scholarly journals Nitrogen Utilization in a Cereal-Legume Rotation Managed with Sustainable Agricultural Practices

Agronomy ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 113 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mariangela Diacono ◽  
Paola Baldivieso-Freitas ◽  
Francisco Sans Serra
Keyword(s):  
Green Manure ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Farmyard Manure ◽  
Agricultural Practices ◽  
Residual Effect ◽  
N Fertilization ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
N Losses ◽  
Sustainable Agricultural Practices ◽  
N Use

Optimization of the nitrogen (N) inputs and minimization of nutrient losses strongly affect yields in crop rotations. The aim of this research was to evaluate the effect of agricultural practices on yield and N use in a 4-year cereal-legume rotation in organic farming and to identify the best combination of these practices. The following treatments were compared: conventional plough (P) vs. reduced chisel (RC) tillage; composted farmyard manure (F) vs. unfertilized control (NF); and green manure (GM) vs. no green manure (NoM). No significant differences were found for N use efficiency between P and RC in each crop. The results suggested that legumes in the tested rotation do not need supplemental N fertilization, particularly if combining GM and F. The use of composted farmyard manure should be considered in a long-term fertilization plan for cereals, to allow a higher efficiency in N use. The residual effect of fertilization over time, along with the site-specific pedo-climatic conditions, should also be considered. In both tested tillage approaches, soil N surplus was the highest in plots combining GM and F (i.e., more than 680 kg N ha−1 in combination with RC vs. about 140 kg N ha−1 for RC without fertilization), with a risk of N losses by leaching. The N deficit in NoM–NF both combined with P and RC would indicate that these treatment combinations are not sustainable for the utilized crops in the field experiment. Therefore, the combination of the tested practices should be carefully assessed to sustain soil fertility and crop production.

Application of Extremophiles in Sustainable Agriculture

2022 ◽  
pp. 233-250
Author(s):  
Julius Eyiuche Nweze ◽  
Justus Amuche Nweze ◽  
Shruti Gupta
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Agriculture ◽  
Bioactive Compounds ◽  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
Agricultural Production ◽  
Crucial Role ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Agricultural Practices ◽  
Production Plant ◽  
Physiological Conditions ◽  
Sustainable Agricultural Practices

With the increasing demands for foods and other agriculture-based products, sustainable agricultural practices are the cornerstone for improving low-input agricultural production. In contrast to crop production, plant-microorganism interaction (PMI) plays a crucial role. PMI significantly raises productivity as well as maintaining the overall health of the crop. During harsh and extreme physiological conditions, plant-associated extremophilic microbes (PAEM) are known to contribute to crop production, survivability, and fitness. Thus, the application of extremophiles either in the form of biofertilizer or biopesticides is highly beneficial. Extremophiles have been adapted to withstand diverse harsh environmental conditions. They possess unique mechanisms at the molecular level to produce enormous potential extremozymes and bioactive compounds. Consequently, extremophiles represent the foundation of efficient and sustainable agriculture. This chapter introduces the significance and application of plant-associated extremophilic microbes in sustainable agriculture.

Nitrogen performance indicators for dairy production systems

Soil Research ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 55 (6) ◽  
pp. 479 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cecile A. M. de Klein ◽  
Ross M. Monaghan ◽  
Marta Alfaro ◽  
Cameron J. P. Gourley ◽  
Oene Oenema ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Agricultural Production ◽  
Production Systems ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Dairy Production ◽  
N Losses ◽  
Key Issues ◽  
Use Efficiency ◽  
Environmental Goals ◽  
N Use

Nitrogen (N) is invaluable for maintaining agricultural production, but its use, and particularly inefficient use, can lead to environmental losses. This paper reviews N use efficiency (NUE) and N surplus indicators for dairy production systems to assess their utility for optimising N use outcomes and minimising environmental N losses. Using case-study examples, we also assess realistic goals for these indicators and discuss key issues associated with their use. Published whole-farm NUE and whole-farm N surplus values ranged within 10–65% and 40–700 kg N ha–1 year–1 respectively. In a study of five catchments across New Zealand, whole-farm NUE was more strongly affected by catchment differences in soil and climatic conditions than by differences in management. In contrast, whole-farm N surplus differed both between- and within-catchments and was a good indicator of N losses to water. Realistic goals for both NUE and N surplus thus depend on the agro-climatic context of the dairy system and on its economic and environmental goals. Crop and animal NUE values can be valuable indicators for optimising fertiliser and feed use and minimising N losses. However, global or national whole-farm NUE values appear of limited value if the ultimate goal for setting targets is to reduce the environmental impact of N use; whole-farm level targets based on N surplus would be a more useful indicator for this purpose. Our review also reinforces the importance of standardising the variables that should be used to estimate NUE and N surplus values, to ensure equitable comparisons between different systems. Finally, NUE and N surplus targets should also be set in the context of other agro-environmental considerations.

scholarly journals Agriculture Data Analytics in Crop Yield Estimation: A Critical Review

2018 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 1087 ◽  
Author(s):  
B.M. Sagar ◽  
Cauvery N K
Keyword(s):  
Big Data ◽  
Crop Yield ◽  
Data Analytics ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Big Data Analytics ◽  
Agricultural Practices ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Yield Prediction ◽  
Main Challenge ◽  
Crop Health

<p>Agriculture is important for human survival because it serves the basic need. A well-known fact that the majority of population (≥55%) in India is into agriculture. Due to variations in climatic conditions, there exist bottlenecks for increasing the crop production in India. It has become challenging task to achieve desired targets in Agri based crop yield. Factors like climate, geographical conditions, economic and political conditions are to be considered which have direct impact on the production, productivity of the crops. Crop yield prediction is one of the important factors in agriculture practices. Farmers need information regarding crop yield before sowing seeds in their fields to achieve enhanced crop yield. The use of technology in agriculture has increased in recent year and data analytics is one such trend that has penetrated into the agriculture field being used for management of crop yield and monitoring crop health. The recent trends in the domain of agriculture have made the people to understand the significance of          Big data. The main challenge using big data in agriculture is identification of impact and effectiveness of big data analytics.  Efforts are going on to understand how big data analytics can be used to improve the productivity in agricultural practices. The analysis of data related to agriculture helps in crop yield prediction, crop health monitoring and other such related activities. In literature, there exist several studies related to the use of data analytics in the agriculture domain. The present study gives insights on various data analytics methods applied to crop yield prediction. The work also signifies the important lacunae points’ in the proposed area of research.</p>

scholarly journals Soil Testing A Panacea to Crop Yield and Agricultural Sustainability – A Case for Farmers of South Eastern, Nigeria

2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. p7
Author(s):  
Nweke, I. A.
Keyword(s):  
Crop Production ◽  
Organic Fertilizer ◽  
Residual Effect ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Soil Testing ◽  
Growth And Yield ◽  
Nutrient Elements ◽  
Soil Biodiversity ◽  
South Eastern ◽  
Increasing Demand

Increasing human population is closely related with the increasing demand of food and pressure on available land with the rising demand on fertilizer that has not been sustainable at the farmer’s level. This causes soil fertility decline, nutrient imbalance and low residual effect which are constraint affecting agricultural production in south eastern soils of Nigeria in particular and to large extent in tropical environment. Land available to be used for intensive crop production activities is limited and this demand for adequate soil testing that will x-ray the fertility status of the soil before crop planting. The characteristics and amount of nutrient elements of a soil and soil biodiversity is influenced by climatic conditions, erosion/leaching, drought, cultivation history/land use system, cropping history, kinds of pesticides/herbicides applied, type and methods of inorganic and organic fertilizer applied. Soil testing quantifies the total value of plant nutrient elements available in a sampled soil that will directly promote crop growth and yield. Due to its biophysical, biochemical, biological and physiochemical results, soil testing when appropriately interpreted and applied may be used effectively to promote sustainable crop production and environmental health in a tropical soil like south eastern, Nigeria.

Carbon Transformations of Biochar Based Co-Composting - A Review

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 ◽  
Author(s):  
Balaganesh Pandiyan ◽  
Vasudevan Mangottiri ◽  
Natarajan Narayanan
Keyword(s):  
Crop Production ◽  
Agricultural Practices ◽  
Soil Nutrient ◽  
Nutrient Retention ◽  
Crop Productivity ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Experimental Conditions ◽  
Integral Role ◽  
Morphological Transformations

Abstract:: Biochar-Amended Composting (BAC) plays an integral role in sustainable agricultural practices due to its multiple benefits in crop production, soil nutrient retention, carbon sequestration and environmental protection. Although accepted as a traditional method, there is lack of understanding in defining its suitability and efficiency on various base-materials and conditions. Being two carbon-based entities with plentiful nutrients and surface activity, biochar and compost find application in agricultural fields together or separately for improving the soil properties and crop productivity. Recent studies focus on defining the optimum conditions for their preparation, mixing, application and monitoring under various feed, soil, crop and climatic conditions. However, due to the complexity and specificity of the system, many influencing aspects of their interaction are yet unknown in detail. In this review, we analyze the recent advancements in the selection and preparation of new materials for BAC, and explain the mechanisms of Organic Matter (OM) degradation/sequestration happening in soil based on possible chemical/morphological transformations of organic carbon. Most of the performance results are in agreement with the previous records, but a few contradictions observed under diverse experimental conditions. In general, BAC enhanced the mineralization of carbon and sequestration of heavy metals, and stabilized labile fraction of OM due to the development of carbonyl, phenolic and aromatic functional groups on its surface. In addition, aging of biochar resulted in stable N-C=O and amino groups for the adsorption of nitrogen compounds thus decreasing the potential greenhouse gas emissions. The study further identifies potential future research gaps in this area.

scholarly journals Kharif Crops Selection for Sustainable Farming Practices in the Rajasthan-India Using Multiple Attribute-Based Decision-Making

Agronomy ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 536
Author(s):  
Vineet Tirth ◽  
Ram Karan Singh ◽  
Saiful Islam ◽  
Irfan Anjum Badruddin ◽  
Rini Asnida Binti Abdullah ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Pennisetum Glaucum ◽  
Agricultural Practices ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Analytic Hierarchy ◽  
Multiple Attribute ◽  
Objective And Subjective Weights ◽  
Sustainable Agricultural Practices ◽  
The Cost ◽  
The Given

Sustainability of agricultural practices depends on economic, environmental, and social conditions. The Rajasthan state of India has arid climatic conditions where kharif crops are commonly grown. In this work, the four major criteria are considered such as the farm area, crop yield per unit area, the cost prices, and the market sales price. Merged analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and entropy techniques have been employed to give reasonable weight coefficients for the objective and subjective weights to each criterion. Multiple attribute-based decision-making models (MADM) have been developed using three proven techniques, namely the Exprom2, the technique for order of preference by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS), and the VlseKriterijumska Optimizacija I Kompromisno Resenje (VIKOR). The crop Pennisetum glaucum emerged as the most productive kharif crop in the arid climatic conditions of Rajasthan, India under the given criteria. The sensitivity analysis of the three methods identifies the most significant criteria and validates that Pennisetum glaucum is the first ranked crop despite the interchange of the weights. The methodology used in this study may be applied across the globe to select appropriate crops for maximizing the profit, optimizing the natural resources, and promoting sustainable agricultural practices. This study may be used to enhance the agricultural gross domestic product (GDP) to make the agriculturalists self-sufficient and to help the state policymakers in making effective regional policies.

Managing pluvial resources and improving soil hydrology: Survival questions for cotton farming systems. The case study of the Mouhoun (Burkina Faso)

Biologia ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 64 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Valérie Hauchart
Keyword(s):  
Burkina Faso ◽  
Rainy Season ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Cultural Practices ◽  
Agricultural Practices ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Climatic Changes ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Hydrological Processes ◽  
Erosion Processes

AbstractCotton cropping has been developing for more than 40 years in the western part of Burkina Faso. It has made a definite modernization of the traditional farming system. Modernization is illustrated by adoption of specific agricultural practices like monoculture, tillage, straight sowing and slope ridge planting. Misuse and non-adaptable local pedologic and climatic context of these new practices perturb soil hydrological processes. Outcomes are water loss by runoff, erosion and changes in the soils physical and physiochemical properties.Besides, we can notice in this area for more than 30 years climatic changes which require us to ask ourselves what are the resulting consequences. In fact, these climatic changes generate an extension of the rainy season, an increase in the frequency of high intensity spells but also recurrence of dry spells during the rainy season. Do these new climatic conditions exacerbate the consequences of cotton practices on hydrological processes and induce an aggravation of flow and erosion processes?These evolutions have direct consequences on crop production whereas needs are highly increasing. The improvement of the prevailing agricultural practices and innovative practices might provide improved pluvial resources in critical moments such as rainfall excess at the beginning and the end of the rainy season and short drought conditions after sowing or germination and during flowering. However two questions arise. In the rainfed agriculture, which cultural practices (to reduce runoff and to favour infiltration) are, in regard to pedologic, climatic or socio-economic context, able to allow improved water efficiency and, as a result, an increase of the food grains production? Might selected practices and production addition satisfy requirements of the coming population?

scholarly journals Optimal selection of agricultural crops for sustainable farming in nutrient-rich Wadi areas of Saudi Arabia using MCDM

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (4B) ◽  
Author(s):  
Vineet Tirth ◽  
◽  
Ram Karan Singh ◽  
Saiful Islam ◽  
Ali Algahtani ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
Lower Cost ◽  
Water Environment ◽  
Agricultural Practices ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Kingdom Of Saudi Arabia ◽  
Crop Selection ◽  
Sustainable Agricultural Practices ◽  
Decision Making Model ◽  
Selection Of

In the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), Wheat, Barley, fruits, vegetables, and fodders are the most common agricultural products. Agricultural sustainability depends on socioeconomic and climatic conditions. Proper crop selection is vital to maximize productivity, yielding more revenue to the farmer at a lower cost. To rank the crop alternatives based on the available natural resources and cost, a multicriterion based decision-making model (MCDM) may be applied to identify the best suitable crop, encouraging sustainable agricultural practices. To make the agricultural activities sustainable, most of the critical criteria are taken into account. Four criteria linked to sustainability are included in this study. The research focuses on developing a model for sustainable agricultural practices in KSA employing MCDM. Three MCDM techniques were employed to evaluate the most suitable crop,and the results are compared and validated. The results from all three methods gave consistent results. Fruits emerged as the most productive crop, followed by Wheat, vegetables, fodders, and Barley. Such methodology shall be further extended across the other regions and over various crops for sustainable agricultural practices. The study is expected to help the Ministry of Water, Environment, and Agriculture, KSA, draft a suitable agricultural policy.

scholarly journals Effects of Different Organic Soil Amendments on Nitrogen Nutrition and Yield of Organic Greenhouse Tomato Crop

Nitrogen ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 347-358
Author(s):  
Anastasios Gatsios ◽  
Georgia Ntatsi ◽  
Dionisios Yfantopoulos ◽  
Penelope Baltzoi ◽  
Ioannis C. Karapanos ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Green Manure ◽  
Crop Residues ◽  
Nitrogen Nutrition ◽  
Farmyard Manure ◽  
N Fertilization ◽  
Common Source ◽  
Biological Fixation ◽  
Tomato Crop ◽  
Green Manuring ◽  
Greenhouse Tomato

Manure is a common source of nitrogen (N) in organic farming. However, manure is not always easily available, while the maximum N amount added as animal manure in organic agriculture is restricted by EU regulations. The present study was designed to test whether green manuring with a warm-season legume and intercropping with a cold-season legume can substitute farm-yard manure or compost as N sources in organic greenhouse tomato crops. To test this hypothesis, a winter-spring (WS) tomato crop was installed in February following the incorporation of crop residues of an autumn-winter (AW) tomato crop intercropped with faba bean, which had been fertilized with cowpea residues as green manure. This treatment, henceforth termed legume treatment (LT), was compared with the use of compost or manure as an N fertilization source in both tomato crops. In addition, a combination of compost and LT was also used as a fourth treatment. The results showed that green manuring with legumes and particularly cowpea can contribute a significant amount of N to the following organic tomato crop, through the biological fixation process. Nevertheless, legumes as green manure, or compost, or their combination cannot efficiently replace farmyard manure as an N fertilization source. Compost exhibited a slow mineralization course.

scholarly journals Soil Respiration under 90 Year-Old Rye Monoculture and Crop Rotation in the Climate Conditions of Central Poland

Agronomy ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 21
Author(s):  
Tomasz Sosulski ◽  
Magdalena Szymańska ◽  
Ewa Szara ◽  
Piotr Sulewski
Keyword(s):  
Soil Respiration ◽  
Crop Rotation ◽  
Farmyard Manure ◽  
N Fertilization ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Co2 Fluxes ◽  
Mineral Fertilization ◽  
Crop Species ◽  
Climate Conditions ◽  
Central Poland

This study, aimed at assessing the rate of soil respiration under different crop rotation and fertilization conditions, was carried out on long-term (since 1923) experimental plots with rye monoculture and 5-crop rotation in Skierniewice (Central Poland). The treatments included mineral-organic (CaNPK+M) and organic (Ca+M) fertilization (where M is farmyard manure). Soil respiration was measured in situ by means of infrared spectroscopy using a portable FTIR spectrometer Alpha. CO2 fluxes from CaNPK+M-treated soils under cereals cultivated in monoculture and crop rotations were not statically different. Respiration of soil under lupine cultivated in crop rotation was higher than under cereals. N-fertilization and its succeeding effect increased soil respiration, and significantly altered its distribution over the growing season. Our results indicate that in the climatic conditions of Central Europe, respiration of sandy soils is more dependent on the crop species and fertilization than on the crop rotation system. Omission of mineral fertilization significantly decreases soil respiration. The CO2 fluxes were positively correlated with soil temperature, air temperature, and soil content of NO3− and NH4+.

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