Search results for "Sustainable agriculture"
showing 10 items of 86 documents
Allelopathy and the role of allelochemicals in plant defence
2017
International audience; Allelopathy is described as the interference to plant growth resulting from chemical interactions among plants and other organisms mediated through release of plant-produced bioactive secondary metabolites referred to as allelochemicals. A number of mechanisms have been studied for the release of allelochemicals from various plant tissues including volatilization or leaching from aerial parts, exudation from roots and decomposition of plant residues in soil. Despite differences in biological activity and mode of action, related compounds commonly share similar biosynthetic pathways while some classes of metabolites can be produced using diverse biosynthetic pathways.…
Use of plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) and organic fertilization for soilless cultivation of basil
2021
Abstract Today there is a greater environmental and ecological awareness and it is growing the number of farmers who want to adopt sustainable and efficient cultivation systems even if not officially certified as organic. Sustainable and modern cultivation systems must involve organic fertilization and cannot ignore the role of rhizosphere microorganisms. Starting from this premise, this paper aimed to evaluate the use of plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) and organic liquid fertilizers on soilless cultivation of basil. Genovese basil plants were cultivated in pots filled with a substrate inoculated or not with a commercial biostimulant (TNC BactorrS13) containing growth-promoting …
Current Experience with Application of Metal-based Nanofertilizers
2019
Agriculture is one of the many fields in which nanotechnology is currently applied. At the nano-scale, materials exhibit different properties mainly due to the reduced molecular size which allows different interactions between molecules. Nowadays, the agricultural sector demands methods that not only increase crop productivity, but are also sustainable and produce less environmental impact. Large-scale application of chemical fertilizers is common in farming with the aim of increasing productivity. The use of large doses of fertilizers, however, causes more harm than good. Chemically intensive agriculture disturbs the soil-mineral balance, pollutes soil, water and air, and makes lands less …
Microalgae, old sustainable food and fashion nutraceuticals.
2017
8 p.-1 fig.
The interplay of landscape composition and configuration: new pathways to manage functional biodiversity and agroecosystem services across Europe
2019
Managing agricultural landscapes to support biodiversity and ecosystem services is a key aim of a sustainable agriculture. However, how the spatial arrangement of crop fields and other habitats in landscapes impacts arthropods and their functions is poorly known. Synthesising data from 49 studies (1515 landscapes) across Europe, we examined effects of landscape composition (% habitats) and configuration (edge density) on arthropods in fields and their margins, pest control, pollination and yields. Configuration effects interacted with the proportions of crop and non-crop habitats, and species’ dietary, dispersal and overwintering traits led to contrasting responses to landscape variables. O…
Towards food, feed and energy crops mitigating climate change
2011
Agriculture is an important source of anthropogenic emissions of the greenhouse gases (GHG), methane (CH 4 ) and nitrous oxide (N 2 O), and crops can affect the microbial processes controlling these emissions in many ways. Here, we summarize the current knowledge of plant–microbe interactions in relation to the CH 4 and N 2 O budgets and show how this is promoting new generations of crop cultivars that have the potential to mitigate GHG emissions for future agricultural use. The possibility of breeding low GHG-emitting cultivars is a paradigm shift towards sustainable agriculture that balances climate change and food and bioenergy security.
Anthocyanins: Biosynthesis, Distribution, Ecological Role, and Use of Biostimulants to Increase Their Content in Plant Foods—A Review
2021
In the past century, plant biostimulants have been increasingly used in agriculture as innovative and sustainable practice. Plant biostimulants have been mainly investigated as potential agents able to mitigate abiotic stress. However, few information is available about their ability to influence fruit quality or change fruit phytochemical composition. In particular, very little is known about their effects on anthocyanin synthesis and accumulation. Due to the increasing demand of consumers for healthier foods with high nutraceutical values, this review tries to fill the gap between anthocyanin content and biostimulant application. Here, we elucidate the chemical structure, biosynthetic pat…
An Updated Checklist of the Sicilian Native Edible Plants: Preserving the Traditional Ecological Knowledge of Century-Old Agro-Pastoral Landscapes
2020
The traditional use of native wild food plants (NWFP) may represent a valuable supplementary food source for the present and future generations. In Sicily, the use of wild plants in the human diet dates back to very ancient times and still plays an important role in some rural communities. Moreover, in this regard, the natural and cultural inheritance of this island is wealthy and diversified for several reasons. First, Sicily hosts a rich vascular flora, with 3,000 native and 350 endemic plants. Second, due to its central position in the Mediterranean, the island has acted as a veritable melting pot for the ethnobotanical knowledge of the rural communities of the entire basin. We reviewed …
Transformation of agricultural landscapes in the Anthropocene: Nature's contributions to people, agriculture and food security
2020
Fil: Vanbergen, Adam J. Université de Bourgogne Franche-Comté. AgroSup Dijon. Agroécologie. Francia. Fil: Aizen, Marcelo A. Universidad Nacional del Comahue. Instituto de Investigaciones en Biodiversidad y Medioambiente. Rio Negro, Argentina. Fil: Aizen, Marcelo A. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas de Argentina. Instituto de Investigaciones en Biodiversidad y Medioambiente. Rio Negro, Argentina. Fil: Cordeau, Stephane. Université de Bourgogne Franche-Comté. AgroSup Dijon. Agroécologie. Francia. Fil: Garibaldi, Lucas A. Universidad Nacional de Río Negro. Instituto de Investigaciones en Recursos Naturales, Agroecología y Desarrollo Rural. Río Negro, Argentina. Fil: Ga…
Nonchemical weeding of medicinal and aromatic plants
2013
International audience; Medicinal and aromatic plants are major crops of domestic and industrial interest. Medicinal and aromatic plants are increasingly organically grown to enhance profitability. However, the presence of weeds may lead to a decrease in both yield and quality. Therefore, nonchemical methods of weed control are needed. In this study, mechanical weeding, flaming, stale seedbed, and biodegradable mulch were tested from 2003/2004 to 2006/2007 on coriander, fennel, and psyllium. Biomass and seed yield were measured. The biomass of weeds remaining at harvest was also measured. Results show a high sensitivity of coriander, fennel, and psyllium crops to the presence of weeds. Stal…