Integrated Soil and Water Management for Orchard Development


Book Description

This publication contains the proceedings of an international seminar held in May 2004 at the Univesity of Teramo (Italy). It discusses the role and importance of integrated soil and water management in orchards (vineyards and olive orchards) and it is intended to highlight the better use of resources. This publication will contribute to raising awareness of the possibilities for the better use of rainwater and improved management of soils with reduced erosion. It will be useful to anyone concerned with maintaining and improving the quality of soil including farmers, researchers, advisory staff, consultants and technical decision-makers.




Intensified Land and Water Use


Book Description

This book combines multidisciplinary studies on the environmental consequences of intensified use of land and water, and the fusion of land to provide food for a growing population. Studies on water, vegetation, and soil are addressed from an environmental management perspective with a special focus on the relation between natural elements and humans. This book considers the essential dynamics of humans and the natural environment, which is especially important in areas with shallow water-table that influence directly on agricultural activities (crops, livestock, and forests), land management, flooding, droughts, waterlogging, salt-affected soils (saline and sodic) and variation in obtained water quality in wells where these processes as related to the local and regional geomorphology control. The studies present hydrological processes towards the definition of an adequate use of soil and water with consequences of its management on the environment. Also, water study procedures are presented as well as their relation to other elements of the landscape. Methodologies such as the Tóthian flow system concept are recognized by different authors to provide the reader with solid interdisciplinary analyses of related environmental components such as soils, vegetation, surface water, geomorphology, geological framework and groundwater physical-chemical composition.




Drought-resistant Soils


Book Description

The conference was organised to identify, describe, discuss and promote actions that will assist farmers to improve water-use efficiency in rainfed agriculture and drought-proof their systems. The publication contains an analytical sumary of the conference discussions, abstracts of papers submitted during the conference and discussion papers prepared to introduce the different topics. The full document is included on the accompanying CD-ROM.




Integrated Soil Fertility Management in Africa


Book Description

Forward. A call for integrated soil fertility management in Africa. Introduction. ISFM and the African farmer. Part I. The principles of ISFM: ISFM as a strategic goal, Fertilizer management within ISFM, Agro-minerals in ISFM, Organic resource management, ISFM, soil biota and soil health. Part II. ISFM practices: ISFM products and fields practices, ISFM practice in drylands, ISFM practice in savannas and woodlands, ISFM practice in the humid forest zone, Conservation Agriculture. Part III. The process of implementing ISFM: soil fertility diagnosis, soil fertility management advice, Dissemination of ISFM technologies, Designing an ISFM adoption project, ISFM at farm and landscape scales. Part IV. The social dimensions of ISFM: The role of ISFM in gender empowerment, ISFM and household nutrition, Capacity building in ISFM, ISFM in the policy arena, Marketing support for ISFM, Advancing ISFM in Africa. Appendices: Mineral nutrient contents of some common organic resources.




Artificial Neural Network Modelling


Book Description

This book covers theoretical aspects as well as recent innovative applications of Artificial Neural networks (ANNs) in natural, environmental, biological, social, industrial and automated systems. It presents recent results of ANNs in modelling small, large and complex systems under three categories, namely, 1) Networks, Structure Optimisation, Robustness and Stochasticity 2) Advances in Modelling Biological and Environmental Systems and 3) Advances in Modelling Social and Economic Systems. The book aims at serving undergraduates, postgraduates and researchers in ANN computational modelling.




Soil Erosion and Sediment Flux in Northern Jordan


Book Description

This book combines new quantitative erosion measurement methods with a geochemical fingerprint and a model-based approach to measure erosion and sediment flux in the Wadi Al-Arab, a Mediterranean to semi-arid catchment in northwest Jordan. The outcomes reveal the local importance of soil erosion and sediment yield in connection with sedimentation and pollution of surface water bodies, propose managed aquifer recharge strategies that focus on in-channel constructions, and can be used to support local soil management strategies. In Jordan, one of the most water scarcity-affected countries in the world, erosion and sedimentation negatively impact integrative water resource management projects, such as water reservoirs and groundwater recharge basins. This book combines a multiple-response approach with new qualitative methods, such as olive mound measurements and OSL dating of Roman cistern sediments, to obtain long-term average erosion rates in the Mediterranean to semi-arid Wadi Al-Arab catchment in northwest Jordan. The implementation and enhancement of a geochemical sediment fingerprint of the reservoir sediments helped to provide new insights on sediment connectivity. Lastly, the outcomes were compiled and tested in the SedNet model, which provides a more holistic view of the results at the catchment scale and can effectively complement local management strategies.




Sustainable Agriculture Reviews 28


Book Description

This book presents ecological principles and applications of managing biodiversity in agriculture to decrease pesticide use and produce safe food. Major topics include ecosystem services biological pest control, conservation agriculture, drought stress, and soil biodiversity, carbon and fertilisation.




Organic Farming, Pest Control and Remediation of Soil Pollutants


Book Description

Sustainable agriculture is a rapidly growing field aiming at producing food and energy in a sustainable way for humans and their children. Sustainable agriculture is a discipline that addresses current issues such as climate change, increasing food and fuel prices, poor-nation starvation, rich-nation obesity, water pollution, soil erosion, fertility loss, pest control, and biodiversity depletion. Novel, environmentally-friendly solutions are proposed based on integrated knowledge from sciences as diverse as agronomy, soil science, molecular biology, chemistry, toxicology, ecology, economy, and social sciences. Indeed, sustainable agriculture decipher mechanisms of processes that occur from the molecular level to the farming system to the global level at time scales ranging from seconds to centuries. For that, scientists use the system approach that involves studying components and interactions of a whole system to address scientific, economic and social issues. In that respect, sustainable agriculture is not a classical, narrow science. Instead of solving problems using the classical painkiller approach that treats only negative impacts, sustainable agriculture treats problem sources. Because most actual society issues are now intertwined, global, and fast-developing, sustainable agriculture will bring solutions to build a safer world. This book series gathers review articles that analyze current agricultural issues and knowledge, then propose alternative solutions. It will therefore help all scientists, decision-makers, professors, farmers and politicians who wish to build a safe agriculture, energy and food system for future generations.




Water Stress and Crop Plants


Book Description

Plants are subjected to a variety of abiotic stresses such as drought, temperature, salinity, air pollution, heavy metals, UV radiations, etc. To survive under these harsh conditions plants are equipped with different resistance mechanisms which vary from species to species. Due to the environmental fluctuations agricultural and horticultural crops are often exposed to different environmental stresses leading to decreased yield and problems in the growth and development of the crops. Drought stress has been found to decrease the yield to an alarming rate of some important crops throughout the globe. During last few decades, lots of physiological and molecular works have been conducted under water stress in crop plants. Water Stress and Crop Plants: A Sustainable Approach presents an up-to-date in-depth coverage of drought and flooding stress in plants, including the types, causes and consequences on plant growth and development. It discusses the physiobiochemical, molecular and omic approaches, and responses of crop plants towards water stress. Topics include nutritional stress, oxidative stress, hormonal regulation, transgenic approaches, mitigation of water stress, approaches to sustainability, and modern tools and techniques to alleviate the water stress on crop yields. This practical book offers pragmatic guidance for scientists and researchers in plant biology, and agribusinesses and biotechnology companies dealing with agronomy and environment, to mitigate the negative effects of stress and improve yield under stress. The broad coverage also makes this a valuable guide enabling students to understand the physiological, biochemical, and molecular mechanisms of environmental stress in plants.




Soil Erosion Issues in Agriculture


Book Description

The book deals with several aspects of soil erosion, focusing on its connection with the agricultural world. Chapters’ topics are various, ranging from irrigation practices to soil nutrient, land use changes or tillage methodologies. The book is subdivided into fourteen chapters, sorted in four sections, grouping different facets of the topic: introductive case studies, erosion management in vineyards, soil erosion issue in dry environments, and erosion control practices. Certainly, due to the extent of the subject, the book is not a comprehensive collection of soil erosion studies, but it aims to supply a sound set of scientific works, concerning the topic. It analyzes different facets of the issue, with various methodologies, and offers a wide series of case studies, solutions, practices, or suggestions to properly face soil erosion and, moreover, may provide new ideas and starting points for future researches.