Agricultural Systems最新文献

{"title":"Improving crop yield prediction accuracy by embedding phenological heterogeneity into model parameter sets","authors":"Simone Bregaglio,&nbsp;Fabrizio Ginaldi,&nbsp;Elisabetta Raparelli,&nbsp;Gianni Fila,&nbsp;Sofia Bajocco","doi":"10.1016/j.agsy.2023.103666","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.agsy.2023.103666","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>CONTEXT</h3><p>The assimilation of Remote Sensing (RS) data into crop models improves the accuracy of yield predictions by considering crop growth dynamics and their spatial heterogeneity due to the different management practices and environmental conditions.</p></div><div><h3>OBJECTIVE</h3><p>This study proposes a new method for performing sub-regional yield predictions (Nomenclature of territorial units for statistics, NUTS-3 level) using RS time series data and crop models. The primary objective was to release a procedure whereby the heterogeneity of the agricultural landscape (i.e. the agrophenotypes) observed from RS is used to drive crop model calibration.</p></div><div><h3>METHODS</h3><p>Fine-resolution barley and maize distribution maps (100 m) and related crop calendars have been used to derive the “where” and “when” of the 8-day MODIS NDVI time series data, located in Apulia, Tuscany, and Veneto in 2018–2019. Principal Component Analysis and Hierarchical Clustering have been applied to NDVI seasonal profiles to identify the agrophenotypes, which have been used to derive crop growth and leaf area index dynamics. These data served as the reference to optimize the most relevant parameters of the WOFOST_GT model, using gridded weather data as input (0.25° resolution, Copernicus ERA5). Parameter distributions from multiple automatic calibrations have been sampled to characterize the agricultural heterogeneity within 22 NUTS-3 administrative units. Yield statistics from the Italian National Institute of Statistics have been used as reference data to test the accuracy of the yield simulation by the crop model WOFOST_GT.</p></div><div><h3>RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS</h3><p>The agrophenotypes reflected the wide north-south latitudinal gradient experienced in Italy by the two crops, leading to a gap of 15–30 days in barley and maize flowering and harvest dates across the study area. Average Nast-Sutcliffe modelling efficiency in reproducing LAI dynamics from RS (0.6) and Relative Root Mean Square Error (RRMSE) in predicting yield data (12.1% for barley, 3.7% for maize) in hindcast simulations demonstrated the effectiveness of our approach. The average RRMSE was reduced by 32.7% (barley) and 8.5% (maize) compared to baseline, decreasing by 0.7–1 Mg ha⁻¹ absolute yield errors on both crops.</p></div><div><h3>SIGNIFICANCE</h3><p>The inclusion of local agrophenotypes in the yield prediction workflow reduced errors in yield prediction compared to unsupervised simulations at NUTS-3 level. The script for agrophenotypes extraction and the model parameter sets are released to the scientific community, to foster improvements and further applications to other crops, ecoclimatic regions, satellite sensors and spatial scales.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":7730,"journal":{"name":"Agricultural Systems","volume":"209 ","pages":"Article 103666"},"PeriodicalIF":6.6,"publicationDate":"2023-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49542684","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 economic potential of organic production for stockless arable farms importing biogas digestate: A case study analysis for western Germany","authors":"J. Freytag ,&nbsp;W. Britz ,&nbsp;T. Kuhn","doi":"10.1016/j.agsy.2023.103682","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.agsy.2023.103682","url":null,"abstract":"&lt;div&gt;&lt;h3&gt;CONTEXT&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;p&gt;Most stockless organic farms depend on the import of organic nitrogen&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;. Biogas &lt;/span&gt;digestates&lt;span&gt; offer an interesting solution to address this need for flexible nitrogen fertilizers. Their application could support the conversion of specialized arable farms, contributing to the politically targeted expansion of organic production. However, various regulations on the use of off-farm biogas digestates exist, which differ considerably in allowed N imports. Despite the growing interest in the application of biogas digestates in stockless organic farming in practice and research, its impacts on the economic potential of converting from conventional to organic farming have not been investigated.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div&gt;&lt;h3&gt;OBJECTIVE&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;p&gt;This study assesses the economic potential of organic production for specialized arable farms without taking up animal production based on cooperating with a conventional biogas plant. The study considers the impacts of different regulations on importing off-farm biogas digestates.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div&gt;&lt;h3&gt;METHODS&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;p&gt;The assessment employs the bio-economic farm model FarmDyn to evaluate multiple economic performance indicators for three stockless arable case study farms with varying cropping patterns under conventional and organic production. The German federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia serves as the case study area. A large-scale sensitivity analysis quantifies the impact of relevant parameters with a high uncertainty or possible large impact.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div&gt;&lt;h3&gt;RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;p&gt;Our results suggest that organic farming has a high economic potential for specialized arable farms when biogas digestate is applied. Taking existing subsidies into account, organic farming economically outperforms conventional production for all assessed farms and regulatory scenarios. However, stronger restrictions on the application of biogas digestates shift crop rotations toward higher shares of crops with low nutrient requirements and legumes. This reduces, especially in case of fodder legumes, revenues and increases labor requirements, and lowers profitability and labor productivity. Distance to the biogas plant and subsidies for organic production impact strongly on profitability, whereas input prices show small effects. Results underline that the economic performance of stockless organic farming depends highly on import possibilities of nutrients. Furthermore, they suggest that subsidies for organic farming should better reflect its economic potential across farm types to reduce deadweight effects and boost conversion where it is costly.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div&gt;&lt;h3&gt;SIGNIFICANCE&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;p&gt;The study is the first to assess the impact of different regulations governing the import of fermentation substrates on the economic potential of stockless organic farming for specialized arable farms. This is relevant as conversion of stockless arable farms is lagging behind but could considerably con","PeriodicalId":7730,"journal":{"name":"Agricultural Systems","volume":"209 ","pages":"Article 103682"},"PeriodicalIF":6.6,"publicationDate":"2023-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49359517","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":"Modelling the soil C impacts of cover crops in temperate regions","authors":"Helen M. Hughes ,&nbsp;Shelby C. McClelland ,&nbsp;Meagan E. Schipanski ,&nbsp;Jonathan Hillier","doi":"10.1016/j.agsy.2023.103663","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.agsy.2023.103663","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>CONTEXT</h3><p>Agricultural land management decisions are based on numerous considerations. Belowground carbon (C) storage for both ecosystem health and greenhouse gas (GHG) management is a growing motivation. Observed heterogeneity in soil C storage in croplands may be driven by various environmental, climatic and management factors. Farm system models can indicate which practices will drive C storage, provided the practice is well parameterised and the land manager can provide necessary input data.</p></div><div><h3>OBJECTIVE</h3><p>We aimed to predict soil C impacts of temperate cover cropping using simple models suitable for broad farmer use and decision support.</p></div><div><h3>METHODS</h3><p>The dataset used was initially compiled for a meta-analysis (<span>McClelland et al., 2021</span>) to quantify soil C response to cover crop treatments relative to a non-cover cropped system. It contains 181 data points from 40 existing studies in temperate climates. Environmental, climatic and management indicators were regressed pairwise to predict annual soil C stock change under cover cropping relative to no cover cropping. We also included the IPCC tier 1 methodology and meta-analysis response ratios in our model comparison.</p><p>The ease of reliable measurement and monitoring across the modelled indicators was also considered because the best-correlated relationships are squandered if data constraints risk decision-makers being unable to use the model.</p></div><div><h3>RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS</h3><p>Using an extended test dataset to consider priorities for model users, several regression models outperformed the IPCC tier 1 methodology. In particular, two regression models reliably predicted negative changes in soil C, which IPCC and meta-analysis factor approaches could not. A single variable regression model based on cover crop biomass (dry matter) production was the best combination of statistical power, biological relevance and parsimony. In temperate climates, we predicted an increase in soil C stocks as long as cover crop biomass production exceeded 1.3 Mg ha⁻¹ yr⁻¹.</p></div><div><h3>SIGNIFICANCE</h3><p>Our final model can be applied with estimated user input data, and avoids the need for baseline soil C as an input; this makes it relatively accessible for farmers. Parsimonious models for soil C change under land management practices can be effective and are an opportunity to increase access to soil C management information for farmers.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":7730,"journal":{"name":"Agricultural Systems","volume":"209 ","pages":"Article 103663"},"PeriodicalIF":6.6,"publicationDate":"2023-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48260341","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":"Building agricultural innovation capacity from the bottom up: Using spillover effects from projects to strengthen agricultural innovation systems","authors":"Jekaterina Markow ,&nbsp;Andrew F. Fieldsend ,&nbsp;Susanne von Münchhausen ,&nbsp;Anna Maria Häring","doi":"10.1016/j.agsy.2023.103670","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.agsy.2023.103670","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>CONTEXT</h3><p>Current research emphasises that agricultural innovation projects are influenced in multiple ways by the Agricultural Innovation Systems (AIS) in which they operate. Yet little attention has been paid to the reverse direction of this relationship, i.e. how agricultural innovation projects affect AIS in the course of their innovative activities. Accordingly, there are currently no tools to measure such AIS spillovers from agricultural innovation projects.</p></div><div><h3>OBJECTIVE</h3><p>This paper shows that even where agricultural innovation projects have not been designed with the explicit aim of influencing AIS they can have spillovers on the AIS in which they operate. Based on this finding, it argues that designing agricultural innovation projects in a way that maximises such positive and reduces negative AIS spillovers would be a useful tool for strengthening agricultural innovation capacities in a particular territory or sector.</p></div><div><h3>METHODS</h3><p>Based on the concept of agricultural innovation projects as Organisational Innovation Systems (OIS) that are embedded in AIS, the paper develops an analytical framework for assessing spillovers of such projects on AIS and applies it to a case study of an Operational Group in the German Federal State of Hessen.</p></div><div><h3>RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS</h3><p>The case study shows that agricultural innovation projects may yield diverse spillovers on the AIS in which they operate. In addition to considering how agricultural innovation projects are shaped – constrained and/or enabled – by AIS, the research community on agricultural innovation should pay more attention to this side of the interrelation of AIS and agricultural innovation projects. Designing agricultural innovation projects responsibly so that spillovers on AIS are monitored can help to improve national or sectoral AIS.</p></div><div><h3>SIGNIFICANCE</h3><p>This paper points to an underexplored issue in research on agricultural innovation and, related to this, a thus far unused potential policy tool for improving national and sectoral AIS. It further develops the concept of innovation projects as OIS into an approach for assessing the effects of projects on AIS; an area of project assessment that until now has not been adequately covered.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":7730,"journal":{"name":"Agricultural Systems","volume":"209 ","pages":"Article 103670"},"PeriodicalIF":6.6,"publicationDate":"2023-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48519780","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":"Tradeoffs when interseeding cover crops into corn across the Chesapeake Bay watershed","authors":"Curt A. McConnell,&nbsp;Rachel K.N. Rozum,&nbsp;Yuning Shi,&nbsp;Armen R. Kemanian","doi":"10.1016/j.agsy.2023.103684","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agsy.2023.103684","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>CONTEXT</h3><p>In annual cropping systems at high latitudes, an early onset of winter limits the establishment of cover crops in fall and ultimately the ecosystem services they provide such as nitrogen (N) leaching reduction. Interseeding cover crops into a standing cash crop can improve establishment before winter, but its practice is limited in both scope and scale.</p></div><div><h3>OBJECTIVE</h3><p>To identify tradeoffs and establish regional patterns of interseeding success in the environmentally sensitive Chesapeake Bay Watershed of North America, we used the agroecosystem model Cycles to compare in silico systems in which cover crops were either interseeded into a standing crop of corn (<em>Zea mays</em> L.) or conventionally seeded after corn harvest.</p></div><div><h3>METHODS</h3><p>In each of the 153 counties contained in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed, a representative field was simulated and either seeded with ryegrass (<em>Lolium perenne</em> L.), a blend of legumes, or a mix of legumes and ryegrass in a continuous corn sequence. The simulated corn yield, cover crop biomass production, N leaching reduction, and total N losses were compared between the cover crop scenarios and a monoculture corn control.</p></div><div><h3>RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS</h3><p>Simulations showed that conventionally seeded cover crops did not affect corn yields of the following year. However, when interseeded, the drag on corn yield in the same year averaged 6% per Mg of fall cover crop biomass. The corn yield reduction notwithstanding, interseeding reduced N leaching by 10% for legumes, 25% for the mix, and 50% for solo ryegrass compared to the no cover-crop control. There are other tradeoffs, such as an offset of N fertilizer inputs from N₂ fixation when using legumes despite the less effective nutrient capture. Regardless of the cover crop type, interseeding up to latitude 41° N tends to be competitive with the cash crop, but north of that threshold (or west into higher elevations) the mitigation of N leaching when interseeding seems to outweigh agronomic costs.</p></div><div><h3>SIGNIFICANCE</h3><p>This study provides useful insight into watershed-scale agronomic and environmental processes without the constraints of establishing large-scale networks of field trials. Given these analyses, future field research in areas suitable for interseeding can focus on establishing legume cover crops in high-yielding fields with low residual mineral N, grass cover crops in manured or low-yielding fields with residual mineral N, and a mixture of both when N supply is uncertain and preventive management is needed.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":7730,"journal":{"name":"Agricultural Systems","volume":"209 ","pages":"Article 103684"},"PeriodicalIF":6.6,"publicationDate":"2023-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"50194461","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":"La Grange®: A generic game to reveal trade-offs and synergies among stakeholders in livestock farming areas","authors":"Dernat Sylvain ,&nbsp;Dumont Bertrand ,&nbsp;Vollet Dominique","doi":"10.1016/j.agsy.2023.103685","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.agsy.2023.103685","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>CONTEXT</h3><p>Livestock farming systems have received particular attention in the news and scientific media. However, do these considerations ever come to a real debate? Nothing is less certain. There is much attention on the negative impacts of livestock farming on the environment, and it remains difficult to have a fruitful dialogue on the desirable developments of livestock farming areas. This is also true at a local scale, where antagonisms among stakeholders can be strong.</p></div><div><h3>OBJECTIVE</h3><p>We present La Grange®, a generic serious game that reveals trade-offs and synergies in livestock farming areas. Its aim is to promote horizontal knowledge and dialogue among stakeholders on locally-adapted transition for livestock farming.</p></div><div><h3>METHODS</h3><p>After presenting the conceptual model underlying the game with the different game components and phases, we report the outputs of four case studies with groups of farmers or students in agriculture.</p></div><div><h3>RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS</h3><p>We show that La Grange® fills a gap in the toolbox for understanding livestock farming, making it possible to integrate generic and local knowledge and incorporating its biotechnical, environmental, economic, and sociocultural dimensions. In each case study, La Grange® not only revealed trade-offs and synergies between these dimensions, but also allowed new cooperation and strategic roadmaps to be set up for a livestock farming area. Both farmers and students perceived the game as a less top-down way of learning. When played with citizens, two of them joined the steering committee on an experimental farm after the game session.</p></div><div><h3>SIGNIFICANCE</h3><p>As a low-tech, easy-to-access game, La Grange® can be easily used by extension services and agricultural teachers. Outputs from the four case-studies makes it possible to classify La Grange® as a “Game for Change” due to its impact on supporting sustainability.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":7730,"journal":{"name":"Agricultural Systems","volume":"209 ","pages":"Article 103685"},"PeriodicalIF":6.6,"publicationDate":"2023-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48429949","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":"Soil organic carbon sequestration potential for croplands in Finland over 2021–2040 under the interactive impacts of climate change and agricultural management","authors":"Fulu Tao,&nbsp;Taru Palosuo,&nbsp;Aleksi Lehtonen,&nbsp;Jaakko Heikkinen,&nbsp;Raisa Mäkipää","doi":"10.1016/j.agsy.2023.103671","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.agsy.2023.103671","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>CONTEXT</h3><p>Cropland soil organic carbon (SOC) stock can be increased by agricultural management, but is subject to various factors. The extent and rates of SOC sequestration potential, as well as the controlling factors, under different climate and management practices across a region or country are important for policy-makers and land managers, however have been rarely known.</p></div><div><h3>OBJECTIVE</h3><p>We aim to investigate the extent and rates of SOC sequestration potential over 2021–2040 under different scenarios of climate change and Sustainable Soil Management (SSM) practices, and quantify the impacts of climate change and SSM practices on the SOC sequestration potential, for croplands across Finland at a spatial resolution of 1 km.</p></div><div><h3>METHODS</h3><p>RothC model is run iteratively to equilibrium to calculate the size of the SOC pools and the annual plant carbon inputs. Then, it is applied to investigate the SOC sequestration potential over 2021–2040 under different scenarios of climate change and SSM practices. Finally, facorial simulation experiments are conducted to quantify the impacts of climate change and SSM practices, alone and in combination, on SOC sequestration potential.</p></div><div><h3>RESULTS AND CONCLUSION</h3><p>Under the combined impacts of climate change and SSM practices, the SOC sequestration potential during 2021–2040 relative to 2020 will be on average − 0.03, 0.007, 0.05, and 0.13 t C ha⁻¹ yr⁻¹, respectively, with carbon input being business as usual, 5%, 10%, and 20% increase. This is equivalent to an annual change rate of −0.04%, 0.009%, 0.07%, and 0.17%, respectively. Therefore, a 20% increase in C input to soil will not be enough to obtain a 4‰ increase per year over the 20-year period in Finland. Carbon input will promote SOC sequestration potential; however, climate change will reduce it on average by 0.28 t C ha⁻¹ yr⁻¹. Across the cropland in Finland, on average, the relative contributions of C input, temperature, and precipitation to SOC sequestration potential in 2021–2040 will be 56%, 24%, and 20%, respectively, however there is a spatially explicit pattern. The SOC sequestration potential will be relatively high and dominated by C input in west and southwest Finland. By contrast, it will be relatively low and dominated by climate in north and east Finland, and the central part of southern Finland.</p></div><div><h3>SIGNIFICANCE</h3><p>Our findings provide the information as to where, how much, and which SSM practices could be applied for enhancing SOC sequestration at a high spatial resolution, which is essential for stakeholders to increase cropland SOC sequestration efficiently.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":7730,"journal":{"name":"Agricultural Systems","volume":"209 ","pages":"Article 103671"},"PeriodicalIF":6.6,"publicationDate":"2023-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48562773","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":"What future for banana-based farming systems in Uganda? A participatory scenario analysis","authors":"E. Ronner ,&nbsp;G.J. van de Ven ,&nbsp;K. Nowakunda ,&nbsp;J. Tugumisirize ,&nbsp;J. Kayiita ,&nbsp;G. Taulya ,&nbsp;G. Uckert ,&nbsp;K.K.E. Descheemaeker","doi":"10.1016/j.agsy.2023.103669","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.agsy.2023.103669","url":null,"abstract":"&lt;div&gt;&lt;h3&gt;CONTEXT&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;p&gt;Population pressure, land scarcity and encroachment of nature reserves are challenging sustainable intensification of agriculture in Uganda. One of the main staple crops in Uganda is East African Highland banana. Area expansion and improved management have enhanced the economic performance of banana, yet at the expense of food security, environmental and social sustainability. While a transition of banana-based farming systems to a more sustainable future seems necessary, the desired future state and pathways of getting there may differ among actors involved.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div&gt;&lt;h3&gt;OBJECTIVES&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;p&gt;Our study aimed to co-design potential transition pathways with stakeholders along the banana value chain in Uganda, and to assess the effects of these pathways on sustainability indicators at the household level.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div&gt;&lt;h3&gt;METHODS&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;p&gt;We conducted a participatory scenario analysis consisting of: 1) stakeholders envisioning and backcasting a sustainable future for two banana-based farming systems in Uganda; 2) researchers developing and quantifying plausible future scenarios to assess their effects on locally-relevant sustainability indicators at the household level; 3) stakeholders reflecting on the results, including synergies and trade-offs between sustainability indicators.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div&gt;&lt;h3&gt;RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;p&gt;Stakeholders' envisioned future combined with main trends influencing banana-based farming systems resulted in four contrasting scenarios: &lt;em&gt;Marginalisation&lt;/em&gt; (stagnation compared with the reference baseline); &lt;em&gt;Business as usual&lt;/em&gt; (extrapolation of historic trends); &lt;em&gt;Intensification&lt;/em&gt; (including Integrated Soil Fertility Management and collective marketing of banana); and &lt;em&gt;Transformation&lt;/em&gt; (irrigation in banana, balanced crop nutrient management, cooperatives, and increased farm sizes for some as other households leave agriculture).&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Compared with the current baseline situation, selected sustainability indicators food self-sufficiency and farm gross margins decreased in &lt;em&gt;Marginalisation&lt;/em&gt;, but improved in all other scenarios. Soil nutrient balances were unfavourable in all scenarios, except with balanced crop nutrition in &lt;em&gt;Transformation&lt;/em&gt;. Stakeholders recognised labour as a main trade-off for desired improvements in other sustainability domains. Stakeholders also reflected on benefits and risks of a continued specialisation in banana, and fiercely debated the desirability of mineral fertilizer use.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The active involvement of stakeholders in providing the building blocks for the scenarios, identifying relevant indicators and reflecting on the results, aimed to guide stakeholders on concrete entry points for improving sustainability of the system.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div&gt;&lt;h3&gt;SIGNFICANCE&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;p&gt;Indications of stakeholder commitment towards a more sustainable future included a convergence of ideas on the need for Integrated Soil Fertility Management, collaboration in ","PeriodicalId":7730,"journal":{"name":"Agricultural Systems","volume":"209 ","pages":"Article 103669"},"PeriodicalIF":6.6,"publicationDate":"2023-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46461182","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":"Exploring the landscape of controlled environment agriculture research: A systematic scoping review of trends and topics","authors":"Ajwal Dsouza ,&nbsp;Lenore Newman ,&nbsp;Thomas Graham ,&nbsp;Evan D.G. Fraser","doi":"10.1016/j.agsy.2023.103673","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.agsy.2023.103673","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>CONTEXT</h3><p>Controlled environment agriculture (CEA), as vertical farms or plant factories, is a promising technology to intensify food production in an ecologically friendly manner. CEA's potential for improving the sustainability of food systems has prompted a growing research field. However, little is known about the emerging landscape of CEA research.</p></div><div><h3>OBJECTIVE</h3><p>To map the key concepts underpinning CEA research and answer the following questions: What are the conceptual domains in CEA research? What crops have been systematically investigated for CEA production? What are the major research gaps and future research considerations?</p></div><div><h3>METHOD</h3><p>We conducted a scoping review, systematically retrieving and screening peer-reviewed literature that met the inclusion criteria. We then conducted a thematic analysis of the included studies and extracted relevant data.</p></div><div><h3>RESULTS AND CONCLUSION</h3><p>The review included 610 studies that met the inclusion criteria. Based on thematic analysis, CEA research was categorised into four domains—technical, biological, environmental, and socio-economic research. CEA research focused disproportionately on biological research (<em>n</em>=348), particularly plant-light interactions (<em>n</em>=248). We observed a paucity of research on the socio-economic aspects of CEA (<em>n</em><span>=60). Screening for studied crop species revealed a disproportionate research focus on leafy vegetables (</span><em>n</em>=187). Lettuce was the most studied crop followed by basil (<em>n</em>=24) and tomato (<em>n</em>=22). Increasing crop choices is imperative for CEA to improve food security. Future research must prioritize socio-economic studies, increase crop choices through breeding, and rigorously test environmental sustainability claims if CEA is to become a truly viable player in developing more sustainable food systems.</p></div><div><h3>SIGNIFICANCE</h3><p>These results highlight a need for cross-disciplinary CEA research with a scope beyond photobiology—including environmental assessments, resource use efficiency, urban food security, and expanding crop choices in CEA. This will improve understanding of CEA's role in sustainable food systems.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":7730,"journal":{"name":"Agricultural Systems","volume":"209 ","pages":"Article 103673"},"PeriodicalIF":6.6,"publicationDate":"2023-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47136134","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":"Thermal comfort of Nelore (Bos indicus) and Canchim (Bos taurus x Bos indicus) bulls kept in an integrated crop-livestock-forestry system in a tropical climate","authors":"Narian Romanello ,&nbsp;Andréa do Nascimento Barreto ,&nbsp;Marco Antonio Paula de Sousa ,&nbsp;Júlio Cesar de Carvalho Balieiro ,&nbsp;Felipe Zandonadi Brandão ,&nbsp;Felipe Tonato ,&nbsp;Alberto Carlos de Campos Bernardi ,&nbsp;José Ricardo Macedo Pezzopane ,&nbsp;José Alberto Bastos Portugal ,&nbsp;Alexandre Rossetto Garcia","doi":"10.1016/j.agsy.2023.103687","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.agsy.2023.103687","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>CONTEXT</p><p><span>Climate change presents challenges for livestock productivity and animal health. Thus, management strategies to mitigate the effects of the global temperature increase on </span>livestock production have become progressively relevant. However, the use of integrated crop-livestock-forestry systems to optimize the beef cattle thermal balance has not been examined more deeply.</p></div><div><h3>OBJECTIVE</h3><p><span>The study aimed to evaluate the microclimate in a non-shaded pasture system (NS) and in an integrated crop-livestock-forestry system (ICLF) and its influence on thermoregulatory and endocrine responses of </span>zebu and composite bulls, during different climatic seasons.</p></div><div><h3>METHODS</h3><p>The experiment was carried out in a tropical region, São Carlos-SP, Brazil (21°57′42″S, 47°50′28″W). Nelore (<em>Bos indicus</em>) and Canchim (5/8 <em>Bos taurus</em> x 3/8 <em>Bos indicus</em>) bulls were equally allocated in a non-shaded system (NS; <em>n</em> = 32) or in an integrated crop-livestock-forestry system (ICLF; n = 32). The animals were monthly evaluated and the data were analyzed using a GLM Model. Means were compared using Tukey test (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05).</p></div><div><h3>RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS</h3><p>The ICLF system reduced the air temperature (−0.6 °C; <em>P</em> = 0.0010), the Black Globe Temperature and Humidity Index-BGHI (−3.8; <em>P</em> &lt; 0.0001), and the Radiant Thermal Load (−104 W/m²; P &lt; 0.0001) compared to the NS system. The infrared thermograms of NS bulls were characterized by higher temperatures on the surface of the back and in the trunk, during Autumn and Winter (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05). In addition, NS bulls presented higher respiratory rate (RR: 35.85 ± 0.88 vs 31.97 ± 0.88 breaths/min; <em>P</em> = 0.0210) and internal body temperature (BT: 39.54 ± 0.05 vs 39.35 ± 0.05 °C; <em>P</em> = 0.0057) during Autumn. There was a significant reduction in cortisol concentration (−12.13 ng/mL; <em>P</em><span> &lt; 0.05) in both systems throughout the experiment. Nelore bulls had lower RR and BT, lower mean concentration of cortisol, and higher secretion of triiodothyronine than Canchim bulls. The ICLF system was effective in mitigating the microclimate of pastures due to the action of natural shading, providing greater thermal comfort, especially for composite animals, and favored the maintenance of homeothermy in the bulls.</span></p></div><div><h3>SIGNIFICANCE</h3><p>This thesis has provided a deeper insight into the physiological mechanisms involved in the thermoregulation<span> of cattle raised in integrated crop-livestock-forestry systems. The insights gained from this study may be of assistance to indicate ICLF as a suitable option for increasing animal welfare in tropical climates.</span></p></div>","PeriodicalId":7730,"journal":{"name":"Agricultural Systems","volume":"209 ","pages":"Article 103687"},"PeriodicalIF":6.6,"publicationDate":"2023-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46788100","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}