Perennial forage legumes as an element of sustainable systems

Abstract

In the current intensive systems of agricultural production, many important features, i.e., functions of the agroecosystem have been degraded and disrupted. The intensification of agricultural production inevitably leads to land degradation in terms of its physical, chemical, and biological properties. The increasing presence of monocultures, reduced crop rotation, and excessive use of mineral nutrients, lead to several negative phenomena in such agroecosystems. Along with efforts to reduce energy consumption, and environmental pollution, intensify sustainable agriculture systems, and maintain biodiversity, the possibility of increasing the area under perennial forage legumes should be considered. As nitrogen fixers, these plants are minimally fertilized with nitrogen fertilizers whose residues in the soil are lost by leaching, causing pollution of groundwater as well as surface watercourses. The introduction of perennial legumes in the crop rotation can provide numerous benefits, such as increased and more stable yields of protein-rich biomass, conservation, and repair of land resources, increased yield stability, better utilization of nutrients, water, and light, as well as weed, disease, and pest control. The introduction of legumes in production systems would limit the increasingly pronounced land degradation. In order to develop sustainable agriculture, market policy should recognize the value of products obtained from leguminous plants through certain agricultural policy measures.