IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jagris/v13y2023i6p1223-d1167979.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Do Conservative Agricultural Practices Improve the Functional Biological State of Legume-Based Cropping Systems?

Author

Listed:
  • Amira Aschi

    (UniLaSalle, AGHYLE Research Unit UP 2018.C101, Rouen Team, 76134 Mont-Saint Aignan, France
    UNIROUEN, ECODIV, INRAE, Normandie Université, 76000 Rouen, France)

  • Wassila Riah-Anglet

    (UniLaSalle, AGHYLE Research Unit UP 2018.C101, Rouen Team, 76134 Mont-Saint Aignan, France)

  • Sylvie Recous

    (Université de Reims Champagne Ardenne, INRAE, FARE, UMR A 614, 51097 Reims, France)

  • Caroline Bailleul

    (UniLaSalle, AGHYLE Research Unit UP 2018.C101, Rouen Team, 76134 Mont-Saint Aignan, France)

  • Michaël Aubert

    (UNIROUEN, ECODIV, INRAE, Normandie Université, 76000 Rouen, France)

  • Isabelle Trinsoutrot-Gattin

    (UniLaSalle, AGHYLE Research Unit UP 2018.C101, Rouen Team, 76134 Mont-Saint Aignan, France
    UNIROUEN, ECODIV, INRAE, Normandie Université, 76000 Rouen, France)

Abstract

This study evaluated the response of soil microbial functions to the presence and placement of faba beans in crop rotations (rotation without legumes versus rotations with faba beans as the crop previous to wheat, with the faba beans sown three years before the wheat crops) combined with two tillage systems (conventional and reduced tillage). The study included 36 wheat-producing plots, and two agricultural practice types were defined: high-frequency–low-intensity (HF–LI) and low-frequency–high-intensity (LF–HI). The results demonstrated a significant increase in the total carbon and nitrogen (N) content under reduced tillage. Furthermore, the general path analysis suggested that arylamidase and β-glucosidase activities significantly affect N fluxes. The enzyme activities were modified by changing the soil’s physicochemical properties. These findings highlighted the significance of introducing legumes as the crop preceding wheat, especially when applying conventional tillage. Moreover, it was revealed that farmers’ management of these conservative practices is a leading factor in regulating soil functions. Pesticides and inorganic fertilization inputs were classified as HF–LI practices, while organic matter (OM) inputs and liming treatments were qualified as LF–HI practices. For instance, LF–HI practices (OM inputs and liming) directly and indirectly influenced the soil functions related to the N cycle, while HF–LI practices (pesticide, inorganic N fertilization, and previous crops) resulted in fewer soil function changes.

Suggested Citation

  • Amira Aschi & Wassila Riah-Anglet & Sylvie Recous & Caroline Bailleul & Michaël Aubert & Isabelle Trinsoutrot-Gattin, 2023. "Do Conservative Agricultural Practices Improve the Functional Biological State of Legume-Based Cropping Systems?," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 13(6), pages 1-19, June.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jagris:v:13:y:2023:i:6:p:1223-:d:1167979
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/13/6/1223/pdf
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/13/6/1223/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Danilo Marandola & Angelo Belliggiano & Luca Romagnoli & Corrado Ievoli, 2019. "The spread of no-till in conservation agriculture systems in Italy: indications for rural development policy-making," Agricultural and Food Economics, Springer;Italian Society of Agricultural Economics (SIDEA), vol. 7(1), pages 1-22, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Tamer El-Shater & Amin Mugera & Yigezu A. Yigezu, 2020. "Implications of Adoption of Zero Tillage (ZT) on Productive Efficiency and Production Risk of Wheat Production," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(9), pages 1-13, May.
    2. Ievoli Corrado & Belliggiano Angelo & Marandola Danilo & Milone Pierluigi & Ventura Flaminia, 2019. "Information and Communication Infrastructures and New Business Models in Rural Areas: The Case of Molise Region in Italy," European Countryside, Sciendo, vol. 11(4), pages 475-496, December.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jagris:v:13:y:2023:i:6:p:1223-:d:1167979. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.