Mixed Cropping Research Articles

Is it worth it? Land-fallowing and saltwater intrusion control under uncertainty.

Sea level rise and anthropogenic activities intensify saltwater intrusion, threatening coastal and river delta agriculture. Numerous previous studies relied on hydrologic models to understand how and to what extent sea-level rises and the alterations of river flow regimes affect saltwater intrusion. Some previous studies examined how changes in crop mix and land management can alleviate the impact of saltwater intrusion. However, little is known about the optimal level of land-fallowing needed to achieve a sustainable level of saltwater intrusion. In addition, how and to what extent a land-fallowing policy can affect the stochastic nature of saltwater intrusion remains poorly understood. Herein, we develop a probabilistic hydro-economic model by integrating a hydro-statistical model with the Inventory Theory to evaluate economic trade-offs between reducing saltwater intrusion and agricultural productivity losses resulting from a land-fallowing policy in the Mekong Delta, a major rice-producing region in Asia, by 2050. The results show that the non-exceedance probability of saltwater intrusion level is approximately 0.78 at the optimal point. Under a sea-level rise of 22cm scenario, the optimal annual land-fallowing areas are estimated to be 124,000ha to maintain saltwater intrusion levels that are less than or equal to the historical average level. This level of land-fallowing would lead to an annual crop profit loss of approximately $130.01 million. The model shows that saltwater intrusion control infrastructure can substantially reduce the areas affected by saltwater intrusion but still requires to fallow 45,000ha annually to bring the saltwater intrusion to the historical average level. The estimated annual crop profit loss associated with this scenario is $47.18 million, plus an estimated total infrastructure cost of $8.2 billion. The results also show that the potential economic benefits of improved saltwater intrusion forecasts are substantial, ranging from $47.18-$51.37 million annually, implying that increased saltwater intrusion forecast accuracy can have a substantial economic value. The findings highlight the need for all countries in the Mekong River Basin to develop more sustainable and cooperative development plans and quickly establish a data-sharing mechanism to reduce adaptation costs. The finding also informs policy discussions on investments in enhanced regional and global monitoring and forecasting systems.

Main characteristics of French farms adopting cereal–legume intercropping: A quantitative exploration at the national and local levels

CONTEXTCereal–legume intercropping is a diversification practice that offers many advantages, especially in low-input systems. However, its adoption remains low on European farms, as technical and economic barriers hinder its development. In recent years, an increase in the proportion of arable land cultivated with cereal–legume intercrops has been observed in France. Three areas in particular – in Western, Eastern and Southern France – seem to be particularly dynamic. OBJECTIVEThis study aimed (i) to identify the main farm characteristics associated with the presence of cereal–legume intercrops at the national level in France and (ii) to highlight more specific characteristics that could explain the particular dynamics observed in each focus region. METHODSWe analysed data from the 2020 French Agricultural Census for 43,968 farms representative of the French arable crop, livestock, and mixed crop–livestock farming systems. Through a literature review, we identified key factors linked to the presence of cereal–legume intercrops and related them to 42 variables in the census. At the national level, the most important of these variables were identified and interpreted using a balanced random forest and a classification and regression tree (CART). We tested the CART obtained at the national level in the Western, Eastern, and Southern areas and conducted a random forest analysis for each area to identify local particularities. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONAt the national level, the presence of cereal–legume intercropping was strongly linked to organic farming and the presence of livestock, especially ruminants. These intercrops were prevalent on farms with high feed autonomy for the cattle and sheep. Additionally, they were commonly observed on farms with grain storage, possibly indicating feed autonomy, on-farm transformation, or marketing outside of agricultural cooperatives. The belonging to a farm machinery cooperative was also strongly associated with cereal–legume intercropping, likely because these cooperatives give farmers access to specific machinery and provide opportunities for knowledge exchange regarding their practices. Similar characteristics were identified at the local level; organic farming was pivotal in the Western and Eastern areas, followed by feed autonomy for cattle. In the Southern area, however, on-farm grain storage capacity was dominant, likely due to longstanding efforts to achieve feed autonomy. SIGNIFICANCEThis exhaustive study on French farms identified key farm characteristics strongly linked to cereal–legume intercrops adoption. This insight is critical for promoting this practice, whether through national public policies or local farming support services. The methodology proposed can be easily reproduced to investigate other farming practices at different spatial scales.

Long-term impact of different prevalent cropping systems on soil physico-chemical characteristics under subtropical climate conditions of Punjab, Pakistan

Lack of site-specific nutrients information for different cropping systems has been a major challenge in addressing declining soil fertility levels and enhance crop productivity in Punjab, Pakistan. Therefore, the study was designed to assess and quantify soil physico-chemical characteristics, crop yield and economic feasibility of different cropping systems (CS), including groundnut-wheat (G-W), rice-wheat (R-W), fallow-gram/wheat (F-G/W), mix cropping (Mix C) and cotton-wheat (C-W). A total of 470 georeferenced soil samples were collected using a random survey approach, and the samples were analyzed for soil texture, pH, electrical conductivity (EC), organic matter percentage (OM), total nitrogen percentage (TN), accessible phosphorus (AvP) (mg kg−1) and extractable potassium (ExK) (mg kg−1). For crop yield and economic feasibility, the data collected for each crop were summed up and mean data for every cropping system were compared. Cotton-wheat cropping system had the highest mean value of EC (1.57 dS/m), while mix cropping showed the maximum level of OM (0.53%), TN (0.028%), AvP (5.16 mg kg−1), yield (10.09 t ha−1), gross revenue (PK Rs. 87,883) and benefit cost ratio (2.2). The R-W cropping system had the highest pH (8.37), ExK (127.39 mg kg−1) and total cost (PK Rs. 46,882.25). Curiously, the fallow-gram/wheat cropping system had lower value of OM, TN, AvP, ExK, yield, GR and BCR, highlighted its poor performance compared to mix cropping system. Deficiencies in OM were widespread across all cropping systems, with only 3.1% of samples under mix cropping system being in the medium range. Similarly, TN %, AvP and ExK were deficient in varying degrees across all cropping systems, particularly in the fallow-gram/wheat cropping system. Spatial variability maps showed that nutrient deficiencies were more pronounced from the southern to northern side of study area. Our findings indicate that mixed cropping can improve soil health and enhance crop productivity, supporting the need for targeted nutrient management in Punjab agriculture systems.

Impacts of unilateral U.S. carbon policies on agricultural sector greenhouse gas emissions and commodity markets

Abstract This article analyzes the consequences of the United States implementing unilateral policies to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from agriculture. The policy representation is based loosely on current and past policy initiatives that have subsidized GHG reductions and considered special treatment for sectors heavily involved in trade. To do so, our first step is to generate new estimates of key parameters, elasticities of demand and supply, that are critical to understanding interactions among agricultural commodities, such as between livestock and crop products, in this area of research and more broadly. We apply these parameters in a widely used economic model that estimates the effects of a unilateral U.S. agricultural GHG policy on both domestic and foreign markets as well as global GHG emissions. Livestock effects dominate, driving most U.S. livestock product consumer prices higher and causing mixed crop and crop product price effects. A unilateral policy increases food costs in the implementing country and, if applied to all supplies, domestic and imported, tends to raise prices elsewhere as well. Alternative implementation strategies, such as not imposing the costs on exports or not imposing the costs on imports, can lead to lower food prices and greater consumption in other countries, as well as have important implications for the overall GHG reductions achieved by the unilateral effort.

Estimation of the total carbon sequestration potential of coconut-gliricidia mixed cropping systems in Sri Lanka

Offsetting carbon footprints by sequestering carbon through plant biomasses has become a key concern under modern thinking on climate change mitigation. This study aimed to estimate the carbon sequestration capacities of coconut-based gliricidia mixed cropping systems in Sri Lanka and, importantly, to develop an allometric model for non-destructive estimation of carbon. Five major coconut age groups and four major gliricidia age groups were selected to estimate the total carbon stock. The age groups of coconut considered were 10, 20, 30, 40, and 50 years, with corresponding carbon stocks of 22.59, 34.99, 53.13, 63.40, and 66.03 Mg[C]ha-1, respectively. In gliricidia stands, carbon stocks were 25.53, 46.16, 83.83, and 106.09 Mg[C]ha-1, respectively, for age groups of 5, 10, 15, and 20 years. It is recommended that gliricidia be introduced as an intercrop in coconut plantations 20 years after the establishment of the latter. For this study, a 30-year-old coconut plantation with a 10-year-old gliricidia intercrop, along with its associated ground cover vegetation and soil carbon stock, were considered the benchmark agroforestry system. In the 30-year-old coconut monocropping system, the total carbon stock was 67.76 Mg[C]ha-1, which consisted of uniform coconut, 1.24 Mg[C]ha-1 from ground cover vegetation and 13.39 Mg[C]ha-1 from the soil carbon stock at a depth of 30 cm. The overall carbon sequestration rate for this monocropping system was 2.25 Mg[C]ha-1yr-1 and abated CO2 in 8.23 Mg[CO2]ha-1yr-1. In the 30-year-old coconut and 10-year-old gliricidia mixed cropping system, the total carbon stock was 114.83 Mg[C]ha-1, which consisted of uniform coconut and Gliricidia, 1.05 Mg[C]ha-1 from ground cover plants, and 14.49 Mg[C]ha-1 from soil carbon stock at a depth of 30 cm. Compared to the coconut monocropping system, the coconut-gliricidia mixed cropping system had a higher carbon sequestration rate of 6.84 Mg[C]ha-1yr-1 and abated CO2 in 25.03 Mg[CO2]ha-1yr-1, which are around three times higher than the monoculture system.

From waste to resource: A life cycle assessment of biochar from agricultural residue

AbstractIn recent years, biochar has emerged as a versatile product. Producing biochar from agricultural residue is an environmentally friendly alternative to in‐situ burning, reducing the requirement for chemical fertilizers. This study presents a comprehensive assessment of the environmental impact of biochar production. Four feedstocks are compared – rice straw, palm shell, corn stover, and mixed crop residue. The cradle‐to‐gate system boundary comprises all stages of biochar production – feedstock acquisition, transport and pre‐treatment, and biochar production. Results show that the main hotspots are emissions and electricity consumption during production. The palm shell had the highest impact on human health (4.889 kg PM2.5 eq) and ecosystem quality due to high terrestrial and aquatic acidification potential (159.600 kg SO2 eq). Mixed crop residue had the greatest global warming potential (281.884 kg CO2 eq) and resource consumption. Corn stover and rice straw had moderate impacts, with corn stover contributing significantly to ecotoxicity (2.2E+04 kg TEG water) and rice straw impacting respiratory inorganics (3.545 kg PM2.5 eq), and causes severe depletion of resources, consuming 4339.672 MJ of non‐renewable energy. These findings emphasize the importance of selecting low‐impact feedstocks for biochar production. While corn stover has high impacts in midpoint categories like carcinogens, non‐carcinogens, ionizing radiation, aquatic and terrestrial toxicity, and eutrophication, it has the lowest GWP. Rice straw has the lowest impact on human health and resources. Finally, uncertainty analysis using Monte Carlo Simulation shows that the coefficient of variation for impact categories is within ±10%, indicating that the results are reliable.

SLAKES Smartphone Application to Identify the Difference in Soil Aggregate Stability Under Cover Crop Management for Soils with Fragipan Horizon

ABSTRACT Fragipan subsoil horizons have poor soil aggregate stability that slakes in rise with the water table. The intensity of slaking can be used as a proxy to identify the presence of fragipan horizon in a soil profile. Fairly new, ‘Slakes,’ a smartphone application provides an aggregate stability index (ASI) based on fitting a Gompretz function over changes in area of disintegrating soil peds immersed in water for over 10 min through the analysis of images taken by a smartphone camera. Objectives of this study were twofold: first, to identify changes in ASI values with the adoption of cover crops, and second, to apply Slakes value to identify the fragipan horizon. We compared ASI values for with (CC) and without (NCC) a cover crop mix at two on-farm fields with fragipan subsoil horizons in southern Illinois. The conventional wet aggregate stability method did not show any differences (p = .10) between CC and NCC for the surface Ap horizon at both sites. However, the ASI score of CC was higher than NCC for the site with 10 years under CC, but the opposite trend was observed for the other site. In general, the Ap horizon had the highest ASI score with an average value of 0.48 and it significantly declined for the Bt horizon (0.29). This study showed that the Slake-ASI score has value to identify changes in management practices on surface soils. However, applying Slakes to identify the fragipan horizon would require a shorter time length (<10 min) and large-scale calibration.

Seeds Adapted to Mixed Cropping Increase Yield and Drought Resistance of Cereal–Legume Mixtures

ABSTRACTCropland diversification through mixed cropping has the potential of achieving a more sustainable agriculture while securing food production. This is of special relevance with climate change and the expected drier growing conditions in the future. Seed adaptation to this cropping method is hypothesized to be a fundamental factor to maximize these benefits, as well as the particular species combined. In this study we compared the performance of four cereal–legume mixed crops (wheat and oat mixed with lupin and lentil in pairs) with their respective monocrops. Each crop was sown using seeds adapted to monoculture and mixed cropping, respectively. Moreover, they were grown under early‐season and late‐season drought treatments and under control conditions. We measured above‐ground vegetative biomass, seed yield and harvest index to evaluate crop production, drought resistance and the effect of seed adaptation on each mixed and monocrop. Our results show that mixed cropping either had a beneficial or neutral effect on crop yield, depending on the species combination and drought conditions, but the harvest index was higher in monocrops. We also confirmed that seed adaptation to a particular type of cropping is clearly a determining factor in its performance. In accordance with the insurance hypothesis, mixed cropping has the effect of protecting crop yields in the case of a sudden bad performance of one of the species, for example, caused by adverse environmental conditions. It is necessary to focus on effective species combinations which have the best responses to mixed cropping. In our study, we show that wheat–lentil mixtures performed poorly, while wheat–lupin showed the most promising results improving yield and drought resistance. Oat mixed crops did not show differences with the respective monocrops, so they can be a viable cropping option as well and benefit from advantages of crop diversity not measured in this study.

Effects of mixed cropping and inoculants on yield and quality of forage under different inter cropping ratios of oat and field pea

Using forage oat and field pea, this study was conducted to explore the effects of sole and mixed cropping patterns at varying ratios, and microbial inoculant application. The aim was to reveal the comprehensive effects of mixed cropping patterns and microbial inoculation on the above-ground biomass, forage yield, and nutritional quality. The results indicated that mixed cropping significantly increased the above-ground biomass of both oats and field peas. With microbial inoculation, mixed cropping increased dry hay yield by 21.81%, 18.31%, 13.33%, and 10.05%; crude protein by 9.4%, 16.44%, 14.98%, and 4.18%, and crude fat by 8.22%, 2.9%, 14.81%, and 5.59% respectively, compared to sole cropping. Additionally, neutral and acid detergent fiber contents decreased by 2.94% and 1.89% on average in mixed crops. These findings suggest that mixed cropping with microbial inoculants can significantly increase forage nutritional quality and yield, offering a scientific basis for efficient forage crop utilization. Bangladesh J. Bot. 53(4): 903-911, 2024 (December)

Tourists’ willingness to pay for protecting the agricultural landscapes maintained by Rukai traditional agricultural methods

ABSTRACT This study employs a choice experiment method to examine tourists’ willingness to pay (WTP) for foxtail millet grown using the Rukai people's traditional mixed cropping methods and the associated landscapes in Wutai Township, Taiwan. The Rukai people’s complex method of growing and harvesting foxtail millet with mixed cropping creates diverse agricultural landscapes that provide various foods, ensure food security, maintain biodiversity, help crops adapt to extreme climates, improve societal resilience to climate change, and generate cultural assets and tourist attractions. The traditional agriculture certification of the Rukai people is used to evaluate the landscape, ecological, and cultural values of these practices. The results indicate that respondents are willing to pay an average of NT$60.97 more for certified foxtail millet products compared to non-certified ones. This added value translates to approximately NT$15.8522 million, considering that 260,000 tourists visited Wutai Township in 2020. These findings underscore the potential economic benefits of certification in promoting traditional agricultural methods and landscapes. Moreover, the study highlights the significance of pretesting in choice experiments. The pretest revealed respondents’ concerns about comprehension, legitimacy of subjective value assessments, and the feasibility of the survey. Incorporating respondents’ feedback significantly improved the questionnaire's clarity and the policy recommendations’ feasibility.

ИЗУЧЕНИЕ АГРОЦЕНОЗОВ КУКУРУЗЫ В СМЕШАННЫХ ПОСЕВАХ НА СЕРЫХ ЛЕСНЫХ ПОЧВАХ ПРЕДКАМЬЯ РЕСПУБЛИКИ ТАТАРСТАН

The studies were conducted to assess the productivity of mixed crops of corn with other crops in the Republic of Tatarstan. The experiment was carried out in 2022-2023 on gray forest soil with a humus content of 2.1%, mobile phosphorus ‒ 151 mg/kg, potassium ‒ 121 mg/kg. The experimental design included the following options: nutrition background (factor A) - no fertilizers, N30P30K30, N45P45K45, N60P60K60; cropping pattern (factor B) - corn (100%), corn (50%) + peas (50%), corn (50%) + soybeans (50%), corn (50%) + vetch (50%), corn (33.3%) + vetch (33.3%) + oats (33.3%), corn (50%) + sweet clover (50%). Azofoska (15:15:15) was applied as fertilizer during pre-sowing cultivation. Before sowing, the seeds were mixed according to the experimental scheme, based on the recommended rates for pure crop sowings: corn - 80 thousand pcs./ha, peas - 1.2 million pcs./ha, soybeans - 750 thousand pcs./ha, vetch - 800 thousand pcs./ha, oats - 5 million pcs./ha, sweet clover - 6 million pcs./ha. The optimal ratio of plant heights of the studied mixtures was noted in the variants corn + pea, corn + vetch and corn + vetch + oats. The highest aboveground mass in the experiment was recorded against the background of N60P60K60 in the milky ripeness phase of corn grain in mixed crops with peas - 27.80 t/ha. The highest above-ground mass of the second crop in the mixture was formed by soybeans on the backgrounds of N60P60K60 and N45P45K45 (4.60 t/ha each). The highest yield of green mass was provided by the application of N45P45K45; further increase in the fertilizer rate is impractical. The highest yield of green mass was noted in the crops of corn + vetch + oats (25.50 t/ha) and corn + soybeans (24.80 t/ha).

Gender relations and women’s empowerment in small-scale irrigated forage production in Ethiopia

Small-scale cultivation and irrigation of planted forages can increase the availability of good-quality animal feed in smallholder farms. However, low adoption rates of improved forage technologies in most parts of sub-Saharan Africa have been observed and are partly attributed to limited understanding of gender dynamics in the context of production and utilization of planted forages. The introduction of small-scale cultivation and irrigation of planted forages is likely to interlink gender relations in the mixed crop–livestock farming system given the differences in contributions, benefits and challenges men and women farmers face. Efforts to transform livestock systems through improving adoption, scaling, and sustainability forage interventions can benefit from empirical evidence on gender relations in feed-related activities. We aim to highlight the linkage between gender relations and women’s empowerment in the production and utilization of feed resources smallholder settings. We used mixed methods, drawing on quantitative data obtained from a cross-sectional survey of 250 men and 250 women, and qualitative data obtained from eight focus group discussions in smallholder settings of the Amhara and Southern Nations, Nationalities, and People’s regions of Ethiopia, where small-scale irrigation was introduced to boost the production of cultivated forages by households. We used the Women’s Empowerment in Livestock Index tool to elicit data and analyze the empowerment of the sampled men and women. Women’s empowerment differed significantly with different dimensions of gender relations, types of forages grown, and small-scale irrigation practice. Moreover, women in households practicing small-scale irrigation of planted forages were significantly more empowered and most (80%) achieved the adequate threshold in “work balance”. The study findings point to the positive link between empowerment and the likely shifts in gender relations from the practice of small-scale production and irrigation of forages.

GREEN ECONOMICS WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO MIXED CROPPING” - A CASE STUDY OF COCONUT CULTIVATION IN D.K. DISTRICT

Green economics seeks to promote sustainable development while integrating environmental, social, and economic goals. Mixed cropping, a practice of growing multiple crops simultaneously on the same land, is a key strategy for enhancing agricultural biodiversity, improving soil health, and increasing farmers' resilience to climate change. This study examines the role of mixed cropping in coconut cultivation in the Dakshina Kannada (D.K.) District of Karnataka, India, a region known for its significant coconut production. Through a review of literature and analysis of recent data, the study explores the economic, environmental, and social benefits of mixed cropping in coconut farming. The findings suggest that mixed cropping in coconut orchards, involving crops like areca nut, banana, and pepper, can provide farmers with diversified income sources, reduce soil erosion, enhance water retention, and improve biodiversity. The paper also highlights the challenges, such as market uncertainties and the need for better policy support, while discussing the potential for scaling up these practices across other coconut-growing regions in India.

SHIFTS FROM COCONUT MONO CROP TO COCONUT MIXED CROPS GENERATE SUSTAINABLE INCOME TO THE FARMERS” – CASE STUDIES DAKSHINA KANNADA DISTRICTS

Coconut cultivation, when integrated with areca nut, banana, pepper, and pineapple in Dakshina Kannada District, Karnataka, forms a mixed cropping system that provides farmers with diversified income sources throughout the year. This practice not only improves farm income but also ensures greater economic resilience by mitigating risks associated with market fluctuations, pests, and climate variability. The study investigates the sustainability of such mixed cropping systems, focusing on economic benefits, productivity, and the environmental advantages they offer. Recent data highlights that farmers in Dakshina Kannada who adopt mixed cropping report consistent year-round income, enhanced soil fertility, and better water retention. The intercropping system ensures staggered harvesting periods, with crops like banana and pineapple providing early returns, while coconut and pepper offer long-term profitability. The study concludes with recommendations for scaling up these practices through policy interventions, farmer education, and improved market access

Conversion to community-supported agriculture—pathways, motives and barriers for German farmers

During the last 30 years, the number of farms in Germany has decreased by more than 50%. Due to socioeconomic pressures, particularly small- and medium-sized farms are forced to close down. A partial or full conversion to community-supported agriculture (CSA) might be an approach to increase the economic viability of a farm in the long term, as the costs related to CSA are covered by the members and, therefore, risks are shared. Moreover, CSA can contribute to a transformation towards sustainable and resilient food systems and to a revitalisation of structurally weak regions. Based on a quantitative analysis of nearly 500 CSA farms in Germany and semi-structured interviews with ten CSA farms that originated from a conversion of an existing farm, we investigated pathways, motives and barriers for German farmers to convert to CSA. We found that only one quarter of the existing CSA farms originated from a conversion. Most of the converted farms were organically certified and focused on mixed cropping and horticulture. Economic stability, consistency with own values and the pleasure of working in an appreciative community were the main drivers for conversion. Major barriers included uncertainty about the membership potential in a region, the shortage of skilled labour, inappropriate funding legislation and bureaucratic obstacles. Cooperation between various actors is needed to overcome these barriers and to promote the diffusion of the CSA model.

Influence of Annual Ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum) as Cover Crop on Soil Water Dynamics in Fragipan Soils of Southern Illinois, USA

Fragipans are dense subsurface soil layers that severely restrict root penetration and water movement. The presence of shallow fragipan horizons limits row crop production. We hypothesized that the roots of cover crop might improve soil physiochemical properties and biological activity, facilitating drainage and increasing effective soil depth for greater long-term soil water storage. To evaluate annual ryegrass as one component of a cover crop (CC) mix for promoting the characteristics and distribution of soil water, on-farm studies were conducted at Marion and Springerton in southern Illinois, USA. Soil samples were collected at 15 cm increments to 60 cm (Marion) and 90 cm (Springerton) depths during the fall of 2022. Both sites had low total soil carbon and nitrogen contents and acidic soil pH (≤6.4). A soil water retention curve was fitted using the van Genuchten equation. At Springerton, the CC treatment increased saturated (thetaS) and residual (thetaR) soil water contents above those of the no cover crop (NCC) at the 60–75 cm and 75–90 cm depths. Changes in volumetric soil water content were measured using a multi-depth soil water sensor for the Springerton site during late July to early August of the soybean growing phase of 2022; NCC had higher soil water than CC within the 0–15 cm depth, but CC had higher soil water than NCC at the 30–45 cm depth. These findings indicate that cover crop mix has the potential to improve soil water movement for soils with restrictive subsoil horizon, possibly through reducing the soil hydraulic gradient between the surface and restrictive subsurface soil layers.

Assessing Carbon Sequestration and Biomass Distribution across Diverse Land Use Types in Ban Krang Subdistrict, Phitsanulok Province

This study investigates carbon dioxide (CO₂) sequestration and biomass distribution across various plant components and land use types in Ban Krang Subdistrict, Mueang District, Phitsanulok Province, with the goal of enhancing carbon management strategies. Field surveys were conducted using 14 plots of 40x40 meters to quantify biomass and estimate CO₂ sequestration across different vegetation types. The findings reveal an average CO₂ sequestration of 122.81 Ton ha⁻¹, with aboveground biomass, particularly stems, contributing the most to carbon storage. Notably, abandoned perennial crops and mixed perennial crops demonstrated the highest sequestration rates, at 657.94 Ton ha⁻¹ and 613.00 Ton ha⁻¹, respectively. In contrast, agricultural lands such as rice paddies and cassava plantations exhibited the lowest sequestration rates, though rice paddies contributed the highest total CO₂ sequestration, amounting to 61,119.71 Tons, due to their extensive area. The study highlights the critical role of diverse and dense vegetation, particularly perennial crops, in maximizing carbon sequestration. It also underscores the potential for improving carbon storage in agricultural lands through better land management practices. The results suggest that targeted strategies should prioritize high-sequestration land use types while also enhancing carbon storage in low-sequestration areas. By optimizing land use and management practices, the region can significantly increase its carbon storage capacity, contributing to climate change mitigation and promoting long-term ecological sustainability. These insights are crucial for formulating effective carbon management strategies in Ban Krang Subdistrict, as well as in other comparable regions.

Optimizing purslane cultivation through legume intercropping and crop rotation: a study on yield and rhizosphere bacterial communities

Abstract Aims Mixed cropping systems such as intercropping and crop rotation have been proven to be sustainable agronomic tools that provide agro-ecological services and improve crop yield through soil physical, chemical and biological changes in the soil. In this study, we aimed to assess the impact of different mixed cropping systems on a crop well-adapted to high temperatures and low precipitation, like purslane (Portulaca oleracea L.) and to study the underlying microbial mechanisms involved. Methods A field experiment in a semiarid region of southern Spain was conducted to study the short-term effects of crop rotation (R) and intercropping (I) with peas or cowpeas, as well as a combination of both (IR) on purslane yield and soil quality parameters such as microbial enzymatic activity, bacterial diversity, microbial composition and functionality. Results All the tested treatments increased purslane yield without significant differences among each other, but only the R and IR treatments affected the rhizospheric soil properties, through the increase of the enzymatic activities and the modification of the bacterial composition and functionality, and promoted organic matter degrading bacteria such as Bacillaceae, Myxococcaceae, and Planococcaceae and nitrogen-fixing bacteria, mainly Rhizobiaceae and Beijerinckiaceae. Conclusion This study demonstrates how sustainable cropping practices may improve the yield of a low maintenance crop like purslane under low-maintenance conditions by improving soil fertility in semiarid areas and also provides insights into the biological mechanisms responsible for the recorded effects.

Impact of Crop Type on Biodiversity Globally.

The negative impact of agricultural land on biodiversity is widely recognized. However, there remains a knowledge gap regarding the role of different crop types in maintaining biodiversity within the agricultural landscape. By extracting biodiversity data from global datasets and classifying different crop types, we quantified the contribution of different crop types to biodiversity. Our results indicate that biodiversity levels vary widely among crop types. We found a general loss of biodiversity when natural vegetation is converted to agricultural land, and highest losses in fiber crops, cereals and oil crops, and least in other crops (such as coffee or cocoa) and in mixed crops. In general, perennial crops retain more biodiversity than annual crops. Losses of biodiversity can be mitigated through mixed cropping of multiple crop types, especially by combining annual and perennial crops. The negative impact of converting natural vegetation to agriculture is greater in tropical than in nontropical areas, and hence, the import of commodities from these biodiversity-rich regions may be particularly detrimental. Given the ongoing increase in biodiversity losses from global intensification and expansion of agricultural land, maintaining or restoring natural vegetation, rating the crop-type-specific biodiversity, diversifying crops, and preferring perennial over annual crops, particularly in the tropics, need to be better considered and implemented in global agri-environmental schemes.

Construction and validation of a mathematical model for the pressure subsidence of mixed crop straw in Shajiang black soil

The soil properties of mixed crop straw do not enable conventional pressure subsidence models to characterize the relationship between straw amount and pressure-bearing properties accurately. Based on the distribution of straw in the field, this study explored the effect of the amount of surface straw cover on the pressure subsidence relationship in Shajiang black soil. The quadratic rotated orthogonal combination test was used to quantify the mathematical relationships of Shajiang black soil pressure subsidence modeling with the amount of surface straw cover (SSC) and mass mixing ratio of soil to straw (MSS). Then, using the weighted least squares method, the pressure subsidence parameters (cohesive deformation modulus, friction deformation modulus, and subsidence index) were obtained, and the Bekker model was modified to construct a pressure subsidence model for the straw-containing soil. Finally, the modified model was verified under conditions of a water content of 18 %, the SSC of 2.5 t·ha−1, and the MSS of 2.5 %. Results showed that the proposed pressure subsidence model predicted the value with a relative error of 2.21 % compared with the experimental measurements. The model’s predicted value accuracy improved by 10.65 % compared to the conventional model. From these results, this study proposes that a mixed crop straw Shajiang black soil pressure subsidence model can predict the soil’s internal stress transfer and stress–strain conditions.