Effect of agricultural management practices on arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal abundance in low-input cropping systems of southern Africa: a case study from Zimbabwe

In December, 1987, the states in the Chesapeake Bay region, along with the federal government, signed an agreement which called for a 40% reduction in nitrogen and phosphorus loadings to the Bay by the year 2000. To accomplish this goal, major reductions in nutrient loadings associated with agricultural management practices were deemed necessary. The objective of this study was to determine if reducing fertilizer inputs to the NT system would result in a reduction in nitrogen contamination of groundwater. In this study, groundwater, soil, and percolate samples were collected from two cropping systems. The first system was a conventional no-till (NT) grain production system with a two-year rotation of corn/winter wheat/double crop soybean. The second system, denoted low-input sustainable agriculture (LISA), produced the same crops using a winter legume and relay-cropped soybeans into standing wheat to reduce nitrogen and herbicide inputs. Nitrate-nitrogen concentrations in groundwater were significantly lower under the LISA system. Over 80% of the NT groundwater samples had NO3-N concentrations greater than 10 mgl-1, compared to only 4% for the LISA cropping system. Significantly lower soil mineral N to a depth of 180 cm was also observed. The NT soil had nearly twice as much mineral N present in the 90-180 cm portion than the LISA cropping system.

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Are microbial activity and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal community influenced by regeneration stages? A case study in Southern Brazil coastal Atlantic Rain Forest

Applied Soil Ecology ◽

10.1016/j.apsoil.2019.02.028 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 138 ◽

pp. 94-98 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

D.M. Morales-Londoño ◽

E. Meyer ◽

A. Kunze ◽

D. Gonzalez ◽

O.O. Prieto-Benavides ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Microbial Activity ◽

Fungal Community ◽

Rain Forest ◽

Arbuscular Mycorrhizal ◽

Atlantic Rain Forest ◽

Southern Brazil ◽

Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungal

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Exploring Farmers’ Management Practices and Values of Ecosystem Services in an Agroecosystem Context—A Case Study from the Eastern Cape, South Africa

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su11236567 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 11 (23) ◽

pp. 6567 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Dennis Junior Choruma ◽

Oghenekaro Nelson Odume

Keyword(s):

South Africa ◽

Ecosystem Services ◽

Food Production ◽

Management Practices ◽

Crop Yields ◽

Management Strategies ◽

Agricultural Management ◽

Eastern Cape ◽

Provisioning Ecosystem Services

Globally, farmers remain the key ecosystem managers responsible for increasing food production while simultaneously reducing the associated negative environmental impacts. However, research investigating how farmers’ agricultural management practices are influenced by the values they assign to ecosystem services is scarce in South Africa. To address this gap, a survey of farmers’ agricultural management practices and the values they assigned towards ecosystem services was conducted in the Eastern Cape, South Africa. Results from the survey show that farmers assign a high value on food provisioning ecosystem services compared to other ecosystem services. Irrigation and fertiliser decisions were mostly based on achieving maximum crop yields or good crop quality. The majority of farmers (86%) indicated a willingness to receive payments for ecosystem services (PES) to manage their farms in a more ecosystems-oriented manner. To encourage farmers to shift from managing ecosystems for single ecosystem services such as food provision to managing ecosystems for multiple ecosystem services, market-oriented plans such as PES may be employed. Effective measures for sustainable intensification of food production will depend on the inclusion of farmers in the development of land management strategies and practices as well as increasing farmers’ awareness and knowledge of the ecosystem services concept.

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Using crop simulation model to evaluate influence of water management practices and multiple cropping systems on crop yields: A case study for Ethiopian highlands

Field Crops Research ◽

10.1016/j.fcr.2020.108004 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 260 ◽

pp. 108004

Author(s):

A. Araya ◽

P.V.V. Prasad ◽

I.A. Ciampitti ◽

P.K. Jha

Keyword(s):

Water Management ◽

Simulation Model ◽

Management Practices ◽

Crop Yields ◽

Cropping Systems ◽

Multiple Cropping ◽

Crop Simulation Model ◽

Crop Simulation ◽

Influence Of Water

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Effects of Inoculum Additions in the Presence of a Preestablished Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungal Community

Applied and Environmental Microbiology ◽

10.1128/aem.02135-13 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 79 (20) ◽

pp. 6507-6515 ◽

Cited By ~ 35

Author(s):

Martina Janoušková ◽

Karol Krak ◽

Cameron Wagg ◽

Helena Štorchová ◽

Petra Caklová ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Plant Growth ◽

Mycorrhizal Fungi ◽

Positive Response ◽

Arbuscular Mycorrhizal ◽

Plant Productivity ◽

Ecological Aspect ◽

Trade Off ◽

Fungal Abundance ◽

Managed Ecosystems ◽

Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungal

ABSTRACTCommunities of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) are crucial for promoting plant productivity in most terrestrial systems, including anthropogenically managed ecosystems. Application of AMF inocula has therefore become a widespread practice. It is, however, pertinent to understand the mechanisms that govern AMF community composition and their performance in order to design successful manipulations. Here we assess whether the composition and plant growth-promotional effects of a synthetic AMF community can be altered by inoculum additions of the isolates forming the community. This was determined by following the effects of three AMF isolates, each inoculated in two propagule densities into a preestablished AMF community. Fungal abundance in roots and plant growth were evaluated in three sequential harvests. We found a transient positive response in AMF abundance to the intraspecific inoculation only in the competitively weakest isolate. The other two isolates responded negatively to intra- and interspecific inoculations, and in some cases plant growth was also reduced. Our results suggest that increasing the AMF density may lead to increased competition among fungi and a trade-off with their ability to promote plant productivity. This is a key ecological aspect to consider when introducing AMF into soils.

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