Agroecological Studies Research Articles

Growing in Scarcity: Pre-Hispanic Rain-Fed Agriculture in the Semi-Arid and Frost-Prone Andean Altiplano (Bolivia)

Ancient Andean agricultural landscapes have been the subject of a large number of archaeological and agro-ecological studies, which generally refer to regions with favourable environmental conditions or, in the case of arid and semi-arid environments, those with irrigation facilities. The aim of this article is to present and analyse the pre-Hispanic rain-fed farming systems widely represented in two adjacent regions of Bolivia’s arid and cold southern Altiplano. The search for archaeological agricultural areas combined aerial analysis and field surveys. Agro-ecological characterisation was based on historical and ethnographic studies of the region’s present-day populations. Despite their geographical proximity, similar environmental conditions, and same agropastoral way of life, the typology of cultivated areas developed in the southern altiplano differs significantly. Within this same framework of adaptation and resilience, the sectorisation of agricultural systems observed in these two regions reveals a regional productive specialisation that favoured internal exchanges and exchanges with other regions. These differences are related to two models of non-centralised, low-inequality societies—one strongly based on cohesion and the other characterised by greater fragmentation and social conflict—underlining the limits of strict environmental determinism in shaping agricultural landscapes. These results provide new food for thought in the debate on the use and value of rain-fed agricultural practices and more broadly on the diversity of adaptations by human societies in extreme and unstable environmental contexts.

Screening of leaf extraction and storage conditions for eco-metabolomics studies.

Mass spectrometry-based plant metabolomics is frequently used to identify novel natural products or study the effect of specific treatments on a plant's metabolism. Reliable sample handling is required to avoid artifacts, which is why most protocols mandate shock freezing of plant tissue in liquid nitrogen and an uninterrupted cooling chain. However, the logistical challenges of this approach make it infeasible for many ecological studies. Especially for research in the tropics, permanent cooling poses a challenge, which is why many of those studies use dried leaf tissue instead. We screened a total of 10 extraction and storage approaches for plant metabolites extracted from maize leaf tissue across two cropping seasons to develop a methodology for agroecological studies in logistically challenging tropical locations. All methods were evaluated based on changes in the metabolite profile across a 2-month storage period at different temperatures with the goal of reproducing the metabolite profile of the living plant as closely as possible. We show that our newly developed on-site liquid-liquid extraction protocol provides a good compromise between sample replicability, extraction efficiency, material logistics, and metabolite profile stability. We further discuss alternative methods which showed promising results and feasibility of on-site sample handling for field studies.

AGROECOLOGICAL PRINCIPLES AND ITS GAPS IN ADAPTION IN TERAI FARMING SYSTEM, NEPAL

Abstract. The present paper examines agroecological principles identified by FAO and its gaps by local farmers in terai farming system of Nepal. Household questionnaire survey, focus group discussion and KII were major tools of required information collection with regard to gaps of agroecology principles in their farming system. Agro-ecological principles have been examined with current farming practices carried out by local farmers. The gap analysis has been done with respect to ten agroecological principles: Efficient use of resources, balance use of chemical and organic fertilizer, , crop diversity, co-creation of knowledge, recycling of farm waste, synergy of crop, livestock and forestry ,human and social value, circular economy, cultural and food tradition, land and natural resource governance. 87.8 percent of households were used flooding method of surface irrigation against to principle of efficiency and deficit of water leading to wastage of water and constraining self-generating nutrient capacity of nature. 91.60 % of total cropped area was dominated by paddy - wheat based cropping system against to the principle of crop diversity. 72.4 % farmers used farm yard manure in limited temporal and spatial coverage area ranging from 0.03 ha to 1.69 hectare with the average of 0.39 ha and three months of year against the principle of recycling farm wastage to farm. Almost 14 % of households were having agroforestry practices against to the synergies of crop, livestock and forestry. Participation of women and youth in farming practices was found decreased due to remittance-led family economy. Geospatial technology-RS, GIS and GPS were extensively applied in preparation of all these agroecological resource maps required for agroecological studies and creation of their geo-database for sustainable land use planning in Nepal. Finally, the study necessitated the government policy to be instutionalized towards agroecological concept and hoped the methodology developed for this study could guide for achieving this goal.

Hybrid Bt cotton is failing in India: cautions for Africa

This paper reviews the ongoing failure of hybrid transgenic Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis) cotton unique to India. The underlying cause for this failure is the high cost of hybrid seed that imposes a suboptimal long-season low plant density system that limits yield potential and has associated elevated levels of late-season pests. Indian hybrid Bt cotton production is further complicated by the development of resistance to Bt toxins in the key pest, the native pink bollworm (Pectinophora gossypiella Saunders, PBW), resulting in increased insecticide use that induces ecological disruption and outbreaks of highly destructive secondary pests. Rainfed cotton production uncertainty is further exacerbated by the variable monsoon rains. While hybrid cotton produces fertile seed, the resulting plant phenotypes are highly variable preventing farmers from replanting saved seed, forcing them to buy seed yearly (i.e., market capture), and effectively protecting industry Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs). The lessons gained from the ongoing market failure of hybrid Bt cotton in India are of utmost importance to its proposed introduction to Africa where, similar to India, cotton is grown mainly in poor rainfed smallholder family farms, and hence similar private–corporate conflicts of interest will occur. Holistic field agroecological studies and weather-driven mechanistic analyses are suggested to help foresee ecological and economic challenges in cotton production in Africa.High-density short-season (HD-SS) non-hybrid non-genetically modified irrigated and rainfed cottons are viable alternatives for India that can potentially produce double the yields of the current low-density hybrid system.

Estimation of yield, phenology and agro-meteorological indices of Quality Protein Maize (Zea mays L.) under different nutrient omissions in temperate ecology of Kashmir

The major yield governing factors especially under rainfed ecosystem are the agro-meteorological indices. Hence, an experiment was conducted in 2021 kharif season to examine the impact of nutrient omission on phenology, yield and agro-meteorological indices of Quality Protein Maize (QPM) under the North Western Himalayas of India at the Agronomy farm of FoA (Faculty of Agriculture), Wadoora, Sopore, SKUAST-Kashmir. Eight treatments were used in the experiment viz. (T1-Absolute control, T2-N120P75K40, T3-N120P75K40Zn5S10, T4-P75K40Zn5S10 (-N), T5-N120K40Zn5S10 (-P), T6-N120P75Zn5S10 (-K), T7-N120P75K40S10 (-Zn) and T8-N120P75K40Zn5 (-S)), using a randomized complete block design with three replications. Results demonstrated that recommended dose of fertilizer plus zinc and sulphur (T3-N120P75K40Zn5S10) noted higher grain (9.78 t ha−1) and biological (22.05 t ha−1) yield, a longer period of time to reach various phonological stages thereby achieved maximum heat units or growing degree days (GDD), heliothermal units (HTU), photo-thermal units (PTU), pheno-thermal index (PTI) and heat use efficiency (HUE). Nitrogen was the most limiting nutrient thereby accumulating least heat units and HUE. The agrometeorological indices could be therefore helpful in predicting the phenology and maize yield. The outcomes of the experiment showed that using the recommended fertilizer dosage plus zinc and sulphur in QPM should be adopted to attain higher yield under the North Western Himalayas of India, However, additional agro-ecological study is required to further validate the findings.

Dependences of the yield of common beans on agrotechnical factors in the zone of chestnut soils of the Astrakhan region

The article presents the results of agroecological study of the common bean collection, not only under the conditions of the subtype of light chestnut soils of the Astrakhan region, but also worked out the mode of irrigation of this crop, inoculation of seeds with rhizotorphin on a drip irrigation method. The need for research was primarily due to the insufficient number of bean varieties ideally adapted to the specific climatic conditions of the region, which is associated with insufficient study of both the morphology and biology of the culture. As objects of study, a test culture of beans and the drug rhizotorfin were chosen. The study showed that when cultivating common beans under irrigated Astrakhan region in the subzone of light chestnut soils, it is advisable to carry out pre-sowing inoculation of seeds with rhizotorphin, which ensures a stable yield of common beans on drip irrigation, and also contributes to the accumulation of biological nitrogen. Thus, based on the data obtained, on drip irrigation in the subzone of light chestnut soils, it is economically feasible to sow in a wide-row method (0.70 m) with a seeding rate of 500,000 germinating seeds per hectare and carry out pre-sowing seed inoculation with rhizotorphin.

Bioecological Edificators of Gray-Brown Soils in Ganja-Gazakh Massif (Azerbaijan)

Since Azerbaijan is a country with little soil, the cultivation of environmentally friendly industrial crops is very important and relevant in recent years and is one of the most important issues for soil scientists in the study of soil ecology. At present, the world has clearly defined the ecological direction in the use of natural resources, giving preference to the preservation of the natural environment and the development on this basis of resource-saving projects for the rational use of natural resources. The uniqueness of the nature of the Ganja of the Kazakh massif, as a habitat for zonal plants and animals, requires the development of modern methods for ecological assessment. The Republic of Azerbaijan is one of the most widespread countries for growing grapes. Collection orchards play an important role in the conservation of the grape gene pool. At the experimental station in Ganja, 258 native and introduced varieties are grown. The purpose of our research is to study the agrochemical and biological properties of soils of grape agrocenosis in the current ecological state of wet soils of natural cenosis, and the involvement of wet soils in agriculture. Hybrid forms like Tavkeri x Xindoqni; Tavkrevi x Gara Lkemi; Tavkveri x Medrese; Bayanshira x Saparavi; Bayanshira x Semilyon; Aloqote x Bayanshira; Sisaq x Bayanshira; Katta Kurqan x Tabrizi; Agshani x Gara shiraz; Agshani x Iskenderiyye muscat were taken as materials for research in agrocenosis. The study of phenological phases is closely connected with meteorological conditions and water regimes, which allows us to determine the need for heat, light, moisture and other elements of the external environment at different stages of the growing season. As a result of agroecological studies carried out on wet soils of natural cenosis, arable land has been identified and our analysis is very important for transferring them to grape and sunflower agrocenosis. Mathematical processing of diagnostic data of the main types and subtypes of soils of the massif and the long-term yield of the main agricultural crops - vineyard, sunflower, and cereals showed a close correlation between them.

Division of foraging behaviour: Assessments of pollinator traits when visiting a model plant species

Diverse animals visit flowers but not all engage in pollination, and only behaviours involving stigmal contact result in successful pollination events. Ethological indices developed for sociobiological contexts (caste evolution) have unrealized potential to provide insights on pollination services but have not been applied in this context before. In the present study, we characterized foraging behaviours as functional traits, which allowed us to predict whether ecosystems services are robust to species-specific trait loss. We aimed to (1) document the variety, duration and frequency of on-flower behaviours, (2) determine which taxa engage in stigmal contact and (3) investigate vulnerabilities of pollination service to loss of pollinator taxa. We used video recordings to document on-flower behaviours of animals visiting a single apple cultivar (Malus domestica var. ‘Pink Lady’), which removed confounding factors to enable a robust assessment of functional pollination behaviour. We adapted division of labour statistics (designed to assess caste-specific behavioural task fidelity within social insect colonies) to investigate taxon-specific foraging behaviours within this assemblage of pollinators – a novel application. An ethogram of 11 behaviours was derived from 19,518 min of observations (2350 visits; 19 taxa). Most (53%) flower visits involved stigmal contact (termed ‘contact visits’), but the percentage of contact visits varied between taxa. We introduce division of foraging behaviour (DFB) indices – which imply the focal pollinator assemblage consists of a mix of behaviourally generalized and specialized taxa with a slight bias towards specialization: division of taxa into behaviours DFBY|X = 0.59; division of behaviours into taxa DFBX|Y = 0.76. Simulated extinction of taxa from this insect assemblage significantly shifted DFBY|X in four instances. These qualitative assessments of behavioural traits imply moderate functional redundancy in pollination services provided by 11 insect taxa to a model plant, even under simulated extinction events, suggesting pollination services may be somewhat resilient to animal–plant network disruptions in this Australian agroecological study system.

Poly-Species Phytocenoses for Ecosystem Restoration of Degraded Soil Covers

Agroecological studies are based on the concept that, by understanding ecological processes, it is possible to manage agroecosystems for more sustainable production of more biomass and, thus, protection of natural resources. Many studies in the field of agroecology show that some farming methods can improve soil quality and restore agroecosystems by increasing plant biodiversity. Functional characteristics of plants for the assessment of ecosystem processes and services can be used for the sustainable management of agroecosystems. The paper discusses ways to restore pastures with low biological productivity in the arid steppe of Northern Kazakhstan (Kostanay region). Grass-and-legume mixtures were selected, according to the soil and climatic conditions of this region, to increase the productivity of pastures. The authors also describe the meteorological conditions in the region in question for 2021. The data of agrochemical analysis of the soil on which the grass mixture was grown differed slightly from the soils of other sites and often even was inferior to them in some indicators that affected plant productivity, namely, the humus, phosphorus, and potassium content. In the conditions of the experiment, the highest productivity was shown by the grass-and-legume mixture consisting of crested wheatgrass-alfalfa-awn less brome (27.8 c/ha of green mass and 12.6 c/ha of dry matter). Thus, according to the information obtained during the study, it can be concluded that to restore the productivity of pastures in Northern Kazakhstan, it is necessary to select the grass-and-legume mixtures that have the highest productivity and nutritional value and are adapted to the soil and climatic conditions of this region. The algorithm of the predictive simulation model of the dynamics of the graminoid community is also presented in a general form. Problems related to the remediation of soil covers are discussed.

Food Citizenship as an Agroecological Tool for Food System Re-Design

The modern agrifood system has a strong socio-economic and health impact on stakeholders, from producers to consumers. According to agroecological studies, a key factor for the food system to change is a stronger connection between farmers and consumers and the implementation of Food Citizenship. In this paper, we present the results of preliminary research on the consumer approach to vegetable and fruit purchase in Italy. Our main aim was to group consumers according to the major criteria guiding their food purchase patterns, to outline the main criteria underpinning their choices and assess their degree of environmental, economic and social awareness. Cluster analysis was able to pick out two groups with significant statistical differences, i.e., 55.4% of the sample showed, through their consumption patterns, deeper environmental and social concerns. Specifically, when comparing food purchasing patterns, ethical choices, biodiversity and global warming were the most influential factors to discriminate the two clusters. Moreover, organic food consumption confirmed its status as an acknowledged way to reduce the environmental impact of the modern agrifood system for which respondents are willing to pay a higher price compared to conventional food. Nonetheless, the whole sample of respondents perceived organic food as expensive and not good for value.

Quantifying the reproductive progression of sunflower using FIJI (Image J)

Sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) is today the third leading oilseed crop in the world and seed yield is a valuable trait for breeders and researchers. The sunflower capitulum is composed of 700 to 3000 individual flowers on a flattered receptacle. Most reproductive stages (R5 to R6) have at least two disc flower phenophase's coexisting in the same receptacle (E1 to E4). Today, researchers in agroecology and breeders manually quantify the number of disc flowers that achieve the anthesis at different developmental stages of the receptacle. The presented method applies a bioinformatic tool to estimate: (1) the number of disc flowers of each phenophase that are constituting the sunflower´s capitula at different reproductive stages and, (2) the number of developing seeds of each sunflower capitulum. The ImageJ software was used as an image-analysis tool on sunflower capitula photographs. A use case and method validation for each presented protocol is provided. This method will contribute to correlation analysis in agroecological studies and also would be useful for the early prediction of seed yield in breeding programs.•This is a simple method for the estimation of the number of disc flowers at each phenophase in the sunflower receptacle.•It is based on integrating the knowledge of sunflower reproductive development with an open-source image analysis platform applied in single workflows.•This is a precise, non-destructive, rapid, and low-cost method; thus, it has the potential to be adopted as a phenotyping tool for sunflower breeding and research in agroecology.

Хозяйственно-биологическая оценка сортов фасоли

The article presents the results of agroecological studies of not only the collection of common beans under the conditions of the subtype of light chestnut soils of the Astrakhan region, but also worked out the method of sowing various varieties, the seeding rate, inoculation of seeds with rhizotorphin during drip irrigation. Light chestnut soils, a test culture of beans, and the drug rhizotorfin were chosen as objects of study. The study showed that when cultivating common bean under irrigation conditions in the Astrakhan region on a subtype of light chestnut soils, it is advisable to carry out pre-sowing inoculation of seeds with rhizotorphin, which ensures a stable yield of common bean seeds under drip irrigation, and also contributes to the accumulation of biological nitrogen and maintaining a positive balance of organic matter in the soil. During variety testing, the selection of promising varieties and samples was carried out according to their responsiveness to the introduced mineral nitrogen, as well as according to the reaction to inoculation with a rhizotorphin strain. The optimal soil moisture in the study of bean collections with drip irrigation was maintained during the period of full shoots-budding - 65 ... 70% HB, budding - flowering - 70 ... As a result of the study, a positive effect of seed treatment with rhizotorphin was established, so the vegetation period for varieties was reduced by 1 ... productivity. A positive trend was also noted not only when comparing varieties of the second background with varieties of the first, but also inoculated varieties with the standard - Oka, which also confirms the positive value of presowing seed treatment with rhizotorfin. Thus, based on the data obtained, under conditions of drip irrigation on light chestnut soils, it is economically feasible to sow in a wide-row method (0.70 m) with a seeding rate of 500,000 germinating seeds per hectare and carry out pre-sowing seed inoculation with rhizotorphin.

Soil-Agroecological Types of Lands of the Petrovsky District in the Tambov Region of Russia

This article describes methodological approaches and results for digital mapping of water-migrational and erosional-accumulative soil cover structures for the forest-steppe of Tambov Plain. Such maps form the basis for applied maps such as for agroecological studies, forestry, landscape planning, etc. In this study, soil-landscape relationships were simulated as one of the subsystems of structure-functional organization. Linear discriminant analysis, random forest and the supported vector machine were used as simulation methods. The training sample consisted of 256 soil points. The Digital Elevation Model (DEM) had a spatial resolution of 25×25 meters. The simulation was provided for interfluves and valleys separately. A number of factors that describe soil cover type formation within interfluves and valleys were determined. It was established that within interfluves, determinant covariates are linked with moisture regime, whereas factors of lateral transfer and accumulation are most significant within valleys. The hierarchical nature of structure-functional organization was determined. The comparison of the results of the three simulation methods showed that the supported vector machine had the best accuracy values. However, verification by soil maps had the best correlations with the results of the linear discriminant analysis. In addition, soil-agroecological types of lands and their detailed descriptions for the key area were proposed on the basis of the simulation results of the soil combinations.
 Keywords: soil-agroecological types, soil cover structures, landscape-adaptive agriculture, digital soil mapping

Agroecological Studies on Environmental Effects and Responses in Reproductive Physiology of Tropical Fruit Trees

Agroecological Studies on Environmental Effects and Responses in Reproductive Physiology of Tropical Fruit Trees

Agroecologia no Cerrado

A Agroecologia, a partir de princípios, conceitos e metodologias, permite estudos e desenhos de agroecossistemas para avançar em estilos de agriculturas de bases sustentáveis conforme nos ensinou Francisco Roberto Caporal (2008), um dos grandes estudiosos do tema no Brasil, que nos deixou recentemente. À Francisco Roberto Caporal, a Revista Brasileira de Agroecologia presta suas homenagens. Não é raro o bioma Cerrado, presente em toda a região Centro-Oeste, além de estados do Norte, Nordeste e Sudeste ser associado ao constructo do “Cerrado-celeiro” valorizando efeitos de uma fronteira de agricultura industrial, em larga escala, "sem nenhuma referência à sua rica biodiversidade, a seus serviços ambientais e à presença de vários povos e comunidades tradicionais” (GUÉNEAU, DINIZ, PASSOS, 2020). Estudar o Cerrado e compreender os diferentes modos de vida e agriculturas que aí se encontram deve ser uma das bases de estudos agroecológicos que podem acumular conhecimentos e propostas de agendas de políticas públicas, capazes de dar visibilidade a estilos mais sustentáveis de agricultura.

Agroecological study of garden carrot cultivars from collection of Vavilov institute

Carrots are one of the most important root crops in the world. Due to such qualities as plasticity and relative non-wholesome cultivation, carrots are cultivated in most countries of the world. Carrot roots are a valuable source of vitamins A, B, B2, B6, B12, C, RR, E, R. Agroecological conditions of the region allow to cultivate carrots in the open ground. Astrakhan region is not yet characterized by high production rates, as its cultivation can be done only under irrigation. The article considers the influence of agroecological conditions on crop yield and adaptability of garden carrots cultivars in the arid zone of the Caspian region. Experiments on studying the carrots cultivars was carried out on the fields of Precaspian Agrarian Federal Scientific Center of the RAS in 2017-2019. The purpose of the research was to study garden carrots cultivars from collection of plant genetic resources of Vavilov Institute for the selection of high-productive and more adapted samples. The object of research was 17 types of carrots from the world Vavilov collection. Based on three-year studies on yield, we can distinguish the following cultivars: Berlanda F1 (Netherlands), Nantese (Italy) and Imperator Type 9-11 (USA) with yield of 68.4 to 75.2 t/ha. The coefficient adaptability was higher than 1, in the varieties Berlanda F1 (Netherlands), Nantese (Italy), F1 Eagle (Canada), Imperator Type 9-11 (USA), Wav-88 (Germany), Surazhevskaya-1 (Russia). They have ability to adapt to difficult growing conditions and produce consistently high yields. The samples selected can be used in the future to create new cultivars and hybrids for conditions of the Caspian region.

ECOFI: a database of sugar and energy cane field trials

Agroecological studies on sugarcane dealing with genotype by environment by management interactions commonly generate complex datasets. To facilitate the use of these datasets, a relational database, named ECOFI, was designed from the analysis of the content and the structure datasets of multidisciplinary experiments with sugarcane and energy cane. The database described in this paper includes data from 58 trials carried out in 11 countries from 1986 to 2016, including 24 trials in Reunion Islands and 15 in Guadeloupe. Taking into account plots within the trials and crop cycle, it includes 725 crop cycles in total, with 60 different cultivars. The datasets contain data for crop observations (e.g. dry mass), soil (water contents), weather (all essential meteorological parameters) and management (sowing, cultivars and harvest). Additionally the datasets contain metadata to qualify observations. This dataset provides an adequate experimental set to calibrate or validate crop model simulations under genotype x environment interaction.

ENVIRONMENTAL AND GEOGRAPHIC STUDY OF BETANIN ACCUMULATION IN PROMISING RED BEET ACCESSIONS FROM THE VIR COLLECTION

Background. Table beet (Beta vulgaris L.) is a source of ‘betanin’, a natural food dye known as food additive E-162. The VIR collection holds a large diversity of red beet accessions. It is the base for obtaining source material to breed cultivars with high betanin content.Materials and methods. In the framework of this study, which lasted from 2015 to 2018, a group of 29 accessions identified during the screening was analyzed. The pigment was assessed at the laboratory of the ECO RESOURCE Joint-Stock Company using Spectrophotometer SF-2000. Field experiments were performed according to VIR’s guidelines in 2015–2017 at Pushkin and Pavlovsk Laboratories of VIR, Volgograd Experiment Station of VIR, and Maikop Experiment Station of VIR.Results. Environmental and geographic tests demonstrated that the ability to accumulate the pigment was variable among the red beet accessions, and its concentrations were notably different. The research showed that accumulation of betanin is primarily associated with agroclimatic growing conditions. The dynamics of pigment accumulation can be both positive and negative. The optimal zone for growing the studied accession is Leningrad Province, where the highest content of betanin was observed. Mid-ripening and cold-resistant old landraces were a reference point in the search for the desired genotypes.Conclusion. The process of pigment accumulation is extremely responsive to weather conditions, soil water balance, and watering uniformity. The negative impact of these factors would smooth down the crop’s varietal polymorphism. Diseases and insect pests have led to slowing and stopping the accumulation of betanin. As a result of the comprehensive agroecological study of prototypes, promising accessions were identified and recommended for cultivation in Leningrad Province with the aim of betanin production.

Opportunities for the application of Red-edge reflectance-based indices in coastal vegetation and agro-ecological studies

Remote sensing is an advanced tool that provides electromagnetic information about the Earth's surface and atmosphere. In ecological studies, the applications of vegetation indices (VIs) derived from remote sensing data have continued to increase, especially in capturing and monitoring vegetation properties and environmental changes. This study reviews the application of VIs with special focus on red-edge based indices in the evaluating coastal landscapes and other conservation studies. The spectral characteristics of vegetation is briefly reviewed in order to exploit the potential information of the reflectance spectrum, and the possible key role of vegetation indices in future research of coastal vegetation as well as resilience indicator in the ever-changing landscapes.

Multiple ecosystem services from field margin vegetation for ecological sustainability in agriculture: scientific evidence and knowledge gaps.

BackgroundField margin and non-crop vegetation in agricultural systems are potential ecosystem services providers because they offer semi-natural habitats for both below and above ground animal groups such as soil organisms, small mammals, birds and arthropods that are service supplying units. They are considered as a target area for enhancing farm biodiversity.MethodologyTo explore the multiple potential benefits of these semi-natural habitats and to identify research trends and knowledge gaps globally, a review was carried out following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. A total of 235 publications from the year 2000 to 2016 in the Scopus and Web of Science databases were reviewed.ResultsThe literature showed an increasing trend in the number of published articles over time with European studies leading in the proportion of studies conducted, followed by North America, Asia, South America, Africa and Australia. Several functional groups of organisms were studied from field margin and non-crop vegetation around agricultural lands including natural enemies (37%), insect pests (22%), birds (17%), pollinators (16%), soil macro fauna (4%) and small mammals (4%). Ecosystem services derived from the field margin included natural pest regulation, pollination, nutrient cycling and reduced offsite erosion. Some field margin plants were reported to host detrimental crop pests, a major ecosystem dis-service, potentially leading to increased pest infestation in the field.ConclusionThe majority of studies revealed the importance of field margin and non-crop vegetation around arable fields in enhancing ecosystem biodiversity. Promotion of field margin plants that selectively enhance the population of beneficial organisms would support sustainable food security rather than simply boosting plant diversity. Our analyses also highlight that agro-ecological studies remain largely overlooked in some regions.