Crop and Environment最新文献

{"title":"Different roles of biochar in mitigating greenhouse gas emissions from paddy fields in northern and southern China","authors":"Kai Zhang ,&nbsp;Yanghui Sui ,&nbsp;Jiping Gao ,&nbsp;Zhongcheng Zhang ,&nbsp;Linlin Chen ,&nbsp;Shuyi Tang ,&nbsp;Xue Wan ,&nbsp;Hongfang Jiang ,&nbsp;Yanze Zhao ,&nbsp;Wenzhong Zhang","doi":"10.1016/j.crope.2025.04.003","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.crope.2025.04.003","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Global warming is a serious threat to human survival and development, ranking among the most formidable challenges humanity faces. Mitigating greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, the main driver of climate warming, has become an urgent priority. As a unique soil amendment, biochar has substantial potential for reducing GHG emissions. Here, we summarizes and analyzes the differences in the role of biochar in carbon sequestration and GHG emission reduction mechanisms in paddy soils between northern and southern China, and reviews how biochar affects CH₄ and N₂O emissions, improves soil physical and chemical properties, and enhances rice growth in both regions. In southern China, initial crop residues and higher field temperatures create an optimal environment for methanogens; meanwhile, biochar promotes favorable conditions for methanotrophic bacteria. In contrast, the northern climate with repeated freeze-thaw cycles affects microbial the changes through the changes in soil temperature and structure, which in turn affects GHG emission mechanisms, as well as substrate availability. Northern soils have higher concentrations of substrates necessary for microbial reactions that facilitate nitrification processes related to N₂O emissions. Therefore, the effect of biochar applied in the south to reduce CH₄ emissions is more prominent, while the effect on mitigating N₂O emissions is more prominent in the north. The rice cultivation system combined with freeze-thaw cycles significantly contributes to the observed differences between the two regions. This review provides theoretical guidance and a decision-making basis for the use of biochar to reduce GHG emissions in paddy soils, thereby advancing toward the China's agricultural carbon peak goal.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":100340,"journal":{"name":"Crop and Environment","volume":"4 3","pages":"Pages 203-215"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145010409","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A review of rice‒rapeseed cropping system in China: towards sustainable development","authors":"Xinyuan Cao,&nbsp;Jianliang Huang,&nbsp;Guangsheng Zhou,&nbsp;Nanyan Deng","doi":"10.1016/j.crope.2025.06.003","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.crope.2025.06.003","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Rice–rapeseed, one of the most important cropping systems in the Yangtze River Valley (YRV), plays a vital role in ensuring both staple food and vegetable oil security in China. Since the 1960s, the system has undergone a rapid area expansion in YRV, with the total area relatively stable in the last two decades while experiencing a spatial shift towards the upper and middle reaches of YRV. Meanwhile, system yield growth has shown a slowing trend, primarily due to the stagnant rice yield and rapid decrease in rapeseed relative yield gain. However, the system production still has considerable room to increase because of the large relative yield gap of more than 50% in rapeseed season and extensive winter fallow fields that can expand rapeseed planting in YRV. To increase system yield, major yield-limiting factors and optimal agronomic management practices were identified, focusing on the aspects of crop establishment, variety selection, fertilizer application, residue return, and water management. We then thoroughly summarized the environmental impacts of carbon footprint and greenhouse gas emissions, as well as possible benefits and adverse effects of climate change. Furthermore, the challenges of enhancing mechanization and economic profits and perspectives of future research directions were discussed to promote the long-term sustainability and productivity of the rice-rapeseed cropping system.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":100340,"journal":{"name":"Crop and Environment","volume":"4 3","pages":"Pages 192-202"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-07-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144913278","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Soybean crops with short duration are prone to nitrogen limitation in high-yielding subtropical environments","authors":"Guilherme Guerin Munareto ,&nbsp;Nicolas Cafaro La Menza ,&nbsp;Eduardo Lago Tagliapietra ,&nbsp;Lucia Bonfanti ,&nbsp;César Eugenio Quintero ,&nbsp;Alexandre Ferigolo Alves ,&nbsp;Nereu Augusto Streck ,&nbsp;Evandro Henrique Figueiredo Moura da Silva ,&nbsp;Fabio Ricardo Marin ,&nbsp;Alencar Junior Zanon","doi":"10.1016/j.crope.2025.06.002","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.crope.2025.06.002","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The asynchrony between soil nitrogen (N) and biological N₂ fixation results in N limitation in soybean crops. The crop duration can potentially alter the asynchrony and N limitation. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of soybean crop duration on N limitation. Seventeen field experiments were conducted in subtropical environments in Brazil with different crop durations: short (102–114 ​d), medium (115–126 ​d), and long (&gt;126 ​d). A full-N fertilizer treatment that synchronized crop N demand and supply throughout crop development was compared with zero-N treatment. Seed yield, protein and oil concentrations, and seed weight and number were determined. The short duration crop was the only one with seed yield response to N supply (0.74 ​Mg ​ha⁻¹; 15.5 ​%). When the long duration crop was fertilized with N, seed protein concentration increased without a trade-off in oil concentration. The N response on seed yield increased by ca. 48 ​kg ​ha⁻¹ per day, when crop duration was shorter than 123 ​d. While the protein yield response increased linearly from long to short crop duration, the oil yield response followed a bi-linear trend. We conclude that N limitation on seed yield in subtropical environments increased as the soybean crop duration decreased below 123 ​d, while the N limitation on seed protein concentration occurred across all crop durations. The intensification of the subtropical soybean-based cropping systems will require increasing soil N to avoid seed protein and yield reductions.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":100340,"journal":{"name":"Crop and Environment","volume":"4 3","pages":"Pages 185-191"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-06-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144913279","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"UAV-based phenotyping identifies net assimilation rate as a diagnostic trait for synergistic enhancement of rice yield and grain quality","authors":"Weiyuan Hong ,&nbsp;Xiangqian Feng ,&nbsp;Ziqiu Li ,&nbsp;Jinhua Qin ,&nbsp;Huaxing Wu ,&nbsp;Yunbo Zhang ,&nbsp;Guang Chu ,&nbsp;Chunmei Xu ,&nbsp;Kai Yu ,&nbsp;Yuanhui Liu ,&nbsp;Danying Wang ,&nbsp;Song Chen","doi":"10.1016/j.crope.2025.06.001","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.crope.2025.06.001","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Achieving rice yield-quality synergy, which is critical for breeding and agronomic practice, is hindered by dynamic regulatory gaps due to methodological constraints, while high-throughput unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) phenotyping can enable breakthroughs by decoding dynamic traits at scale. This study conducted five experiments (EXP, 2022–2024; including nitrogen fertilization, multi-cultivar, and breeding material experiments) with UAV-based phenotyping to establish trait estimation models (EXP1-EXP3), enabling dissection of trait-specific contributions to yield-quality synergies via regression, multi-objective optimization, and path analysis (EXP4-EXP5), and identifying diagnostic traits in practice. Using UAV data, effective regression models were developed to monitor five rice traits: plant height (R² ​= ​0.89), aboveground biomass (R² ​= ​0.84), leaf area index (R² ​= ​0.61), canopy nitrogen content (R² ​= ​0.68), and leaf nitrogen content (R² ​= ​0.83), thereby systematically establishing 37 critical plant traits across the growth stages. Furthermore, feature importance analysis using extreme gradient boosting (R² ​= ​0.99) assessed the importance of these traits for yield and grain quality, and four common traits that were crucial for both yield and grain quality were identified. Notably, the synergistic yield-quality group exhibited 26.38–51.76% higher net assimilation rate (NAR) than the low-performance group (validated by multi-objective optimization), positioning NAR as a diagnostic marker for yield-quality synergistic enhancement. Path analysis revealed that NAR exerted positive effects on yield and grain quality, while yield indirectly influenced grain quality through eating quality. Overall, this study integrated UAV-based phenotyping and trait analysis, providing a novel insight into the synergistic enhancement of yield and grain quality.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":100340,"journal":{"name":"Crop and Environment","volume":"4 3","pages":"Pages 154-167"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-06-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144702276","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Trampling-induced ethylene production delays spikelet initiation in spring wheat","authors":"Akina Mizumoto ,&nbsp;Daisuke Sasayama ,&nbsp;Riona Osaki ,&nbsp;Kota Nishimura ,&nbsp;Tetsushi Azuma","doi":"10.1016/j.crope.2025.05.001","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.crope.2025.05.001","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Early sowing of spring wheat increases the risk of frost injury due to premature spikelet initiation under low temperatures. While trampling has been reported to delay spikelet initiation, its physiological mechanism remains unclear. We attempted to explain the delayed spikelet initiation caused by trampling in terms of the involvement of ethylene. The role of ethylene in trampling was investigated in the spring wheat cultivar Ayahikari by measuring ethylene production after trampling and applying the ethylene-releasing agent ethephon and the ethylene action inhibitor 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP). The effects of trampling and ethylene on the expression of <em>VERNALIZATION1</em> (<em>Vrn1</em>) and <em>FLOWERING LOCUS T</em> (<em>FT</em>), key regulators of spikelet initiation, were also examined. Trampling significantly increased ethylene production and delayed young spike development. Exogenous application of ethephon mimicked the effect of trampling on young spike development, while 1-MCP reversed this effect. Furthermore, trampling suppressed the expression of <em>Vrn1</em> and <em>FT</em>, similar to the effects observed in ethephon-treated plants. The present study indicated that ethylene mediated the effect of trampling on young spike development likely through the suppression of <em>Vrn1</em> and <em>FT</em> expression, ultimately causing a delay in spikelet initiation. Our findings provide a mechanistic explanation and highlight trampling as a potential agronomic strategy for mitigating frost risk in early-sown spring wheat.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":100340,"journal":{"name":"Crop and Environment","volume":"4 3","pages":"Pages 168-172"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-06-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144721310","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Transformations in Argentinean soybean systems: Recent changes, challenges, and opportunities","authors":"Guido Di Mauro ,&nbsp;José F. Andrade ,&nbsp;Diego H. Rotili ,&nbsp;Santiago Alvarez Prado","doi":"10.1016/j.crope.2025.04.001","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.crope.2025.04.001","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>We reviewed the historical agronomic shifts that made Argentina a major soybean producer and discussed some of the current challenges and opportunities to further increase soybean production. The early high adoption rate of this crop was a result of the combination of high relative soybean prices with low production costs and effectively developed technologies that simplified farm activities such as no-till sowing and the use of glyphosate-resistant cultivars. Decades of agronomic research have helped adjust management practices to suit different rainfed environments across Argentina. Despite these efforts, a substantial gap between the rainfed yield potential and current farmer yield remains. Further improvements via crop structure adjustment would require a better understanding of temporal weather variations. Additional possibilities for yield gap reduction rely on improvements in fertilization practices. At present, only half of the soybean area is fertilized, and fertilizer rates are typically below the crop demand driven by an unfavorable grain/fertilizer price ratio. While there is still work to be done to narrow the soybean yield gaps via yield-protecting practices, further progress in genetic yield potential is also desirable. Additionally, a faster adoption rate of newly released cultivars could further increase yield gains. Finally, the extensive adoption of soybean has revealed that fields frequently growing soybean experience soil degradation and lower crop yields. Diversifying rotations with cereal crops is crucial to prevent these issues. All these aspects are relevant to both local and global soybean production, considering the significant role that Argentina is expected to play in the coming years.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":100340,"journal":{"name":"Crop and Environment","volume":"4 2","pages":"Pages 130-141"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144212936","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Effects of nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium fertilization on rapeseed yield under freeze stress","authors":"Shishi Liu,&nbsp;Linxin Xiong,&nbsp;Wen Fang,&nbsp;Kunkun Wang,&nbsp;Xin Cui,&nbsp;Chen Liu,&nbsp;Tao Ren,&nbsp;Jianwei Lu","doi":"10.1016/j.crope.2025.04.002","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.crope.2025.04.002","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Climate variability, particularly freeze stress, poses a substantial challenge to crop yields worldwide. This study examined the impact of early 2024 freeze stress on rapeseed yields in the Yangtze River Basin, China, and assessed yield responses to nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K) fertilizer rates. Six field experiments with varying N, P, and K fertilizer rates were conducted from 2022 to 2024 at two sites. In 2023–2024, a severe freeze event caused yield losses ranging from 13.4% to 63.3%, depending on nutrient fertilizer rates and sites. The effect of N fertilization on mitigating freeze stress varied across different sites, while high P fertilizer rates were associated with a reduced yield decline under freeze stress. The K fertilizer application also decreased the yield reductions caused by the freeze stress. Freeze stress disproportionately affected yield components, particularly the number of siliques per plant. Membership function values (MFV) were used as a comprehensive indicator of yield-related traits to quantify the combined effects of freeze stress and fertilization on rapeseed yield. The optimal fertilizer rates that maximized MFV were 343 ​kg ​N ​ha⁻¹, 118 ​kg P₂O₅ ​ha⁻¹, and 166 ​kg K₂O ha⁻¹ for 2022–2023 and 239 ​kg ​N ​ha⁻¹, 110 ​kg P₂O₅ ​ha⁻¹, and 169 ​kg K₂O ha⁻¹ for 2023–2024. These results highlight the importance of balanced nutrient management in improving rapeseed resilience to freeze stress and provide practical recommendations for optimizing nutrient management in cold-prone regions.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":100340,"journal":{"name":"Crop and Environment","volume":"4 3","pages":"Pages 143-153"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-04-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144569734","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Foliar application of zinc oxide nanoparticles improved yield and 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline content in fragrant rice under salt stress","authors":"Lin Li ,&nbsp;Zheng Huang ,&nbsp;Zhenxiang Zhou,&nbsp;Ye Tao,&nbsp;Yicheng Zhang,&nbsp;Yixue Mu,&nbsp;Shu Wu,&nbsp;Lixiao Nie","doi":"10.1016/j.crope.2025.03.004","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.crope.2025.03.004","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Exogenous application of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) has been shown to increase the stress resistance of crops, however, its effects on the yield and 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline (2-AP) content of fragrant rice under salt stress remain unclear. The present study investigated the effects of foliar application of ZnO NPs on the yield and 2-AP content of fragrant rice under salt stress. The experiment involved two fragrant rice varieties, i.e. Ruanhuayou1179 and Ruanhuayoujinsi, and four levels of ZnO NPs, i.e. spraying water (CK), 100 ​mg ​L⁻¹ (NP1), 200 ​mg ​L⁻¹ (NP2), and 400 ​mg ​L⁻¹ (NP3), with 0.3​% (5 ​dS ​m⁻¹) saltwater, (a mixture of freshwater and seawater). The results demonstrated that the NP1 treatment exhibited the highest yield for both fragrant rice varieties among all treatments, primarily due to an increase in grain number per panicle and grain filling rate. Furthermore, compared with CK, the NP1 treatment significantly enhanced aboveground biomass, chlorophyll content, and potassium ion content in the leaves while reducing malondialdehyde content. Compared with CK, the NP1, NP2, and NP3 treatments significantly increased 2-AP content of both fragrant rice varieties by 46.23–46.67​%, 31.66–43.99​%, and 21.72–39.31​%, respectively, mainly due to increased levels of leaf proline, Δ1-pyrroline-5-carboxylate, 1-pyridine, and methylglyoxal contents. The NP1 treatment also upregulated the 2-AP synthesis enzymes and their gene expression (such as ornithine aminotransferase, diamine oxidase, and Δ1-pyrroline-5-carboxylate synthetase) in comparison with CK. In conclusion, foliar application of 100 ​mg ​L⁻¹ ZnO NPs proved to be the most effective in enhancing both yield and 2-AP content in fragrant rice under salt stress.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":100340,"journal":{"name":"Crop and Environment","volume":"4 2","pages":"Pages 107-117"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-04-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144166707","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Drought priming-induced low temperature stress tolerance in wheat: insight into stress memory dynamics","authors":"Yi Wang,&nbsp;Lihao Zheng,&nbsp;Jiamin Song,&nbsp;Jian Cai,&nbsp;Qin Zhou,&nbsp;Yingxin Zhong,&nbsp;Dong Jiang,&nbsp;Xiao Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.crope.2025.03.003","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.crope.2025.03.003","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Drought priming is a promising strategy for enhancing plant tolerance to low temperature stress. However, the underlying stress memory mechanisms linking priming to subsequent stress responses remain understood. Here, we integrated physiological, transcriptomic, and metabolomic analyses to identify key stress memory genes or metabolites associated with priming-induced low temperature tolerance in wheat. Our results demonstrated that drought priming significantly improved cold tolerance by enhancing leaf photosynthesis, mitigating oxidative damage, and promoting osmolyte accumulation. These physiological advantages were tightly linked to transcriptional reprogramming of carbohydrate metabolism, antioxidant defense, and hormone signaling pathways, suggesting that drought priming establishes a long-term molecular and metabolic memory that enhances stress tolerance. During stress memory maintenance, primed plants sustained elevated expression of genes related to reactive oxygen species homeostasis, ethylene and brassinosteroid biosynthesis, and indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) catabolism, along with increased accumulation of abscisic acid glucosyl ester (ABA-GE). Additionally, primed plants exhibited higher expression of genes associated with carbon, nitrogen, and energy metabolism while downregulating secondary metabolite biosynthesis genes, optimizing their metabolic state for future stress adaptation. Upon stress retriggering, primed plants rapidly activated ABA, IAA, and Ca²⁺ signaling pathways, upregulated antioxidant enzyme and sugar biosynthetic genes, and accumulated polyunsaturated fatty acids, lipids, and specific secondary metabolites, facilitating a swift and effective response to low temperature stress. These findings provide critical insights into the molecular and metabolic basis of stress memory in wheat, offering valuable genetic and biochemical targets for breeding climate-resilient crops and developing strategies to mitigate the impact of environmental stresses.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":100340,"journal":{"name":"Crop and Environment","volume":"4 2","pages":"Pages 118-129"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-03-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144166722","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Insights into the potential of potato production across Europe","authors":"Marloes P. van Loon ,&nbsp;Seyyedmajid Alimagham ,&nbsp;Isaac K. Abuley ,&nbsp;Hendrik Boogaard ,&nbsp;Dominika Boguszewska-Mańkowska ,&nbsp;Jose I. Ruiz de Galarreta ,&nbsp;Edwin H. Geling ,&nbsp;Oleksii Kryvobok ,&nbsp;Oleksandr Kryvoshein ,&nbsp;Gorka Landeras ,&nbsp;Natsumi Okuda ,&nbsp;Bruno Parisi ,&nbsp;Cezary Trawczyński ,&nbsp;Krystyna Zarzyńska ,&nbsp;Martin K. van Ittersum","doi":"10.1016/j.crope.2025.03.002","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.crope.2025.03.002","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Europe is an important potato producer, showing a strong decline in areas and increases in yield over the past decades, but with large regional differences. This study aims to characterise current European potato production by analysing yields, revealing yield gaps (Yg), and assessing key factors that explain actual (Ya) and potential yields (Yw, for rainfed systems; Yp, for irrigated systems). We selected 13 key potato producing countries, jointly accounting for 90​% of the European potato area. Local data were used to simulate Yw and Yp, while Ya was retrieved from sub-national statistics. Then, we analysed main factors affecting yields using boundary line analysis on nitrogen input and crop water availability. Results showed that European potato production on current acreage can increase by 55​% when yields would increase to 80​% of their potential. The largest potential production gains featured in eastern Europe (59​% Yg, 59​% of potato area), thereafter western Europe (32​% Yg, 25​% of potato area), and smallest gains in northern and southern Europe (43​% and 45​% Yg, with relatively small acreages of 9​% and 6​%, respectively). Our analysis revealed that nitrogen input was a limiting factor in eastern Europe, while we found substantial overuse in some western European countries. Under rainfed conditions, water was the main limiting factor in relatively few potato cultivation areas. In irrigated areas, e.g. in southern Europe, irrigation water requirements to approach Yp are large, which becomes increasingly challenging. Insights from this study can be used to guide future development and innovation in potato cultivation across Europe.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":100340,"journal":{"name":"Crop and Environment","volume":"4 2","pages":"Pages 97-106"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-03-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144166702","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}