Agronomy for Sustainable Development最新文献

{"title":"Are agroforestry systems more productive than monocultures in Mediterranean countries? A meta-analysis","authors":"Danilo Scordia,&nbsp;Sebastiano Andrea Corinzia,&nbsp;Jaime Coello,&nbsp;Rosa Vilaplana Ventura,&nbsp;Diana Elisa Jiménez-De-Santiago,&nbsp;Berta Singla Just,&nbsp;Omar Castaño-Sánchez,&nbsp;Carme Casas Arcarons,&nbsp;Marc Tchamitchian,&nbsp;Léa Garreau,&nbsp;Mohamed Emran,&nbsp;Sami Z. Mohamed,&nbsp;Mai Khedr,&nbsp;Mohamed Rashad,&nbsp;Roxanne Suzette Lorilla,&nbsp;Alexandre Parizel,&nbsp;Giuseppe Mancini,&nbsp;Antonella Iurato,&nbsp;Sergio Ponsá,&nbsp;Corrado Dimauro,&nbsp;Fabio Gresta,&nbsp;Salvatore Luciano Cosentino,&nbsp;Giorgio Testa","doi":"10.1007/s13593-023-00927-3","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s13593-023-00927-3","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Agroforestry is gaining interest due to its potential in enhancing climate resilience and sustainability of farming systems. In this meta-analysis, the crop yield in agroforestry system compared to the control (sole crop) from thirty-six experimental field trials in Mediterranean countries was assessed. The response variable Wlog(RR) (i.e., the weighted natural logarithm of the response ratio) was analyzed by the 95% confidence intervals of mean and by fitting eight linear mixed models. Fixed effects, namely the tree cover (low, medium, high), the tree species (ash tree, chestnut, cork oak, holm oak, olive, poplar, walnut), and the crop species (alfalfa, barley, durum wheat, faba bean, forage, oat, pasture, pea, winter wheat) were significant (<i>P</i> = 0.030, <i>P</i> = 0.017, and <i>P</i> = 0.014, respectively), while the system type (alley cropping, silvo-arable, silvo-pastoral) was not. Among management practices (variety, pruning, fertilization, irrigation, crop age classes, imposed warming and drought, harvest time), only the fertilization significantly improved the response variable (<i>P</i> = 0.006), while the interaction of pruning × crop species was marginally significant (<i>P</i> = 0.065). Relatively large study heterogeneity was observed (<i>Q</i> = 72.6, <i>I</i>² = 72%), which is quite common for agronomic meta-analysis. On the contrary, publication bias based on funnel plots and the Trim and Fill method suggested symmetrical distribution of studies. The sensitivity analysis for significant models identified room for improvements. Overall, we observed a negative effect of trees on crop yield that could be ascribed to the competition for light. Nonetheless, facilitation could be expected under extreme climate events, provided that agricultural practices will maximize synergies among tree cover, tree species, crop species, and management. Future works are encouraged to focus on the overall benefit agroforestry can provide at the field and landscape level, along with long-term monitoring to assess the whole lifespan of these systems and other companion planting options and designs in the Mediterranean region.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":7721,"journal":{"name":"Agronomy for Sustainable Development","volume":"43 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2023-10-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s13593-023-00927-3.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"71417337","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":"A critical assessment of conservation agriculture among smallholders in the Mediterranean region: adoption pathways inspired by agroecological principles","authors":"Harun Cicek,&nbsp;Emmeline Topp,&nbsp;Tobias Plieninger,&nbsp;José M. Blanco-Moreno,&nbsp;Irfan Gultekin,&nbsp;Hatem Cheikh Mohamed,&nbsp;Oussama El Gharras","doi":"10.1007/s13593-023-00926-4","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s13593-023-00926-4","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Conservation agriculture (CA) is the key agricultural soil management approach for Mediterranean rainfed systems facing extreme droughts and soil degradation. Yet, CA uptake and applicability is still marginal and disputed in the Mediterranean region, where smallholder farmers are most representative. Lack of widespread adoption of CA in the Mediterranean region despite international efforts is perplexing. In order to investigate this paradox and provide solutions, we set out to examine the perceived constraints to CA implementation among farmers and stakeholders. Our approach is based on systems analysis of Mediterranean grain production systems, considering plant and livestock production, as well as sustainability and social-ecological interactions. CA promotion efforts are rarely adapted to the context of the Mediterranean region. We argue for adopting a more pragmatic and flexible approach to CA. Such an approach should be based on site-specific bio-physical and sociocultural considerations and augmented with principles of agroecology. Our review of perceived constraints allows us to suggest five pathways that could promote CA adoption in the Mediterranean across two main areas: (i) introduction of flexible, context-specific technical solutions and (ii) change of social perceptions and literacy on soil. Our five pathways aim to enhance farmers’ resilience to challenges of climate and market shocks, while integrating agroecological principles that enhance ecosystem multifunctionality. We advocate using agroecological principles to enable a more pragmatic application of CA with respect to its strict application—such as continuous no-till—to rehabilitate degraded lands, to increase water use efficiency, and to improve food security and economic well-being of communities in the Mediterranean region.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":7721,"journal":{"name":"Agronomy for Sustainable Development","volume":"43 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2023-10-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s13593-023-00926-4.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49696862","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":"Unfolding the link between multiple ecosystem services and bundles of functional traits to design multifunctional crop variety mixtures","authors":"Florence Dubs,&nbsp;Jerome Enjalbert,&nbsp;Sebastien Barot,&nbsp;Emmanuelle Porcher,&nbsp;Vincent Allard,&nbsp;Claude Pope,&nbsp;Arnaud Gauffreteau,&nbsp;Audrey Niboyet,&nbsp;Thomas Pommier,&nbsp;Sebastien Saint-Jean,&nbsp;Tiphaine Vidal,&nbsp;Xavier Le Roux","doi":"10.1007/s13593-023-00924-6","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s13593-023-00924-6","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>In face of the current environmental challenges, developing multifunctional cropping systems is increasingly needed, and crop variety mixtures are particularly interesting since they can deliver diverse services including grain production, yield stability, N₂O production regulation, disease control, and reduction of N-fertilizer losses. However, the relationships between intraspecific diversity and ecosystem multifunctionality are poorly understood so far, and practitioners lack science-based guidance to design mixtures. We used a pool of 16 bread wheat varieties classified into 4 functional groups based on 26 below- and aboveground functional traits, to conduct a field trial (88 large plots cultivated with single varieties or mixtures of 2, 4, or 8 varieties), quantifying 15 provisioning and regulating services for each plot. To assess yield stability between local conditions and years, the trial was replicated at 4 other locations and for 2 years, using 2 managements each time. We analyzed how variety number and functional groups predicted the variance in services, and applied in an innovative manner the RLQ co-inertia analysis to relate the (variety × traits) matrix <i>Q</i> to a (plot × services) matrix <i>R</i>, using a (plot × variety) composition matrix <i>L</i> as a link. Our results show that using variety mixtures allowed delivery of baskets of services not reachable when cultivating single varieties, and that mixtures mitigated tradeoffs between different pairs of services. Variety number or functional groups poorly predicted the variance in services, but the RLQ approach allowed the identification of groups of plots delivering consistent baskets of services. Moreover, we demonstrated for the first-time significant relationships between specific baskets of services and bundles of variety traits. We discuss how our results increase our understanding of intraspecific diversity–agroecosystem multifunctionality relationships, and propose the next steps using our new approach to support practitioners for designing variety mixtures that provide particular baskets of services.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":7721,"journal":{"name":"Agronomy for Sustainable Development","volume":"43 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2023-10-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s13593-023-00924-6.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49697751","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":"Disrupting pest reproduction techniques can replace pesticides in vineyards. A review","authors":"Denis Thiery,&nbsp;Valerio Mazzoni,&nbsp;Rachele Nieri","doi":"10.1007/s13593-023-00915-7","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s13593-023-00915-7","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h2>Abstract </h2><div><p>Today, we are faced with an increase in the impact of pesticides on the environment, which is becoming a real concern for most agricultural production systems, including vineyards, for a number of reasons, such as the resistance of pest populations to pesticides, the lethal and sublethal effects of pesticides on non-target species, the increase in new invasive pests, the extension of the geographical range of pests due to climate change, and, finally, human health problems. Against this backdrop, the adoption of solutions based on the reproductive behavioral ecology of pests is a subject of prominent (major) interest for the coming decades. Crop pests and, more specifically, disease vectors use sensory cues throughout their life cycle for many fundamental behaviors and in particular for mating, the critical step in population growth. In particular, a large proportion of arthropod crop pests rely on chemical and/or vibroacoustic communication to mate. Several thousand sex pheromones have been identified in insects, most of which can be used either as synthetic baits to trap pests or as behavioral modifiers (e.g., pheromone-mediated mating disruption). Applied biotremology is also emerging as a new discipline for sustainable pest control. Field experiments on vibratotional mating disruption against grapevine leafhoppers are currently ongoing, with promising results. Here we present mating disruption strategies that can be implemented in crop protection, in particular against the main pests and vectors present/occurring in grape production.</p></div></div>","PeriodicalId":7721,"journal":{"name":"Agronomy for Sustainable Development","volume":"43 5","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2023-10-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s13593-023-00915-7.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"50017303","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":"Crop-livestock synergies and by-products recycling: major factors for agroecology in West African agro-sylvo-pastoral systems","authors":"Eric Vall,&nbsp;Boko Michel Orounladji,&nbsp;David Berre,&nbsp;Mohamed Habibou Assouma,&nbsp;Der Dabiré,&nbsp;Souleymane Sanogo,&nbsp;Ollo Sib","doi":"10.1007/s13593-023-00908-6","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s13593-023-00908-6","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>In Western Africa, agro-sylvo-pastoral systems are dominant and food demand is booming. To meet this demand, many farmers intensify the production with industrial inputs (mineral fertilizers, feeds, pesticides, herbicides). However, the price of these inputs is rocketing. To face this issue, some farmers reconsider crops, livestock, and tree synergies and by-product recycling to increase their production sustainably at a lower cost. The study aimed to characterize the diversity of Koumbia’s farming systems and to assess farming systems’ technical performance in an agroecological perspective. We surveyed 391 farms in the county of Koumbia (Burkina Faso). Considering 15 agricultural practices (4 on by-products recycling, 4 on soil protection, 4 on industrial inputs limitation, 2 on smart use of natural resources, and 1 on cropping diversification), a multivariate analysis (PCA+HAC) combined to an agroecology (Ae) scoring system (−15 to +15) based on 15 specific indicators (one/practice), we highlighted 3 agroecological farming systems clusters. These clusters are distributed along a gradient of agroecology intensity (Ae+: high degree of Ae, Ae+/−: medium degree, and Ae−: poor degree). Ae+ farms (Ae score: +3.0) group 17% of the farms, Ae+/− (Ae score: −4.5) group 58% of the farms, and Ae− (Ae score: −10.5) group 25% of the farms. Ae+ raise more livestock and recycle a higher rate of crop-livestock by-products in fodder, organic manure, and mulch. These recycling practices are facilitated by better levels of equipment for transportation and storage and soil water and crop residue conservation measures, including maintenance of the wooded park on the cultivated fields. This set of practices, which close better the agricultural system, produces a systemic effect which has a positive impact on yields and on the whole ecosystem. Our findings outline for the first time that crop-livestock synergies and by-product recycling are major factors of agroecological transition in agro-sylvo-pastoral systems.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":7721,"journal":{"name":"Agronomy for Sustainable Development","volume":"43 5","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2023-10-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s13593-023-00908-6.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"50017302","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":"Identification and description of relationships between actors involved in crop diversification experiences across Europe","authors":"Marie-Aline Cornu,&nbsp;Rebekka Frick,&nbsp;Iman Raj Chongtham,&nbsp;Ileana Iocola,&nbsp;Stefano Canali,&nbsp;Luca Colombo,&nbsp;Paweł Radzikowski,&nbsp;Jarosław Stalenga,&nbsp;Loïc Viguier,&nbsp;Dóra Drexler,&nbsp;Anne Schneider,&nbsp;Didier Stilmant,&nbsp;Frédéric M. Vanwindekens","doi":"10.1007/s13593-023-00906-8","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s13593-023-00906-8","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Agriculture can benefit from crop diversification to facilitate its transition to more sustainable agrifood systems. However, these practices remain rare in Europe. One major barrier is the existence of sociotechnical lock-ins. To clarify the dynamics at work, we analyzed the relationships between actors involved in 23 crop diversification experiences across 11 European countries. The novelty of this paper lies in the systemic analysis of the network of actors involved in crop diversification experiences. Using data from qualitative interviews and cognitive mapping approaches, we identify and describe the role of actors and the key relationships in crop diversification and detect relationships that are currently missing. Our study shows that in the different European countries, similar relationships act as levers or barriers to crop diversification, with farmers and researchers playing a crucial role. The most important cognitive factors that influence the choice of farmers to diversify are environmental and health concerns and the desire to make profit and innovate. We relate the cognitive factors to organizational, technical, economic, and political factors and suggest levers for crop diversification based on successful crop diversification experiences.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":7721,"journal":{"name":"Agronomy for Sustainable Development","volume":"43 5","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2023-10-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s13593-023-00906-8.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"50011892","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":"Satellite imagery and modeling contribute understanding cover crop effect on nitrogen dynamics and water availability","authors":"Giorgia Raimondi,&nbsp;Carmelo Maucieri,&nbsp;Maurizio Borin,&nbsp;José Luis Pancorbo,&nbsp;Miguel Cabrera,&nbsp;Miguel Quemada","doi":"10.1007/s13593-023-00922-8","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s13593-023-00922-8","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Cover crops (CCs) can affect the cropping systems’ N dynamics and soil water content (SWC), but optimizing their potential effects requires knowledge of their growth pattern, N accumulation, and mineralization. For this purpose, a 3-year field experiment was initiated in northeast Italy involving a maize-soybean rotation. The objectives of this study were to (i) evaluate the use of time series vegetation indices (VIs) obtained from the Sentinel-2 satellite for monitoring the growth of CCs and estimating their biomass and N uptake at termination; (ii) investigate the effects of different CCs on cash crop yield and SWC; and (iii) use the simulation model CC-NCALC to predict the nitrogen contribution of CCs to subsequent cash crops. Three CC systems were tested: a fixed treatment with triticale; a 3-year succession of rye, crimson clover, and mustard; and a control with no CCs. Satellite imagery revealed that rye and triticale grew faster during the winter season than clover but slower compared to mustard, which suffered a frost winterkilling. Both grasses and mustard produced greater biomass at termination compared to clover, but none of the CC species affected SWC or yield and N uptake of the cash crop. A net N mineralization of all the CC residues was estimated by the model (except for the N immobilization after triticale roots residues). During the subsequent cash crop season, the estimated clover and mustard N released was around 33%, and the triticale around 3% of their total N uptake, with a release peak 2 months after their termination. The use of remote sensing imagery and a prediction model of CC residue decomposition showed potential to be used as instruments for optimizing the CCs utilization and enhancing cropping water and N fertilization management efficiency; however, it must be further analyzed with other CCs species, environmental conditions, and cropping systems.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":7721,"journal":{"name":"Agronomy for Sustainable Development","volume":"43 5","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2023-10-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s13593-023-00922-8.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"50011894","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":"Re-coupling crop and livestock through spatial analysis and site selection of manure transfer hubs for sustainable agriculture","authors":"Linlan Zeng,&nbsp;Qian Zhang,&nbsp;Jingtao Ding,&nbsp;Qingyu Feng,&nbsp;Feng Wu","doi":"10.1007/s13593-023-00921-9","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s13593-023-00921-9","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>The decoupling of crop and livestock in space is currently threatening the sustainable development of agriculture. One of the major challenges is to identify the imbalanced space between cropland and livestock farms. This paper proposes a new methodology to identify such areas at the raster scale, without being limited by traditional administrative division restrictions. The method takes into account nutrient flow, economic cost, and spatial distributions of cropland and livestock farms. The methodology was applied to the Heihe River Basin of China as an example. First, we calculated the nutrient demands on croplands and the supply of livestock manure. Second, we proposed a new method to capture the imbalanced space between cropland and livestock farms. The method was improved on the Gaussian two-step floating catchment area (2SFA) method. To our knowledge, this is the first time such a method has been applied in agriculture. Third, we applied the maximum coverage model to select sites for manure transfer hubs in the imbalanced space of cropland and livestock farms. In this way, the distance of transferring manure can be effectively reduced. Our results showed that the total amount of manure nutrients was sufficient to meet the requirements of local crops in over 90% of the counties located within the Basin. Despite the potential benefits of manure as a fertilizer, its adoption could be more expensive than chemical fertilizers on almost 92% of the croplands due to the high transportation costs associated with spatial separation. However, the identification of 119 transfer hub sites significantly enhanced the accessibility of manure for returning to croplands, ultimately resulting in the optimization of 32% of the previously imbalanced spatial relationship between cropland and livestock farms. The method facilitates raster-scale identification of imbalanced space between cropland and livestock farms, with wide applicability across regions globally.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":7721,"journal":{"name":"Agronomy for Sustainable Development","volume":"43 5","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2023-10-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"50011891","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 role of conservation agriculture practices in mitigating N2O emissions: A meta-analysis","authors":"Yue Li,&nbsp;Ji Chen,&nbsp;Craig F. Drury,&nbsp;Mark Liebig,&nbsp;Jane M. F. Johnson,&nbsp;Zhaozhi Wang,&nbsp;Hao Feng,&nbsp;Diego Abalos","doi":"10.1007/s13593-023-00911-x","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s13593-023-00911-x","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h2>Abstract </h2><div><p>Conservation agriculture is often assumed to reduce soil N₂O emissions. Yet, studies analyzing the specific effect of conservation agriculture practices on N₂O emissions give contradictory results. Herein, we synthesized a comprehensive database on the three main conservation agriculture practices (cover crops, diversified crop rotations, and no-till and/or reduced tillage (NT/RT)) to elucidate the role of conservation practices on N₂O emissions. Further, we used a random meta-forest approach to identify the most important predictors of the effects of these practices on soil N₂O emissions. Averaged across all comparisons, NT/RT significantly decreased soil N₂O emissions by 11% (95% CI: –19 to –1%) compared to conventional tillage. The reductions due to NT/RT were more commonly observed in humid climates and in soils with an initial carbon content &lt; 20 g kg^–1. The implementation of cover crops and diversified crop rotations led to variable effects on soil N₂O emissions. Cover crops were more likely to reduce soil N₂O emissions at neutral soil pH, and in soils with intermediate carbon (~20 g kg^–1) and nitrogen (~3 g kg^–1) contents. Diversified crop rotations tended to increase soil N₂O emissions in temperate regions and neutral to alkaline soils. Our results provide a comprehensive predictive framework to understand the conditions in which the adoption of various conservation agriculture practices can contribute to climate change mitigation. Combining these results with a similar mechanistic understanding of conservation agriculture impacts on ecosystem services and crop production will pave the way for a wider adoption globally of these management practices.</p></div></div>","PeriodicalId":7721,"journal":{"name":"Agronomy for Sustainable Development","volume":"43 5","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2023-09-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s13593-023-00911-x.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"50008820","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":"Assessing production gaps at the tree scale: definition and application to mango (Mangifera indica L.) in West Africa","authors":"Julien Sarron,&nbsp;Emile Faye,&nbsp;Thibault Nordey,&nbsp;Jeanne Diatta,&nbsp;Frédéric Normand,&nbsp;Damien Beillouin,&nbsp;Eric Malézieux","doi":"10.1007/s13593-023-00920-w","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s13593-023-00920-w","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Fruit tree productivity is generally low and highly variable in the tropics. Quantifying yield gaps and their determining factors provides levers to increase production, but yield gap of fruit trees remains poorly explored at the tree scale. In order to bridge this knowledge gap, we adapted the concept of yield gap to define the production gap at the tree scale to integrate tree endogenous factors (cultivar, age, and crown dimensions). The production gap (<i>P</i>_g) was defined as the difference between potential tree production (<i>P</i>_p) and actual tree production (<i>P</i>_a). The concept was implemented for mango trees in West Africa. We estimated these production indicators on 280 mango trees for two years, covering a wide range of fruit load, age, cultivars, and cropping systems (extensive, diversified, and intensive) found in Senegal. Actual production was estimated yearly using ground tree image analysis. Attainable production (<i>P</i>_att, a locally constrained approximation of <i>P</i>_p) was estimated based on tree endogenous and climatic factors using stochastic frontier analysis. Our results showed that attainable production increased with tree crown area and trunk diameter, whereas the effects of tree density, temperature, and solar radiation were cultivar-dependent. On average, the actual production reached 63% of the attainable production. The production gap was higher in extensive orchards (<i>P</i>_g = 58% of <i>P</i>_att) compared to diversified (<i>P</i>_g = 29% of <i>P</i>_att) and intensive (<i>P</i>_g = 32% of <i>P</i>_att) orchards. Based on production gap estimation, we identified the drivers of mango production variation among cultivars and cropping systems in West Africa. This study demonstrates the usefulness of adapting yield gap methodology to the tree scale to analyze production gaps in diverse fruit tree-based cropping systems. Measurement of production gaps allows the integration of tree features and their variability to upscale and improve the estimation of yield gaps at the orchard scale.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":7721,"journal":{"name":"Agronomy for Sustainable Development","volume":"43 5","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2023-09-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"50008821","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}