals

Journal Name	Impact Factor	CiteScore	Launched Year	First Decision (median)	APC
Agriculture agriculture	3.3	4.9	2011	20.2 Days	CHF 2600
Agronomy agronomy	3.3	6.2	2011	15.5 Days	CHF 2600
Crops crops	-	-	2021	24.2 Days	CHF 1000
Foods foods	4.7	7.4	2012	14.3 Days	CHF 2900
Plants plants	4.0	6.5	2012	18.2 Days	CHF 2700

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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All Agriculture Agronomy Crops Foods Plants

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Supplementary material:
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20 pages, 3348 KiB  

Open AccessArticle

Effects of a Diet of Allium Extract on Growth, Biochemistry, Metabolism, and Gut Microbiota of Rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus)

by Antonio Cascajosa-Lira, Silvia Pichardo, Alberto Baños, María Arántzazu Aguinaga-Casañas, Andrea Ricci, Andrea Frabetti, Andrea Barausse, Angeles Jos and Ana M. Cameán

Foods 2024, 13(23), 3976; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods13233976 - 9 Dec 2024

Viewed by 566

Abstract

The rabbit farming industry is growing due to the rising demand for healthy, sustainable meat. Rabbit meat’s nutritional benefits and low environmental impact appeal to health-conscious consumers. To enhance economic sustainability, efforts focus on reducing disease susceptibility and antibiotic use through improved biosecurity [...] Read more.

The rabbit farming industry is growing due to the rising demand for healthy, sustainable meat. Rabbit meat’s nutritional benefits and low environmental impact appeal to health-conscious consumers. To enhance economic sustainability, efforts focus on reducing disease susceptibility and antibiotic use through improved biosecurity and natural additives, such as organosulphur compounds from Allium plants, which have shown promise in studies for boosting productivity and health. This study aimed to investigate the effects of PTSO supplementation on farm rabbits. Over and after a 76-day period, various parameters were assessed to measure the impacts on rabbit growth, health, biochemical parameters, muscle metabolism, and intestinal microbiota. The rabbit groups received either a control diet or a diet supplemented with Allium extract. The results showed significant improvements in growth performance for rabbits fed with Allium extract, including higher final weights, increased average daily gain (ADG), and lower mortality rates. A biochemical analysis revealed normal values for the parameters measured in the treated group. A muscle analysis evidenced the presence of a few metabolites of PTSO. A gut microbiota analysis indicated distinct differences between the control and treated groups, increasing the presence of some strains that can influence positively the growth of rabbits. This study highlights the potential benefits of PTSO supplementation for improving growth performance, health parameters, and gut microbiota composition in farm rabbits, suggesting its efficacy as a dietary additive. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic The Future of Farming in a Changing World: From Physiology to Technology)

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13 pages, 1914 KiB  

Open AccessArticle

Climate Change and Its Positive and Negative Impacts on Irrigated Corn Yields in a Region of Colorado (USA)

by Jorge A. Delgado, Robert E. D’Adamo, Alexis H. Villacis, Ardell D. Halvorson, Catherine E. Stewart, Jeffrey Alwang, Stephen J. Del Grosso, Daniel K. Manter and Bradley A. Floyd

Crops 2024, 4(3), 366-378; https://doi.org/10.3390/crops4030026 - 9 Aug 2024

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1223

Abstract

The future of humanity depends on successfully adapting key cropping systems for food security, such as corn (Zea mays L.), to global climatic changes, including changing air temperatures. We monitored the effects of climate change on harvested yields using long-term research plots [...] Read more.

The future of humanity depends on successfully adapting key cropping systems for food security, such as corn (Zea mays L.), to global climatic changes, including changing air temperatures. We monitored the effects of climate change on harvested yields using long-term research plots that were established in 2001 near Fort Collins, Colorado, and long-term average yields in the region (county). We found that the average temperature for the growing period of the irrigated corn (May to September) has increased at a rate of 0.023 °C yr⁻¹, going from 16.5 °C in 1900 to 19.2 °C in 2019 (p < 0.001), but precipitation did not change (p = 0.897). Average minimum (p < 0.001) temperatures were positive predictors of yields. This response to temperature depended on N fertilizer rates, with the greatest response at intermediate fertilizer rates. Maximum (p < 0.05) temperatures and growing degree days (GDD; p < 0.01) were also positive predictors of yields. We propose that the yield increases with higher temperatures observed here are likely only applicable to irrigated corn and that irrigation is a good climate change mitigation and adaptation practice. However, since pan evaporation significantly increased from 1949 to 2019 (p < 0.001), the region’s dryland corn yields are expected to decrease in the future from heat and water stress associated with increasing temperatures and no increases in precipitation. This study shows that increases in GDD and the minimum temperatures that are contributing to a changing climate in the area are important parameters that are contributing to higher yields in irrigated systems in this region. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic The Future of Farming in a Changing World: From Physiology to Technology)

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20 pages, 1532 KiB  

Open AccessArticle

“What’s Good for the Bees Will Be Good for Us!”—A Qualitative Study of the Factors Influencing Beekeeping Activity

by Aliz Feketéné Ferenczi, István Szűcs and Andrea Bauerné Gáthy

Agriculture 2024, 14(6), 890; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14060890 - 4 Jun 2024

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1586

Abstract

Beekeepers play a crucial role in the survival of honey bee populations, so it is essential to understand the drivers behind their activities. This qualitative study aims to explore the factors influencing beekeepers’ decision-making and to assess the relationship between beekeepers and their [...] Read more.

Beekeepers play a crucial role in the survival of honey bee populations, so it is essential to understand the drivers behind their activities. This qualitative study aims to explore the factors influencing beekeepers’ decision-making and to assess the relationship between beekeepers and their bees, to identify the relationship between them by building a theoretical model, and to assess the perception of pollination services as a potential source of income diversification among Hungarian beekeepers. Based on the grounded theory method, we created a paradigm model of beekeeping management based on semi-structured interviews with beekeepers in Hungary. In the analysis of the interviews, we first used open coding to develop categories according to the concepts used by the beekeepers, and then structured and linked these categories (axial coding). Finally, we identified the most relevant main categories (selective coding) and outlined the conceptual framework for beekeeping management. We mapped the strategies and beekeeping practices beekeepers use and the consequences they generate. The results show that several causal conditions influence beekeeping decisions and strategies. In an environment where beekeepers’ costs are increasing and their incomes are decreasing while implementing adaptation strategies, more targeted measures are needed to protect bees and increase beekeepers’ profitability. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic The Future of Farming in a Changing World: From Physiology to Technology)

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17 pages, 4215 KiB  

Open AccessArticle

15-cis-Phytoene Desaturase and 15-cis-Phytoene Synthase Can Catalyze the Synthesis of β-Carotene and Influence the Color of Apricot Pulp

by Ningning Gou, Xuchun Zhu, Mingyu Yin, Han Zhao, Haikun Bai, Nan Jiang, Wanyu Xu, Chu Wang, Yujing Zhang and Tana Wuyun

Foods 2024, 13(2), 300; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods13020300 - 17 Jan 2024

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1743

Abstract

Fruit color affects its commercial value. β-carotene is the pigment that provides color for many fruits and vegetables. However, the molecular mechanism of β-carotene metabolism during apricot ripening is largely unknown. Here, we investigated whether β-carotene content affects apricot fruit color. First, the [...] Read more.

Fruit color affects its commercial value. β-carotene is the pigment that provides color for many fruits and vegetables. However, the molecular mechanism of β-carotene metabolism during apricot ripening is largely unknown. Here, we investigated whether β-carotene content affects apricot fruit color. First, the differences in β-carotene content between orange apricot ‘JTY’ and white apricot ‘X15’ during nine developmental stages (S1–S9) were compared. β-carotene contents highly significantly differed between ‘JTY’ and ‘X15’ from S5 (color transition stage) onwards. Whole-transcriptome analysis showed that the β-carotene synthesis genes 15-cis-phytoene desaturase (PaPDS) and 15-cis-phytoene synthase (PaPSY) significantly differed between the two cultivars during the color transition stage. There was a 5 bp deletion in exon 11 of PaPDS in ‘X15’, which led to early termination of amino acid translation. Gene overexpression and virus-induced silencing analysis showed that truncated PaPDS disrupted the β-carotene biosynthesis pathway in apricot pulp, resulting in decreased β-carotene content and a white phenotype. Furthermore, virus-induced silencing analysis showed that PaPSY was also a key gene in β-carotene biosynthesis. These findings provide new insights into the molecular regulation of apricot carotenoids and provide a theoretical reference for breeding new cultivars of apricot. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic The Future of Farming in a Changing World: From Physiology to Technology)

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