Effects of Crop Diversity on Agroecosystem Function: Crop Yield Response

Smith, Richard G.; Gross, Katherine L.; Robertson, G. Philip

doi:10.1007/s10021-008-9124-5

Cited by 249 publications

(166 citation statements)

References 49 publications

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“…The mixed systems tested that included pigeonpea, mucuna, and tephrosia appeared to be suited to soil rehabilitation, and did not impose undue competition with the staple cereal. Mechanisms were not studied here, but may have included niche partitioning, facilitation, and compensatory growth (15,16).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This is not surprising, as the poor have an immediate and urgent need for calorie-rich food, and cereal harvest generates a high-calorie return per calorie of hand labor invested. There are clearly biological and social-economic drivers that promote sole-cropping of cereals; however, there is emerging evidence that unintended and severe consequences of this agro-simplification include reduced capacity for light capture and nutrient cycling and instability of production (15,16).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Biodiversity can support a greener revolution in Africa

Snapp

Blackie

Gilbert

et al. 2010

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

291

189

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The Asian green revolution trebled grain yields through agrochemical intensification of monocultures. Associated environmental costs have subsequently emerged. A rapidly changing world necessitates sustainability principles be developed to reinvent these technologies and test them at scale. The need is particularly urgent in Africa, where ecosystems are degrading and crop yields have stagnated. An unprecedented opportunity to reverse this trend is unfolding in Malawi, where a 90% subsidy has ensured access to fertilization and improved maize seed, with substantive gains in productivity for millions of farmers. To test if economic and ecological sustainability could be improved, we preformed manipulative experimentation with crop diversity in a countrywide trial (n = 991) and at adaptive, local scales through a decade of participatory research (n = 146). Spatial and temporal treatments compared monoculture maize with legume-diversified maize that included annual and semiperennial (SP) growth habits in temporal and spatial combinations, including rotation, SP rotation, intercrop, and SP intercrop systems. Modest fertilizer intensification doubled grain yield compared with monoculture maize. Biodiversity improved ecosystem function further: SP rotation systems at half-fertilizer rates produced equivalent quantities of grain, on a more stable basis (yield variability reduced from 22% to 13%) compared with monoculture. Across sites, profitability and farmer preference matched: SP rotations provided twofold superior returns, whereas diversification of maize with annual legumes provided more modest returns. In this study, we provide evidence that in Africa, crop diversification can be effective at a countrywide scale, and that shrubby, grain legumes can enhance environmental and food security.ecosystem services | nitrogen | rural development | sustainable agriculture

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Biodiversity can support a greener revolution in Africa

Snapp

Blackie

Gilbert

et al. 2010

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

291

189

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“…Traits are also particularly useful for identifying cover crops that best limit weed development (Tixier et al 2011) and crop successions that allow anthropogenic inputs to be reduced (Smith et al 2008). Traits can also be used to characterize organisms that are harmful for the crop and their relations with production situations and system performance, e.g., traits associated with foliar disease for wheat (Bingham et al 2009;Willocquet et al 2008).…”

Section: Main Advances In Ecology To Characterize Biodiversity-based mentioning

confidence: 99%

How to implement biodiversity-based agriculture to enhance ecosystem services: a review

Duru

Thérond

Martin

et al. 2015

Agron. Sustain. Dev.

419

265

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Intensive agriculture has led to several drawbacks such as biodiversity loss, climate change, erosion, and pollution of air and water. A potential solution is to implement management practices that increase the level of provision of ecosystem services such as soil fertility and biological regulation. There is a lot of literature on the principles of agroecology. However, there is a gap of knowledge between agroecological principles and practical applications. Therefore, we review here agroecological and management sciences to identify two facts that explain the lack of practical applications: (1) the occurrence of high uncertainties about relations between agricultural practices, ecological processes, and ecosystem services, and (2) the site-specific character of agroecological practices required to deliver expected ecosystem services. We also show that an adaptive-management approach, focusing on planning and monitoring, can serve as a framework for developing and implementing learning tools tailored for biodiversity-based agriculture. Among the current learning tools developed by researchers, we identify two main types of emergent support tools likely to help design diversified farming systems and landscapes: (1) knowledge bases containing scientific supports and experiential knowledge and (2) model-based games. These tools have to be coupled with well-tailored field or management indicators that allow monitoring effects of practices on biodiversity and ecosystem services. Finally, we propose a research agenda that requires bringing together contributions from agricultural, ecological, management, and knowledge management sciences, and asserts that researchers have to take the position of "integration and implementation sciences."

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“…Although available N was not significantly affected by the bahiagrass treatments, more available N was also found after cover crops compared to the cash crops in Year 3. Other studies have found similar results of increased soil N availability due to cover crops (Wyland et al, 1996;Sanchez et al, 2001;Fortuna et al, 2003;Smith et al, 2008). Nitrogen fertilization requirement has been found to be reduced due to cover crops (Reeves et al, 1995) Vol.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 68%

The Influence of Bahiagrass, Tillage, and cover crops on Organic Vegetable Production and Soil Quality in the Southern Coastal Plain

Bliss¹,

Andersen²,

Brodbeck³

et al. 2016

SAR

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Conventional farming utilizing bahiagrass (Papsalum notatum Flugge) in rotation with crops has been shown to increase yield, improve soil quality, and decrease weed and disease pressure. Organic production systems in the Southern Coastal Plain are challenged with limited soil fertility and a wide array of insect, disease, and weed pests. The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of sequential years in bahiagrass and tillage (conventional and conservation) on organic vegetable yield and soil indices. After 0-4 years in bahiagrass, a crop rotation of rye and oats (winter cover crop), bush beans (spring vegetable crop), soybean (summer cover crop), and broccoli (fall vegetable crop) was implemented. Vegetable crop yields, plant biomass, plant C and N, and soil C, N, and P were measured for the four crops in the rotation over a three year period. Two years or more of bahiagrass prior to initiating the vegetable crop rotation showed positive effects on vegetable crop yields and soil quality parameters. Tillage treatments did not have a consistent effect on measured parameters. Soil C was not impacted by years in bahiagrass but was influenced by years of crop production. Potential soil N and P mineralization indicated an increase of soil organic fractions with years in bahiagrass. Available N increased after cover crops, and available P decreased with increasing years in bahiagrass.

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Effects of Crop Diversity on Agroecosystem Function: Crop Yield Response

Cited by 249 publications

References 49 publications

Biodiversity can support a greener revolution in Africa

Biodiversity can support a greener revolution in Africa

How to implement biodiversity-based agriculture to enhance ecosystem services: a review

The Influence of Bahiagrass, Tillage, and cover crops on Organic Vegetable Production and Soil Quality in the Southern Coastal Plain

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