8FQGNAMR

3403

21 avril 2021 13:49

21 avril 2021 13:49

Background Reduced tillage and green manuring are environmentally friendly practices that increase levels of soil organic matter and biological activity, improve soil stability, and reduce fuel consumption. The avoidance of deep ploughing is successfully practised as no-tillage agriculture in conventional farming systems; however, these no-tillage systems rely on herbicides for weed control and mineral fertilisers for plant nutrients. The TILMAN-ORG project focuses on strategies for efficient weed management and improvement of nutrient management. In order to quantify the potential to contribute to climate change mitigation greenhouse gas emissions will be assessed. Project objectives The overall goals of the project are to design improved organic cropping systems with enhanced productivity and nutrient use efficiency, more efficient weed management and increased biodiversity, but lower carbon footprints. Methods These goals will be achieved by adapting and integrating conservation agriculture techniques (in particular reduced tillage and improved use of green manures) into organic farming systems to intensify biological soil functions like nutrient cycling, soil carbon build-up, and biological nitrogen fixation, while at the same time optimising management protocols for weeds (which are the main challenge when introducing minimum tillage systems). Optimum techniques for organic systems will be identified using an integrated approach: 1. Farmers' experiences and perceptions about reduced tillage and green manures will be assessed in semi-structured interviews. Existing data from medium and long-term trials on reduced tillage and green manures provided by the consortium and the published existing peer reviewed and grey literature, will be evaluated with respect to yield stabilisation, soil quality and biodiversity (WP1 and WP2). 2. Experimental Case Studies on soil quality and greenhouse gas emissions, weed management and functional biodiversity, and improved nutrient management will be carried out, and carbon stocks under reduced tillage compared to ploughing will be measured (WPs3-5). Data from long-term tillage trials across Europe will be exploited to calibrate NDICEA, a decision support tool to predict soil organic carbon and nitrogen fluxes in the soil - plant system. 3. Design of optimised cropping systems by modelling approaches based on results from the literature and case studies (WP6). This will also involve the preparation of guidelines focused on helping farmers to address weed management challenges, and temporary shortages of nitrogen supply in order to improve yields and yield stability, thus improving both the environmental and economic sustainability of organic farming systems.

None

• AB - Spécifique
• CORE Organic
• FREDO adventice
• FREDO biologie et travail du sol
• FREDO durabilité
• FREDO fertilisation
• GEO Europe
• biodiversité
• carbon footprint
• engrais vert
• labour
• manure
• nutrient management
• projet
• soil
• tillage