Cover crops promote regulating and supporting ecosystem services without compromising grape yield in temperate vineyards. A meta-analysis

Abstract

Vineyards play a crucial role in the economies, landscapes, and ecosystems of temperate regions. Cover cropping is an agroecological practice that enhances ecosystem services delivery while mitigating the negative impacts associated with grapevine cultivation. This meta-analysis assessed for the first time the influence of cover crops through multiple explanatory variables, including edaphic and climatic factors, vineyard and cover crop management on provisioning, regulating, and supporting ecosystem services in temperate vineyards worldwide. We analyzed data from 64 studies (n = 1308 paired comparisons) using the natural logarithm of the response ratio [Ln(RR)] as the effect size, with 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) to evaluate the magnitude and significance of response variables. A random-effects model was used for the overall meta-analysis. Effect sizes for explanatory variables were subsequently compared using subgroup meta-analyses with mixed-effects models. Overall, cover crops had no significant effect on provisioning (−0.056; 95% CI: −0.154 to 0.042; p = 0.263), but significantly improved regulating (0.342; 95% CI: 0.075, 0.610; p = 0.012) and supporting ecosystem services (0.124; 95% CI: 0.008, 0.241; p = 0.036). Regulating ecosystem services were particularly enhanced in semiarid climates, organic systems, irrigated vineyards, under high grapevine density and in-row cover crop management, and where cover cropping had been adopted for a medium to long period. Greater gains were also associated with spontaneous vegetation, mixed or non-traditional cover crop species, and termination via green manuring or mowing. Supporting ecosystem services also benefited where cover cropping had been adopted for a medium to long period, particularly under organic farming, with cover crop mixtures, and when terminated via roller-crimping. Among studies assessing multiple ecosystem services, 28% reported win–win outcomes, 17% showed lose–lose scenarios, 42% exhibited trade-offs, whereas 13% did not affect ecosystem services. These results demonstrate the ecological benefits of cover crops in temperate vineyards, especially for regulating and supporting ecosystem services, without compromising grapevine yield.