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Performance of different wheat varieties and their associated microbiome under contrasting tillage and fertilization intensities: Insights from a Swiss long-term field experiment
Get PDFWinter wheat is an important global cereal crop. However, conventional farming practices, characterised by intensive tillage and high fertilizer inputs, pose significant threats to the environment. In response, more conservative management practices are being applied aiming to maintain wheat production while promoting a beneficial microbiome. Here, we evaluated the suitability of three different wheat varieties for less intensive agricultural systems, focusing on reduced tillage and fertilizer intensity. The study was conducted over two consecutive years in a Swiss long-term field experiment comparing conventional versus reduced tillage and full fertilization versus half fertilization. In addition, we investigated the composition of plant-associated microbial communities using amplicon sequencing of phylogenetic marker genes, specifically targeting bacteria and fungi in rhizosphere samples and fungi in root samples. Our results revealed that in our study wheat variety most strongly predicted grain yield and quality, independent of tillage and fertilization intensity. Specifically, wheat varieties demonstrated higher yields and N uptake in plots subjected to conventional ploughing and full fertilization compared to those under reduced tillage and half fertilization. We found no significant effect of wheat variety on the composition of microbial communities. However, tillage emerged as the primary factor influencing microbial community composition in the rhizosphere, while fertilization intensity significantly impacted fungal communities in the root system. These findings underscore the complex interplay between agronomic practices, plant genetics, and microbial dynamics in agroecosystems, emphasizing the need for holistic and adaptive approaches and their further development to ensure sustainable crop production
Cropping system modulates the effect of spring drought on ammonia-oxidizing communities
Get PDFThe severity of drought is predicted to increase across Europe due to climate change. Droughts can substantially impact terrestrial nitrogen (N) cycling and the corresponding microbial communities. Here, we investigated how ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB), archaea (AOA), and complete ammonia oxidizers (comammox) as well as inorganic N pools and N2O fluxes respond to simulated drought under different cropping systems. A rain-out shelter experiment was conducted as part of a long-term field experiment comparing cropping systems that differed mainly in fertilization strategy (organic, mineral, or mixed mineral and organic) and plant protection management (biodynamic versus conventional pesticide use). We found that the effect of drought varied depending on the specific ammonia-oxidizing (AO) groups and the type of cropping system. Drought had the greatest impact on the structure of the AOA community compared to the other AO groups. The abundance of ammonia oxidizers was also affected by drought, with comammox clade B exhibiting the highest sensitivity. Additionally, drought had, overall, a stronger impact on the AO community structure in the biodynamic cropping system than in the mixed and mineral-fertilized conventional systems. The responses of ammonia-oxidizing communities to drought were comparable between bulk soil and rhizosphere. We observed a significant increase in NH4+ and NO3− pools during the drought period, which then decreased after rewetting, indicating a strong resilience. We further found that drought altered the complex relationships between AO communities and mineral N pools, as well as N2O fluxes. These results highlight the importance of agricultural management practices in influencing the response of nitrogen cycling guilds and their processes to drought
Organic conversion checks: a Danish strategy for upscaling organic farming
Get PDFDuring the conversion check an experienced organic farm advisor from the Innovation Centre for Organic Farming (ICOEL) or another advisory service provider visits the farm. The consultant and the farmer go through the farm's production and sales potential of converting to organic production. Farmers can ask questions and explore development opportunities, helping them make informed decisions. The approach has proven to cause fewer re-conversions or interrupted processes.
Practical recommendations
• The farmer contacts the advisory services or ICOEL to ask for a conversion check. This can also take place on the initiative of a municipality for all farms in the region.
• Before the visit, the farmer receives a simple questionnaire, so that the conversion advisor can prepare.
• The advisor has experience with the farm type (e.g., livestock, arable, vegetable). Impartiality and professionalism are key.
• The farm visit of approx. 2 hours includes:
- Review of fields and stables to assess the opportunities and barriers for organic production and how to overcome them
- Discussion of rules for organic production in general and for the specific farm type
- Financial estimate based on the current production and potential subsidies
- Market and sales opportunities
- A timeline for conversion
• The advisor provides a report with a realistic assessment of the farm’s suitability for organic farming.
• If the farmer decides to convert to organic, the advisor will guide him through the process. Conversion to organic takes around 2-3 years to be effective
Clover grass for biogas enables farm gate nitrogen balance in organic farming
No full textOrganic plant production relies predominantly on manure from organic and conventional livestock systems as source of reactive nitrogen. This dependency restricts the potential growth of the organically cultivated area where livestock density is low. Alternatively, utilizing clover grass fields offers a major source of reactive nitrogen. Yet, clover grass fields are predominantly embedded in farming systems with ruminant livestock, which limits their implementation in areas with low livestock densit
D2.1 Establish and feed turbots broodstock
No full textBeskrivelse af fangt, obvaring samt fodring af vilde pighvar
Value of genetically heterogeneous crops for organic farming according to DIVERSILIENCE results, and implications for organic breeders and farmers
Get PDFGenetically heterogeneous cultivars of inbred crops may include populations and static or dynamic mixtures of lines or cultivars. Evolutionary populations evolve in target environments under natural selection and possibly under additional mass selection. All of this material can be marketed for European organic systems since 2022. The actual advantage of genetically heterogeneous cultivars over pure line material has not been thoroughly studied. DIVERSILIENCE aimed to provide a scientific assessment of the value of (a) evolutionary populations for wheat and white lupin, (b) composite populations of common bean and runner bean, and (c) cultivar mixtures of wheat and soybean. Besides, it aimed to produce scientific information that could contribute to optimize the development of heterogeneous material. The project results provided direct or indirect evidence for the high agronomic value of populations and cultivar mixtures in terms of yielding ability in low-input systems, yield stability, stress tolerance and/or farmers’ acceptability. Direct evidence arose from the following results:
(a)
in Norway, wheat populations displayed similar grain yield and protein content and higher yield stability relative to pure line varieties;
(b)
in Romania, a six-component wheat cultivar mixture was the only material combining moderate tolerance to a set of abiotic or biotic stresses and good yielding ability;
(c)
in Italy, two white lupin populations showed grain yield, protein content and farmers’ appreciation comparable with those of a pure line variety and an elite breeding line;
(d)
in Romania, a four-component cultivar mixture of soybean displayed higher grain yield than any pure line cultivar, along with no grain quality disadvantage.
Indirect evidence arose from the following results:
(a)
in Denmark, an increase of wheat tolerance to common bunt displayed by mixtures composed of lines with up to six different resistance genes;
(b)
in Slovenia, the high allelic variation for functional markers associated with several agronomically important traits that showed, in particular, by a common bean composite population.
In the case of evolutionary populations, it is noteworthy that this material achieved similar or higher agronomic value than elite pure line cultivars in spite of its much smaller selection cost.
Results of methodological interest for the development of heterogeneous cultivars were:
(a)
the somewhat greater interest of kernel weight than spike appearance for mass selection of wheat populations;
(b)
the limited additional value of farmers’ selection relative to natural selection alone, for white lupin evolutionary populations;
(c)
the agronomic value of genetically broader cultivar mixtures, such as a 6-component mixture for wheat and a 4-component mixture for soybean.
On the whole, the results by the project DIVERSILIENCE justify a greater emphasis on the breeding and the cultivation of genetically heterogeneous cultivars of inbred crops
Well-performing heterogeneous varieties developed by DIVERSILIENCE: results and opportunities for introduction into cultivation
No full textThe research work carried out by the project DIVERSILIENCE highlighted the high agronomic value of (a) a few populations of wheat in Denmark and Norway, white lupin in Italy, and common or runner bean in Slovenia, and (b) a few cultivar mixtures of wheat and soybean in Romania (see the deliverable D2.1). The current deliverable aims to discuss challenges and opportunities to make the seed of these materials available to organic farmers. Key factors in this respect were the type (population or cultivar mixture), extent of morphophysiological heterogeneity, and ownership of the material, and the potential market size of the species and heterogeneous variety.
Cultivar mixtures are far less challenging than populations for adoption by farmers, provided that all the relevant component cultivars are available on the market. Usually, populations ought to be registered as OHM as a precondition for their availability to organic farmers. One exception was represented by a Slovenian composite population originated from four lines that were pre-selected for identity of morphophysiological traits, which achieved sufficient homogeneity and distinctness for ordinary registration under the name of KIS Amand.
For registered populations, a crucial challenge is represented by the development of a business model that could sustain the breeding of OHM, within seed systems that have been designed and regulated for genetically homogeneous varieties.
The populations bred by a public breeding institution (as in the case of white lupin and bean materials) could be considered as a public good whose marketing does not need to generate funds for breeding work. However, their marketing by a licensed seed firm should involve seed fees able to compensate for seed amounts that are expectedly lower than for ordinary varieties because of wide farmers’ utilization of saved seed for future sowings.
The seed marketing of the best wheat populations, which were bred by private breeders, could hardly produce enough income to support breeding activities, at least in this pioneer phase of population adoption by farmers. Agrologica has devised an original system of membership fees for farmers that require population seed. Anyway, some form of public support appears necessary to support at least in part the breeding work on populations performed by interested breeders
Quality of bio-based fertilizers is decisive for improving soil quality in Europe – A meta-analysis
Get PDFOrganic matter is a vital component of soils and decisive for soil health and sustainable food production. Agricultural soil use often decreases soil organic matter stocks and climate change may aggravate the situation, utting food security and ecosystem functioning at risk. Bio-based fertilizers (BBFs, most often waste or residue-derived) are a vital part of future circular economies ocussing on closed nutrient cycles in food production and agriculture. It is unclear if BBFs have positive effects on soil organic carbon (SOC) because studies on BBFs were so far mostly focussed on plant nutrition and ran mainly as short-term pot experiments. We filtered, extended and reclassified the comprehensive meta-analysis of Chen et al. (2018) to elucidate the effects of bio-based fertilizers on SOC concentrations in European and North American long-term experiments. The revised data set consisting of 260 observations from 60 field trials (now including a minimum duration of 5 years) showed significant effects of BBF quality on SOC concentration when compared with minerally fertilized plots and elucidated the role of soil and site properties on the efficiency of BBFs to increase SOC. The extended data set showed that solid and carbon-rich BBFs were most efficient in increasing SOC concentrations. Less developed soils and loamy soils in dry climates showed the highest potential for carbon equestration through BBF application. We stress the importance of carbon inputs for the maintenance of current SOC concentrations, thus demanding the cautious use of C-depleting steps during BBF processing, only to be applied if elimination of organic pollutants and pathogens is needed
Projekt Beratung Beeren 2024-2027
No full textDas FiBL organisierte am 4. Juli 2024 in Zusammenarbeit mit dem Inforama (Kanton) Bern zum ersten Mal einen kombinierten Erfahrungsaustausch für Bio Beeren und Bio Gemüse, um die Teilnehmerzahl zu erhöhen. Rund 20 Personen folgten der Einladung auf die Betriebe Bio Müller, Bibern SO und Schluep Grossmann, Schnottwil SO
Genetic Mapping of Common Bunt Resistance Gene Bt6
Get PDFGenetic mapping of the resistance gene Bt3 controlling common bunt (Tilletia caries) in whea