European Journal of Agronomy最新文献

{"title":"Predicting spatial and temporal variability in soybean yield using deep learning and open source data","authors":"Deborah V. Gaso ,&nbsp;Laura Elena Cue La Rosa ,&nbsp;Laila A. Puntel ,&nbsp;Juan I. Rattalino Edreira ,&nbsp;Allard de Wit ,&nbsp;Lammert Kooistra","doi":"10.1016/j.eja.2024.127498","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.eja.2024.127498","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Spatial crop yield prediction provides valuable insights for supporting sustainable and precise crop management decisions. This study assessed the capabilities of advanced Deep Learning (DL) architectures in predicting within-field soybean yields using spectral bands from Sentinel-2 (RS-Inputs), weather (W-Inputs), and topographic attributes (TA-Inputs). DL architectures included 1-D convolutional neural network (1D-CNN), long short-term memory (LSTM) and transformer-based (TRFM). We used an extensive dataset ( ∼ 700 K) of yield observations, collected with a combine harvester, from 310 fields across three growing seasons (2020, 2021 and 2022) in Uruguay. The DL architectures were assessed under two testing strategies: across-fields and across-years. We compared results from DL architectures against a baseline that uses a process-based method with data assimilation. Our results revealed that DL architectures outperformed the baseline in testing across-fields only (RRMSE 35 % vs 40 %). The DL architectures encountered more challenges with temporal extrapolation (RRMSE 51 % in across-years). There were no substantial differences in performance among the DL architectures. The TA-Inputs enhanced accuracy in 1D-CNN (reduced RRMSE by ∼ 13 %), while W-Inputs led to a small improvement in 1D-CNN and LSTM (reduced RRMSE by ∼ 2 %) when tested across-years. All combinations of DL architectures and input settings encountered challenges in predicting the tails of the yield distribution (mean bias ∼ 1000 kg ha⁻¹). We discussed the current limitations of DL architectures in capturing crop yield complexity using openly available spatial data and provided further directions for improving the reliability and interpretability of data-driven models by integrating process-based approaches. Beyond this, the performance of data-driven methods alone is expected to improve with the increasing availability of collected and stored data. Incorporating historical yield maps and in-season crop management data into open-source datasets will facilitate continuous training and enhancement for tailored models.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51045,"journal":{"name":"European Journal of Agronomy","volume":"164 ","pages":"Article 127498"},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2025-01-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143151470","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Combining modelling and experiment to quantify light interception and inter row variability on intercropped soybean in strip intercropping","authors":"Yushan Wu ,&nbsp;Meng Chen ,&nbsp;Sirong Huang ,&nbsp;Yue Li ,&nbsp;Min Li ,&nbsp;Di He ,&nbsp;Pengcheng Hu ,&nbsp;Tao Duan ,&nbsp;Wanzhuo Gong ,&nbsp;Yanhong Yan ,&nbsp;Titriku John Kwame ,&nbsp;Muhammad Ali Raza ,&nbsp;Wenyu Yang","doi":"10.1016/j.eja.2025.127508","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.eja.2025.127508","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Taller crops affect the direct light interception and use efficiency of shorter crops in strip intercropping. Quantifying the light interception of shorter crops and optimizing it by manipulating the configurations could reduce lodging and produce a greater yield. Prior investigations have examined the instantaneous light interception of short-stature crops in intercropping. However, the direct quantification of daily light interception (DAI) and its inter-row variation in strip intercropping remains unclear. In this study, we developed a modelling approach to quantify the daily light interception of soybean plants in different arrangements of maize soybean strip intercropping and verified its accuracy by measuring photosynthetic active radiation (PAR) and phenotypic response (plant height, leaf area, biomass, and yield) to light. Treatments included five intercropping systems (1M1S represents one maize row intercropped with one soybean row, 2M1S, 2M2S, 2M3S and 2M4S represent two maize rows intercropped with 1–4 soybean rows, respectively, with the increase of soybean strip width) and two sole soybean cropping system (S40 and S50, soybean row distances of 0.4 m and 0.5 m, respectively), all plants were planted in east-west rows direction. Our results showed that the DAI calculated using the new model of the soybean canopy in intercropping was lower than that in sole cropping. At the grain-filling stage, the DAI at the soybean canopy increased from 29.3 MJ/m² in 1M1S to 125.6 MJ/m² in 2M4S. In 2M2S, 2M3S, and 2M4S, the DAI of border rows (soybean rows close to the neighboring maize row) on the north side were 1.37, 8.89, and 18.72 times higher than those of the border rows on the south side, respectively. DAI was significantly correlated with the measured instantaneous PAR and increased with an increase in soybean strip width. The measured plant height, leaf area, biomass, and grain yield of soybean across each row of each intercropping treatment exhibited a consistent trend with changes in DAI, and they were positively correlated with the soybean strip width. Soybean plants in rows with less light interception showed an obvious shade response: plant height increased, and leaf area, biomass, and yield decreased. This physiological response of soybean was caused by changes in light interception, confirming the accuracy of the model. The proposed light interception model and related physiological responses offer a quantitative approach and reference for understanding light competition in strip intercropping systems to design better strip configurations.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51045,"journal":{"name":"European Journal of Agronomy","volume":"164 ","pages":"Article 127508"},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2025-01-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142975608","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The synergistic effect of variety improvement and alternate wetting and drying irrigation on yield, water use efficiency and lodging resistance in rice","authors":"Hanzhu Gu ,&nbsp;Zhilin Xiao ,&nbsp;Qinghao Meng ,&nbsp;Xiaotong Fa ,&nbsp;Chen Wang ,&nbsp;Wenjiang Jing ,&nbsp;Weilu Wang ,&nbsp;Kuanyu Zhu ,&nbsp;Weiyang Zhang ,&nbsp;Junfei Gu ,&nbsp;Lijun Liu ,&nbsp;Jianhua Zhang ,&nbsp;Hao Zhang","doi":"10.1016/j.eja.2025.127507","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.eja.2025.127507","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Dwarfism in rice has reduced plant height, enhancing lodging resistance and supporting high grain yields. Alternate wetting and drying irrigation (AWD) has proven effective for water conservation in rice production. However, the impact of AWD on grain yield and lodging-resistant stem characteristics during rice variety improvement is not well understood. This study evaluated eight mid-season <em>indica</em> rice varieties from Jiangsu province spanning the last 80 years, across two years under conventional irrigation (CI) and AWD. We observed that grain yield and water use efficiency (WUE) increased with variety improvement under both CI and AWD irrigation regimes. However, AWD significantly boosted yield and WUE compared to CI, with increases of 10.32 % in early tall, 9.37 % in dwarf, 20.33 % in semi-dwarf, and 25.22 % in semi-dwarf hybrid types, respectively. Concurrently, stem breaking resistance, parenchyma and mechanical tissue thickness, and silicon content in the second basal internode of the stem were significantly enhanced, while the lodging index decreased with variety improvement. Internode length initially decreased and then stabilized, and the contents of soluble sugar, starch, lignin, and cellulose in the stem and sheath rose, then decreased, and eventually stabilized. AWD improved the morphological, mechanical, physicochemical characteristics, and anatomical indicators in the second basal internode, and reduced the lodging index. Correlation analysis revealed a close relationship between yield, WUE, lodging index, and stem characteristics. Notably, modern hybrid rice varieties with low lodging indices achieved high yields and WUE under AWD, attributed to the enhanced characteristics of the second basal internode.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51045,"journal":{"name":"European Journal of Agronomy","volume":"164 ","pages":"Article 127507"},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2025-01-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142975604","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Analysing variations in flowering time based on the dynamics of chill and heat accumulation during the fulfilment of cultivar-specific chill requirements in apricot","authors":"Alvaro Delgado ,&nbsp;David Ruiz ,&nbsp;Ana M. Muñoz-Morales ,&nbsp;José Antonio Campoy ,&nbsp;Jose A. Egea","doi":"10.1016/j.eja.2025.127509","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.eja.2025.127509","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The fulfilment of cultivar-specific chill requirements (CR) and heat requirements (HR) is crucial for breaking dormancy and achieving optimal blooming and fruit set in temperate fruit trees. The reduction in winter chill availability over the coming decades due to global warming is expected to compromise the fulfilment of CR in many production areas, leading to production losses. The interplay between the accumulation of CR and HR remains unclear. In this study, we used three-year-old potted trees of the apricot cultivar ‘Deseo’ (60 chill portions; CP) to examine how the dynamics of chill and heat accumulation affect the timing of full bloom. We supplied the trees with their specific chill needs by moving them between three distinct environments (constant temperature cold store, ambient conditions and heated glasshouse) before transferring them to a heated glasshouse for flowering. Despite trees being exposed to similar chilling, the variation in temperature dynamics during the dormant period affected flowering dates. The findings suggest that chill and heat accumulation phases can overlap, and once a specific percentage the cultivar specific CR is fulfilled, the simultaneous accumulation of chill and heat appears to advance flowering. A higher heat accumulation (measured in Growing Degree Hours; GDH) during the fulfilment of CR was associated with lower heat accumulation needed for blooming in a heated glasshouse where the accumulation of chill had ceased. The higher correlation was observed when the 75 % of the CR had been fulfilled suggesting that simultaneous accumulation of chill and heat in the last stages appears to be more effective in triggering earlier blooming. This experimental set up could also help to develop new modelling approaches for temperate fruit trees, considering changes in typical patterns of chill accumulation as well as abnormal high winter temperatures caused by climate change.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51045,"journal":{"name":"European Journal of Agronomy","volume":"164 ","pages":"Article 127509"},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2025-01-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142975605","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Temporal pattern of biomass partitioning to apical ear in maize plant hierarchies under contrasting resource availabilities","authors":"M.A. Rossini ,&nbsp;G.A. Maddonni","doi":"10.1016/j.eja.2025.127505","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.eja.2025.127505","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Most studies in maize (Zea mays L.) focus on biomass partitioning to the ear (BA_E) during the critical period for kernel setting (from −220 +100°Cd from silking; R1). However, early-established interplant variability of growth (around V7) affects both plant and ear growth during this period, influencing kernel setting across plant hierarchies. Delays in silk extrusion are often linked to reduced BA_E due to low plant growth just before R1. This study examined whether variability of BA_E and thermal time (TT) to R1 among plants is pre-conditioned early in the cycle (close V7). Two maize hybrids with contrasting tolerance to crowding stress (AX820: high, AX877: low) were grown in field conditions under combinations of stand densities (9 and 12 plants m⁻²) and nitrogen levels (0 and 200 kg N ha⁻¹) or water availabilities (well-watered and water deficit). Plants were sampled from V7 to 100°Cd after R1 and classified into dominant, intermediate, and dominated hierarchies. For each hierarchy, BA_E was estimated as the ratio of ear biomass to plant biomass. Abiotic stresses increased interplant variability, reduced growth and BA_E, and delayed TT to R1. Differences on BA_E patterns among plant hierarchies were analyzed using ANOVA of linear regressions of natural log of BA_E vs TT from sowing. Dominated plants showed longer TT to R1 due to a delayed onset of active BA_E. A common BA_E pattern emerged when TT was aligned with R1 for each hierarchy, suggesting an ontogenic effect on BA_E.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51045,"journal":{"name":"European Journal of Agronomy","volume":"164 ","pages":"Article 127505"},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2025-01-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142975678","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Ensuring sustainable crop production when yield gaps are small: A data-driven integrated assessment for wheat farms in Northwest India","authors":"Hari Sankar Nayak ,&nbsp;João Vasco Silva ,&nbsp;Chiter Mal Parihar ,&nbsp;Mangi Lal Jat ,&nbsp;Rajbir Singh ,&nbsp;Rakesh Kumar ,&nbsp;Dipak Ranjan Sena ,&nbsp;Hanuman Sahay Jat ,&nbsp;Harminder Singh Sidhu ,&nbsp;Timothy J. Krupnik ,&nbsp;Tek B. Sapkota","doi":"10.1016/j.eja.2024.127492","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.eja.2024.127492","url":null,"abstract":"&lt;div&gt;&lt;div&gt;Northwest India achieved remarkable wheat productivity gains during the past decades. However, this has been accompanied by increasing input levels and intensive production practices, raising questions about the economic and environmental sustainability of current cropping systems. A multicriteria integrated assessment is required for wheat farms in the region to understand the scope for cleaner wheat production in the future. Production practices from irrigated wheat fields (n = 3928) were evaluated for multiple sustainability indicators, namely yield gap, nitrogen (N)-use efficiency, profitability, and greenhouse gas emissions. Stochastic frontier analysis was combined with simulated potential yield (Yp) data to identify the causes of wheat yield gaps in the region. N-use efficiency was estimated by calculating the partial factor productivity of N, profitability was computed based on reported input-output amounts and prices, and greenhouse gas emissions were quantified using the Mitigation Options Tool (MOT). These indicators were subjected to a multicriteria assessment using the Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) under different scenarios (i.e., different weights for different indicators). For each scenario, farmers’ fields were classified as most efficient, efficient, less efficient, and least efficient, and random forest was used to identify the most important management practices governing the field classification. Wheat yield gaps were small (25–30 % of Yp or 2.4 t ha&lt;sup&gt;−1&lt;/sup&gt;) and mostly attributed to the technology yield gap (ca. 20 % of Yp or 1.5 t ha&lt;sup&gt;−1&lt;/sup&gt;). Ranking and grouping the farmers’ fields in the scenario with equal weights for all indicators revealed that at least 25 % of the fields had very high greenhouse gas emissions (&gt;1500 kg CO&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt;-eq ha&lt;sup&gt;−1&lt;/sup&gt;) at a productivity level of &lt; 4.5 t ha&lt;sup&gt;−1&lt;/sup&gt;, and that it is possible to produce wheat sustainably without compromising yields in Northwest India, as indicated by the performance of the most efficient fields. Tillage intensity and N application rates can be adjusted for least efficient fields (&lt;10 % least efficient fields adopting zero tillage vs &gt;80 % most efficient fields adopting zero tillage) to achieve an overall objective of higher yield, lower greenhouse gas emissions, more profit and higher N-use efficiency, whereas residue retention and tillage intensity would need to be prioritized for minimizing greenhouse gas emissions. For the most efficient fields the decrease in greenhouse gas emissions was always associated with a decline in yield level. The most important management practices governing the field classification included the crop establishment method used for the previous rice crop, the number of tillage operations, residue retention, and the N fertilizer rate for wheat. The study provides a data-driven approach to screen trade-offs between performance indicators and to id","PeriodicalId":51045,"journal":{"name":"European Journal of Agronomy","volume":"164 ","pages":"Article 127492"},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2025-01-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142975606","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Enhancing irrigation scheduling by application efficiency estimations and soil moisture simulations","authors":"Jan Lukas Wenzel ,&nbsp;Julia Pöhlitz ,&nbsp;Muhammad Usman ,&nbsp;Thomas Piernicke ,&nbsp;Christopher Conrad","doi":"10.1016/j.eja.2024.127487","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.eja.2024.127487","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Additional water supply by irrigation is increasingly applied to high-value crops as potatoes in humid and temperate biomes to maximize yield and quality. In the light of increasing drought risks, innovative adjustments are required in irrigation scheduling to increase the efficiency and sustainability of supplemental irrigation. Hence, this study aims to (i) propose an easy-to-adopt, soil-property based approach to estimate the application efficiency under open-field conditions, and (ii) compare the accuracy of simulated soil moisture dynamics provided by two different physically based water balance models (AMBAV, HYDRUS-1D). Variable rate gross irrigation depths were applied during the growing seasons 2021 and 2022 on two loamy-sand potato fields (27 ha and 35 ha) in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany. The average application efficiency of the utilized gun sprinkler irrigation system was 77.2 %, ranging between 71.6 % and 81.4 % (71.3 %–80.9 %) in 2021 (2022). It was higher than expected in agricultural practice, which allowed for potential seasonal water savings of 6.3 L m⁻² on loamy sands, in comparison with the customary potato irrigation. HYDRUS-1D provided a significantly increased accuracy of simulated soil moisture dynamics, when compared to AMBAV. The overall average model performance metrics in comparison with in-situ measurements were: Root Mean Square Error (RMSE): 0.044 (AMBAV), 0.021 (HYDRUS-1D); Mean Absolute Error (MAE): 0.041 (AMBAV), 0.018 (HYDRUS-1D); coefficient of determination (R²): 0.567 (AMBAV), 0.649 (HYDRUS-1D). Simulated soil moisture dynamics of both models showed greater variations in topsoil (0 cm–30 cm) than in subsoil (40 cm–60 cm) and diverged in their accuracy in different months of the growing season of the potato crop. These novel insights on unproductive water losses during irrigation and on the simulation accuracy of different physically based soil water balance models significantly improve the irrigation scheduling under open-field conditions. The results of this study may hence serve as important cornerstones for establishing water-saving irrigation strategies in the humid and temperate biomes of Central Europe.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51045,"journal":{"name":"European Journal of Agronomy","volume":"164 ","pages":"Article 127487"},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2025-01-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143152179","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Multi-trait assessment of wheat variety mixtures performance and stability: Mixtures for the win!","authors":"Laura Stefan ,&nbsp;Silvan Strebel ,&nbsp;Karl-Heinz Camp ,&nbsp;Sarah Christinat ,&nbsp;Dario Fossati ,&nbsp;Christian Städeli ,&nbsp;Lilia Levy Häner","doi":"10.1016/j.eja.2024.127504","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.eja.2024.127504","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In the current quest for a more sustainable, environment-friendly agriculture, variety mixtures are often suggested as a practical option to increase the stability of food production systems. Their effects on yield have been extensively researched, yet clear conclusions remain elusive, notably in terms of mechanistic processes and optimal variety combinations. Furthermore, in the case of wheat, yield is not the only component in the equation: grain quality is crucial for the bread value chain, yet the effects of variety mixtures on wheat quality and its stability have rarely been investigated. To that end, we conducted a multi-year, multi-site wheat variety mixture experiment investigating the role of variety mixtures on the performance and stability of five traits linked to grain yield and quality, and the mechanisms underlying these effects. Eight varieties were grown in pure stands and mixtures of 2 and 8 varieties, following a full diallel design. We considered the responses of grain yield, protein content, thousand kernel weight, hectoliter weight, and Zeleny sedimentation value. Results showed that mixtures generally outperformed pure stands in terms of global performance and stability for the 5 parameters. We particularly noticed an increase in quality stability and in Zeleny sedimentation value in mixtures, showing the potential of mixtures to improve crop quality. Moreover, we highlighted the important role of light interception for increased mixtures benefits. A more detailed investigation into individual mixture performances led us to some practical rules for optimal variety combinations: we advise combining varieties with similar heights and phenologies but different tillering abilities and yield potential. This study thus shows that variety mixtures represent a promising solution to sustainably increase the stability of wheat yield and quality. With practical recommendations, our results could benefit farmers but also processors and bakers, and promote the adoption of wheat variety mixtures.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51045,"journal":{"name":"European Journal of Agronomy","volume":"164 ","pages":"Article 127504"},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2025-01-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142935448","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Inoculation with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi in the field promotes plant colonization rate and yield","authors":"Xiaoyang Li ,&nbsp;Yifan Wu ,&nbsp;Chen Huang ,&nbsp;Md. Abiar Rahman ,&nbsp;Eli Argaman ,&nbsp;Yan Xiao","doi":"10.1016/j.eja.2024.127503","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.eja.2024.127503","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) are widely distributed and can establish symbiotic relationships with various plants. AMF plays a critical role as a biological fertilizer in promoting sustainable agriculture. However, comprehensive studies on the effects of AMF inoculation under field conditions are still lacking. This study conducted a global synthesis of 117 peer-reviewed publications with 1633 field observations to assess the effects of different AMF inoculation treatments on plant colonization rate and crop growth performance in field experiments. The overall effect of AMF inoculation on plant colonization rate, nitrogen (N) uptake, phosphorus (P) uptake, yield and plant height demonstrated a positive impact. In crop studies, AMF inoculation was more beneficial for Leguminosae than Gramineae. Single inoculation produced greater effects than mixed inoculation. <em>Claroideoglomus</em> stood out in its ability to significantly boost colonization rates. However, its role in enhancing crop yields was less pronounced when compared to the contributions of <em>Rhizophagus</em> and <em>Funneliformis</em>. In tree inoculation studies, mixed inoculation outperformed single inoculation, with similar effects across fungal genera as observed in crops. AMF inoculation was more beneficial for crop P uptake rather than N uptake. Yield positively correlated with colonization and was closely associated with nutrient uptake. Soil environmental factors mainly affected plant colonization rate, while climate factors influenced crop yield. AMF inoculation positively impacts plant growth and development, but species differences, climate and soil conditions influence its effects. Therefore, this study offers valuable insights into sustainable agricultural production management and the application of AMF inoculants.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51045,"journal":{"name":"European Journal of Agronomy","volume":"164 ","pages":"Article 127503"},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2025-01-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142935465","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Estimation of winter wheat yield by assimilating MODIS LAI and VIC optimized soil moisture into the WOFOST model","authors":"Jing Zhang ,&nbsp;Guijun Yang ,&nbsp;Junhua Kang ,&nbsp;Dongli Wu ,&nbsp;Zhenhong Li ,&nbsp;Weinan Chen ,&nbsp;Meiling Gao ,&nbsp;Yue Yang ,&nbsp;Aohua Tang ,&nbsp;Yang Meng ,&nbsp;Zhihui Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.eja.2024.127497","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.eja.2024.127497","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Accurate and timely crop yield prediction is essential for effective agricultural management and food security. Soil moisture (SM) is a major factor that directly influences crop growth and yield, especially in arid regions. Hydrological models are often used to determine SM, which can be incorporated into crop growth models to estimate crop yield in large-scale areas. However, in existing studies on the coupling of hydrological models and crop models, there is little integration of remote sensing observation indicators into the coupled models, and few studies focus on selecting the most effective depth of SM and the number of SM layers. In this study, we developed a framework for integrating the Variable Infiltration Capacity (VIC) model and the WOrld FOod STudies (WOFOST) model to estimate winter wheat yield in the Yellow River Basin (YRB). The framework first selected the optimal SM layer from three layers and then jointly assimilated this SM as well as the leaf area index (LAI) from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) model into the WOFOST model using a genetic algorithm (GA). Results showed that the VIC model had a high performance in the validation period across the four subregions, with the Nash Sutcliffe Efficiency (NSE) of the simulated daily runoff and the observed runoff ranging from 0.31 to 0.73 and the corresponding Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) ranging from 256.55 to 467.21 m³ /s. The first SM layer (SM1), with a depth of 0–10 cm in the Longmen-Toudaoguai subregion and 0–26 cm in the Huayuankou-Longmen subregion, was found to be optimal, and jointly assimilating SM1 and LAI resulted in the best performance at the point scale (coefficient of determination (R²) = 0.85 and 0.87 in 2015 and 2018, respectively). The R² improved by 0.11 and 0.06 in 2015 and 2018, respectively, compared to assimilating LAI alone, and the R² improved by 0.04 and 0.02, respectively, compared to assimilating SM1 alone. Moreover, joint assimilation significantly improved the estimation of winter wheat yield compared to a model without assimilation (open-loop model) at the regional scale, with the R² increasing by 0.57 and 0.59, respectively, and the RMSE decreasing by 1808.12 and 859.20 kg/ha in 2015 and 2018, respectively. The yield estimated by the joint assimilation of SM1 and LAI showed more spatial heterogeneity than that estimated by the open-loop model. This study shows that assimilating the optimal SM layer from the VIC model into the WOFOST model enhances the reliability of crop yield estimation, providing policymakers with information to improve crop management.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51045,"journal":{"name":"European Journal of Agronomy","volume":"164 ","pages":"Article 127497"},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2025-01-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142935449","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}