Diversified cropping

Diversified farming, crop yield and climate

Farming can be diversifed in many ways. For instance by growing more crop species in the rotation ,  or enhancing soil life with organic amendments. We  examine how diversified farming affect the delivery of multiple ecosystem functions such as crop yield, biological pest regulation and nutrient cycling. We perform synthesis based on information from the literature and yield data from long term agricultural experiments to examine impact of climate change, including extreme weather events, on crop yields.

Collaborators: Mahmoud Souliman, Professor Giulia Vico,  Dr.Alessio Costa Prof Timothy Bowles Dr Chloe Maclaren

Multifunctional crop production systems

To position agriculture within planetary boundaries requires a redesign of crop production systems for multifunctionality, i.e., managing for production of food and feed, as well as for environmental protection, fertility, climate mitigation and adaptation and farm economy. To identify and minimize potential trade-offs among these, we collaborate to develop sustainable and multifunctional cropping systems. We test effects on multifunctionality of main ecological gradients managed by the farmer such as crop diversity, soil tillage and perennial cropping. We draw data from agricultural long term experiments  in which these are manipulated. We combine this information with short term mesocosm experiments. Drawing from ecosystem and community ecology we establish a multifunctional framework on how ecosystem funcitons are coupled above and below ground in the agroecosystem. We build theory on how crop diversity, disturbance and perenniality drive stocks and flows of carbon, nutrients, water, energy and crop primary production. We identify principles for the design of sustainable cropping systems.

Collaborators: Valeria Carini, Dr Alexander Menegat, Prof Göran Bergkvist, Dr Ola Lundin, Prof Thomas Keller, Prof Ingrid Öborn, Prof Martin van Ittersum (Wageningen university), Prof Christine Watson (Scotland’s rural college), Prof Frederick Stoddard (Helsiniki University)