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The continuous use of plowing for grain production has been the principal cause of soil degradation. This project was formulated on the hypothesis that the intensification of cropping systems by increasing biomass‐C input and its biodiversity under no‐till (NT) drives soil restoration of degraded agro‐ecosystem. The present study conducted at subtropical [Ponta Grossa (PG) site] and tropical regions [Lucas do Rio Verde, MT (LRV) site] in Brazil aimed to (i) assess the impact of the continuous plow‐based conventional tillage (CT) on soil organic carbon (SOC) stock vis‐à‐vis native vegetation (NV) as baseline; (ii) compare SOC balance among CT, NT cropping systems, and NV; and (iii) evaluate the redistribution of SOC stock in soil profile in relation to soil resilience. The continuous CT decreased the SOC stock by 0·58 and 0·67 Mg C ha−1 y−1 in the 0‐ to 20‐cm depth at the PG and LRV sites, respectively, and the rate of SOC sequestration was 0·59 for the PG site and ranged from 0·48 to 1·30 Mg C ha−1 y−1 for the LRV site. The fraction of C input by crop residues converted into SOC stock was ~14·2% at the PG site and ~20·5% at the LRV site. The SOC resilience index ranged from 0·29 to 0·79, and it increased with the increase in the C input among the NT systems and the SOC sequestration rates at the LRV site. These data support the hypothesis that NT cropping systems with high C input have a large potential to reverse the process of soil degradation and SOC decline. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Agricultural practices affect the physical and chemical characteristics of the soil, which in turn may influence soil microorganisms with consequences on soil biological functioning. However, there is little knowledge on the interactions between agricultural management, soil physicochemical properties, and soil microbial communities, notably in tropical ecosystems with few studies conducted in strongly weathered and acid soils. Here, we investigated the early effect of tillage and crop residues management on top soil physical, chemical, and microbial properties in an acid savannah grassland of northeastern Laos. We initiated a 3-year rotation of rice/corn/soybean under three no-till systems (NTs) distinguished by the cover crops associated prior to and with the main crops, and one conventional tillage-based system (CT). The effect of agricultural management was evaluated 2 years after land reclamation in reference to the surrounding natural pasture (PAS). Our results demonstrate that NTs improve soil physicochemical characteristics (aggregate stability, organic carbon, and cation exchange capacity) as well as microbial abundance (total biomass, bacterial and fungal densities). A significant discrimination of the genetic structure of soil bacterial community was also observed between NTs, CT, and PAS. Interestingly, bacterial abundance and diversity were differently influenced by soil environment changes: microbial density was affected by the quantity and diversity of crop residues, soil organic carbon, and exchangeable base contents, whereas soil bacterial genetic structure was mainly determined by exchangeable aluminum content, pH, cation exchange capacity, and C/N ratio. Altogether, our study represents one of the most complete environmental evaluations of agricultural practices in tropical agrosystems and leads to recommend no-till systems with high residue restitutions to improve the physical, chemical, and microbial properties of tropical acid soils and thus contribute to the sustainability of agriculture in these ecosystems.

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Rapid changes in agricultural systems call for profound changes in agricultural research and extension practices. The Diagnosis, Design, Assessment, Training and Extension (DATE) approach was developed and applied to co-design Conservation Agriculture-based cropping systems in contrasted situations. DATE is a multi-scale, multi-stakeholder participatory approach that integrates scientific and local knowledge. It emerged in response to questions raised by and issues encountered in the design of innovative systems. A key feature of this approach is the high input of innovative systems which are often although not exclusively based on conservation agricultural practices. Prototyping of innovative cropping systems (ICSs) largely relies on a conceptual model of soil–plant–macrofauna–microorganism system functioning. By comparing the implementation of the DATE approach and conservation agriculture-based cropping systems in Madagascar, Lao PDR, and Cambodia, we show that: (i) the DATE approach is flexible enough to be adapted to local conditions; (ii) market conditions need to be taken into account in designing agricultural development scenarios; and (iii) the learning process during the transition to conservation agriculture requires time. The DATE approach not only enables the co-design of ICSs with farmers, but also incorporates training and extension dimensions. It feeds back practitioners’ questions to researchers, and provides a renewed and extended source of innovation to farmers.

In north-eastern Laos, the savannah grasslands of the Plain of Jars cover vast areas of potentially cultivable land. However, soil acidity, low inherent fertility, and the absence of alternatives to tillage represent significant constraints to the development of sustainable smallholder agriculture. Our objective was to evaluate the potential for conservation agriculture (CA) to enhance soil productivity and farming system profitability. A three-year rotation of rice/maize/soybean was tested under three fertilization levels and four agricultural systems: one conventional tillage-based (CT) system and three CA systems based on no-tillage with cover crops. After four cropping seasons, our results show that, compared with CT, CA systems led to similar-to-higher grain production, similar-to-higher profits, higher opportunity of livestock system intensification, and higher labour productivity regardless of fertilization levels. While CA represents a relevant alternative to current practices, our results suggest that its contribution to the emergence of a sustainable smallholder agriculture is conditioned by broader institutional transformations, including the enrolment of local manufacturers and traders for deploying no-till implements and seed market channels for cover crops, long-term public support to maintain active research and technical mentoring to farmers, and possibly the integration of ecosystem services in agricultural policy. (Résumé d'auteur