A 2-year field experiment was carried out in a Mediterranean environment to study the effects of vetch (Vicia sativa L.) residue management strategies incorporating green manure (GM) using a roller-crimper (RC) and different organic fertilizers (municipal solid waste compost, anaerobic digestate, and a commercial organic fertilizer) on organic zucchini (Cucurbita pepo L.) yield and quality. Zucchini yield was influenced positively by the vetch residue management strategy, although the response was significantly different between years. The vetch cover crop increased marketable zucchini yield in the first year by 46.6% compared with the fallow (FA) treatment, indicating that this fertility-building crop could reduce off-farm nitrogen (N) fertilizer input for subsequent crops. Averaging over 2 years of the experiment, marketable zucchini yield increased by 15.2% and 38% with the RC mulch and GM plow-down, respectively, compared with the FA treatment, although differences were significant in the first year only. The application of organic fertilizers in vetch management plots increased marketable zucchini yield by 21.8% in the first year compared with the unfertilized control. This result is particularly relevant, because organic fertilizers were applied at ≈50% of the normal application rate for zucchini after taking into account biological N fixation attributable to the vetch. The concentrations of soil mineral N at harvest were 19, 27, and 28 mg·kg−1 for the RC, FA, and GM treatments, respectively. These mineral N concentrations indicated that a portion of applied organic fertilizer N, and N attributable to vetch (GM and RC), remained in the soil at harvest, suggesting the potential for leaching, which should be taken into account in the overall fertilization program. These research findings suggest that effective vetch cover crop management and the application of organic fertilizers can improve yield and quality of organically managed zucchini.

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Adaptation can be a key factor that will shape the future severity of climate change impacts on food production. The objective of this study was to assess the suitability of an agro-ecological approach based on various techniques as potential adaptation strategy in organic horticultural systems. A long-term field experiment was set up in Southern Italy, combining: (i) appropriate soil surface shaping; (ii) cash crop rotation; (iii) agro-ecological service crops (ASC) introduction as living mulch and complementary crops; (iv) tailored organic fertilization; and (v) alternative tillage strategies. In this paper, the first two-year results on cauliflower (Brassica oleracea L.) and tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) crops, as well as energy consumptions through the Energy Analysis (EA) method are reported. Due to the climatic conditions that occurred, which were characterized by the absence of extreme climatic events (particularly rainfall), it was not possible to verify if the designed experimental device was able to mitigate the impact of climate change, whereas the EA indicated that total energy inputs were lower when ASC are introduced in cropping systems.

Agricultural biodiversity and related agro-ecological measures could play a crucial role in the agro-ecosystems adaptation to climate changes, thus sustaining crop production. The objective of this study was to assess the suitability (and the best combination) of agro-ecological techniques as potential resilience strategies in organic horticultural systems in a Mediterranean environment. A long-term experimental device called MITIORG (Long-term climatic change adaptation in organic farming: synergistic combination of hydraulic arrangement, crop rotations, agro-ecological service crops and agronomic techniques) is set-up at Metaponto (MT), testing the following agro-ecological measures as well as organic and conservation farming best practices: i) hydraulic arrangement by a kind of ridge-furrow system; ii) cash crop rotations; iii) agro-ecological service crops (ASC) introduction; iv) ASC termination techniques (green manure vs roller crimper); and v) organic fertilisation. The research here reported was carried out during the 2014-2015 season in the MITIORG device, on a rotation of cauliflower (Brassica oleracea L.) and tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) crops. A detailed description of the scientific cognitive process that led to setup of the device, its components explanation, as well as preliminary yield results are reported. The outcomes suggest that organic vegetable cropping systems, designed following agro-ecological principles, are able to sustain yield of cash crops in rotation, in spite of changes in temperature and rainfall of the study site. Experimental data available in the next years will allow a deeper integrated analysis of the manifold effects of agro-ecological measures on horticultural systems. IntroductionParis hosted the 21 st Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP21/CMP11), from 30 November to 11 December 2015. The conference is crucial because the expected outcome is a new international agreement on climate change, applicable to all, to keep global warming below 2°C. The last report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) indicates that the rise of carbon dioxide (CO2) and associated greenhouse gases could lead to a 1.4 to 5.8°C increase in global surface temperatures, with subsequent effects on precipitation frequency and amounts (IPCC, 2014). The predicted changes in temperature and increased frequency of extreme events (e.g., droughts and floods) will reasonably lead to reduced crop yields, depending on specific site conditions and cultivated crops, by influencing plant growth as well as weed, insect pest and pathogens pressure and invasiveness, thus affecting global food security (Altieri et al., 2015).To be sustainable, an agro-ecosystem requires production systems that are resilient to different stressors such as climatic variability as well as disease and pests. Adaptation can be considered a key factor that will shape the future severity of climate change impacts on food production. According to Heinemann e...

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